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STORY OF THE NEW WORLD. 



BEING A COMPLETE 



4^T0RY^UmTED^ATES 

PROM THE 

Discovery of the American Continent to the Present Time, 

CONTAINING 

ACCOUNTS OF THE DISCOVERIES AND EXPLORATIONS OF THE NORSEMEN. 

SPANIARDS, ENGLISH AND FRENCH ; THE MOUND BUILDERS ; THE 

AMERICAN INDIANS; THE SETTLEMENT OF THE NEW 

WORLD; THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS; THE 

STRUGGLE OF THE REVOLUTION; 

The Establishment of the American Republic; 

THE SECOND WAR WITH ENGLx\ND ; THE MEXICAN WAR; THE LONG 

PERIOD OF PEACE ; THE HISTORY OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR ; 

THE CENTENNIAL OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE, AND 

ALL IMPORTANT EVENTS, DOWN TO THE PRESENT 

TIME, WITH VALUABLE STATISTICS FROM 

THE LATEvST CENSUS. 



BY ; ' 

REV. HENRY DAVENPORT NORTHROP, D.D., 

THE WELL-KNOWN HISTORIAN. 



EMBELLISHED WITH NEARLY 500 SUPERB ENGRAVINGS. 

.1 

PHILADELPHIA: ^-—OO ^/ 

NATIONAL PUBLISHING CO,, ^"^7/ 

239 Levant Street. 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year I S92. by 

J. K: JONES. 

1,1 tlir Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. D. (' 






PREFACE. 



THERE is nothing more worthy of a 
man's study than the history of his 
country. In our own land, how- 
ever, the means of pursuing such a 
5tudy are Hmited. Our great cities contain 
large and valuable public libraries, and the 
collections of our historical societies are rich 
and very complete ; but these are accessible 
only to the communities in which they are 
located, and are practically useless to the 
majority of the American people. The great 
works of Bancroft and Hildreth cover but a 
portion of our history, and are removed from 
the r^ch of the masses by reason of their 
costliness. Besides these, the larger number 
of the works treating of American history are 
compendiums, or outlines intended, for the 
use of schools, and are therefore unsatisfac- 
tory to the adult reader. 

The demand for a popular History of the 
United States which shall fill a place between 
these greater and smaller works has led the 
author to the preparation of this volume. He 
has endeavored to popularize the story of the 
nation, and at the same time to neglect noth- 
ing that could in the least contribute to a 
clear and comprehensive understanding of 
the subject. He has sought to trace the his- 
tory of the Republic from the discovery of 
the American continent to the present day, 
and has endeavored especially to fix the 
attention of the reader upon the various influ- 
ences which have aided in moulding our 
national character, and have produced our 
distinctive political and moral national traits. 



He has endeavored to write from a broad 
national standpoint, and to cultivate in the 
minds of his readers that feeling ot national 
patriotism which must ever be the safeguard 
of our country. 

It is a fitting time to consider the story of 
the past, to learn the lessons which it teaches, 
and to ponder the warnings which it conveys 
for the future. Four hundred years ago 
America was an unknown wilderness. Less 
than three centuries ago it passed into the 
hands of England, and was thus secured for 
the language and the free influences of the 
all-conquering Anglo-Saxon race. It was a 
precious heritage which was thus secured for 
liberty ; a land stretching from the frozen 
regions of the north to the sunny skies of the 
tropics, from the stormy Atlantic to the calm 
Pacific ; a land embracing every variety of 
climate, and a soil capable of producing 
almost every product of the earth, from 
the stunted herbage of the frozen regions 
to the luxuriant fruits of the tropics. The 
earth is rich in mineral deposits, from the 
homely, but invaluable, veins of coal, to beds 
of the most brilliant and precious minerals. 
It pours out in streams, oil for burning, gas 
that may be used fresh from the natural 
springs, salt that requires but the heat of the 
sun for its perfection, and beds of pure soda 
that cover the earth like the dust in the high- 
ways. In short, all that is needed for the pres- 
ervation and comfort of animal and human 
life exists, in this favored land in the greatest 
profusion. 

V 



VI 



PREFACE. 



Such is the land designed by God for the 
home of liberty. The people to whom He 
has intrusted it have not abused His good- 
ness. In the short space of two centuries, 
the American people have grown from a 
small handful of hardy adventurers to a 
" mighty continental nation," increasing with 
a rapidity that is almost marvellous. They 
have built up their country on a scale of 
magnificence of which they are justly proud. 
They have covered it with powerful and free 
States, and splendid cities, connected by a 
network of railways, telegraphs, navigable 
rivers, and canals, which bind all the scat- 
tered parts into one solid whole. They have 
made a commerce and a system of manufac- 
tures before which the fabled wealth of Tyre 
sinks into insignificance. They have created 
a literature which commands the respect of 
the world; they have illustrated their history 
witfi deeds of arms not less splendid than 
their more peaceful achievements, and have 
given to the world names in every walk of 
life that will never die. They have shown 
that liberty and power can go hand in hand; 
they have made themselves a nation in which 
God is feared, and of which Christianity is the 
basis, in which ignorance and vice are des- 
pised, and in which the great lesson that lib- 
erty is possible only to an educated and 
virtuous people is being practically demon- 
strated. 

This is a grand history — a record of 
the highest achievement of humanity — the 



noblest, most thrilling, and glorious story 
ever penned on earth. Yet the fact remains 
that the great mass of the American people 
are but imperfectly acquainted with it. There 
is a real need that we should know better 
than we do what we have done. It is only 
by a thoughtful study of our past that we can 
safely provide for the perils of the future. 
We have triumphed over adversity, and we 
are now called upon to bear the test of suc- 
cess. He can be no good citizen who is 
ignorant of his country's history. 

In the preparation of this volume, no 
authority of importance has been overlooked; 
the author has carefully searched every 
source of information open to him ; and has 
availed himself of every fact that could throw 
new light upon, or impart additional interest 
to, the subject under consideration. 

In the narration of military events, he has 
preferred to give each campaign as a whole 
rather than to mingle several by pre^nting 
the events in chronological order. At the 
same time he has sought to preserve the 
inter-relation of events in one field of opera- 
tions to those in the others. 

The book is offered to the public in the 
sincere hope that it may induce its readers to 
take to heart the lessons which our history 
teaches, and to set' a higher value upon the 
precious heritage of constitutional liberty 
which our fathers won for us with their blood, 
and handed down to us in trust for our chil- 
dren's children. 



CONTENTS. 



BOOK I. 
Discovery of the W^estern Continent. 

CHAPTER I. 
Strange People in a Strange Land. 

PAGE 

Earliest Inhabitants of the United States — The 
Mound Builders — Remarkable Works Constructed 
by Them — Evidences of a Primitive Civilization — 
Indications of the Antiquity of this Period — A Re- 
markable Cherokee — Who Were the Mound Build- 
ers — Ancient Phoenicians — False Assumption — The 
American Indians — Divisions of the Country Among 
the Tribes — Names and Location of the Various 
Tribes — Organization and Government of the In- 
dians — Their Dress, Manners and Customs — Vil- 
lages — Indian Inventions — The War Dance — Le- 
gends of the Norsemen Respecting the Discovery of 
America . . > 17 

CHAPTER II. 

The Voyages of Columbus. 
Maritime Enterprise in the Fifteenth Century — The- 
ories Respecting the Earth's Surface— Christopher 
Columbus — His Early Life — His Theory of a West- 
ern Passage to India — His Struggles to Obtain the 
Means of Making a Voyage — Is Aided by Ferdi- 
nand and Isabella of Spain — His First Voyage — 
Discovery of America — Reception in Spain — His 
Second Voyage — Settlement of Hayti — Third Voy- 
age of Columbus — He Reaches the Mainland — Dis- 
covery of Gold in Hayti — Troubles in the Colony 
— Columbus Sent to Spain in Irons — Indignation of 
the Queen — Last Voyage of Columbus — His Ship- 
wreck — Returns to Spain — Refusal of Ferdinand to 
Comply with His Promises — Death of Columbus — 
Amerigo Vespucci — Origin of the Name America 32 

CHAPTER III. 

English and French Discoveries. 
Discovery of the North American Continent by John 
Cabot — Voyages of Sebastian Cabot — The English 
Fail to Follow Up these Discoveries — Efforts of the 



French to Explore America — Voyage and Discov- 
eries of Verrazzani — Cartier Explores the St. Law- 
rence — Reaches Montreal — Efforts to Found a Col- 
ony on the St. Lawrence — Failure — Roberval's 
Colony — Trading Voyages — Explorations of Cham- 
plain — Colonization of Nova Scotia — Founding of 
Quebec — Discovery of Lake Champlain — Arrival of 
the Jesuits in Canada — Death of Cliamplain ... 43 

CHAPTER IV. 

The Spaniards in America. 
Settlement of the West Indies — Discovery of the Pa- 
cific Ocean — Voyage of Magellan — Discovery of 
Florida — Ponce de Leon's Search for the Fountain 
of Youth — Vasquez de Ayllon Kidnaps a Cargo of 
Indians — Effort of Pamphilo de Narvaez to Con- 
quer Florida — A Terrible March — The Voyage on 
the Gulf of Mexico — F'ate of the Fleet — Escape of 
Cabeza de Vaca and His Comrades — Discovery of 
New Mexico — Ferdinand de Soto — Obtains Leave 
to Conquer Florida — Sails from Spain — Arrival in 
Cuba — Departure for Florida — Landing at Tampa 
Bay — Events of the First Year — De Soto Enters 
Georgia — Descends the Alabama — Battle of Ma- 
villa — Destruction of Chickasaw — Sufferings of the 
Spaniards — Discovery of the Mississippi — The 
Spaniards Cross the Great River — De Soto in Ar- 
kansas — Reaches the Mississippi Again — Sickness 
and Death of De Soto — His Burial — Escape of His 
Followers to Mexico — The Huguenot Colony in 
Carolina — Its Failure — The French Settle in 
Florida — Wrath of Philip II. — Melendez Ordered 
to Exterminate the Huguenots — Foundation of St. 
Augustine — Massacre of the French at Fort Caro- 
lina — The Vengeance of De (iourges 50 

CHAPTER V. 

The First English Colony. 
The English Claim to America — Voyages of Fro- 
bisher — Exploits of Sir Francis Drake — Sir Humph- 
rey Gilbert — Intends to found a Colony in America 
— Is lost at Sea — Sir Walter Raleigh obtains a Pat- 
ent of Colonization — Discoveries of Aniidas and 

vii 



Vlll 



CONTENTS. 



ISarlow — Ralcit^h sends out a Colony to Virginia — 
Settlement on Roanoke Island — Its 1-ailure — Arri- 
val of Grenville — Second Effort of Raleigh to Colo- 
nize Virginia — Roanoke Island again Settled — The 
"City of Raleigh" — Virginia Dare — Fate of the 
Colony — Death of Raleigh — Other Voyages of the 
English 63 



BOOK II. 

Settlement of America. 

CHAPTER VI. 

Captain John Smith and Pocahontas. 
Formation of the London Company — Conditions of its 
Charter — Departure of the first Colony — Quarrels 
during the Voyage — Arrival in the Chesapeake — 
Settlement of Jamestown — Formation of the Gov- 
ernment — Character of Captain John Smith — Ex- 
ploration of the James River — Newport and Smith 
visit Powhatan — Smith Admitted to the Govern- 
ment — Explores the Chickahominy — Is Captured 
and Sentenced to Death — Is Saved by Pocahontas — 
Gains the Friendship of Powhatan for the Colony 
— Returns to Jamestown — His Decisive Measures — 
Return of Newport — Smith Explores the Chesa- 
peake Bay — The new Emigrants — Smith compels 
them to Labor — Smith is Wounded and compelled 
to return to England — Disasters to the Colony — Ar- 
rival of Sir Thomas Gates — Jamestown Abandoned 
— Arrival of Lord Delaware — The Return to James- 
town — A Change for the Better — New Settlements 
— Sir Thomas Gates arrives with Reinforcements — 
Capture of Pocahontas by Captain Argall — She is 
Baptized — Marries John Rolfe — Sir Thomas Dale's 
Administration — Yeardley Governor — The first Leg- 
islative Assembly — Representative Government es- 
tablished in America — The Colonists obtain Wives 
— Changes in the Government 7_: 

CHAPTER VII. 
Progress of the Virginia Colony. 
Introduction of Negro Slavery into Virginia — Efforts of 
the Assembly to Restrict Slavery — The Indians At- 
tempt the Destruction of the Colony — Terrible Suf- 
ferings of the Whites — Aid from England — The 
Indian War Begun — King James Revokes the Char- 
ter of the London Company — Charles I. Desires a 
Monopoly of the Tobacco Trade — Action of the 
Assembly — Sir William Berkeley's First Adminis- 
tration — Severe Measures against Dissenters — Close 
of the Indian War — Death of Opechancanough — 



Emigration of Royalists to Virginia — Virginia and 
and the Commonwealth — Treaty with England — 
The Assembly Asserts its Independence of the Gov- 
ernor — The Restoration — Berkeley Chosen Gover- 
nor by the Assembly — His Hypocrisy 8g 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Virginia After the Restoration. 

Characteristics of the Virginians — Causes of the Suc- 
cess of the Royalists — Growth of the Aristocratic 
Class — Berkeley decides against the People — The 
Aristocratic Assembly Claims the Right to sit Per- 
petually — Deprives the Common People of their 
Liberties-rRevival of the Navigation Act by Charles 
II. — The King bestows Virginia as a Gift upon his 
Favorites — Protests of the Assembly — Growing Hos- 
tility of the Virginians to the Colonial Government — 
The Indian War — The Governor Refuses to allow 
the Colonists to Defend themselves — Nathaniel Ba- 
con — He Marches against the Indians — Rebellion 
of the People against Berkeley and the Assembly — 
The Convention — Repeal of the Obnoxious Laws — 
Berkeley's Duplicity — The People take up Arms 
— Flight of Berkeley — Destruction of Jamestown — 
Death of Bacon — Causes of the Failure of the Rebel- 
lion — Berkeley's Triumph — Execution of the Patriot 
Leaders — Berkeley's Course Condemned by the 
King — Death of Berkeley — The Unjust Laws Re- 
enacted — Lord Culpepper Governor — His Extor- 
tions — James II. and Virginia — Effects upon Vir- 
ginia of the Revolution of 1688 — William and Mary 
College Founded 98 

CHAPTER IX. 

The Colonization of Maryland. 

Extent of the Territory of Virginia — Clayborn's Trad- 
ing-Posts established — Sir George Calvert, Lord 
Baltimore — Becomes interested in American coloni- 
zation — Obtains a Grant of Maryland — Terms of 
the Charter — A Colony sent out — Arrival in the 
Chesapeake — St. Mary's Founded — Charter of the 
Colony — Friendly Relations established with the 
Indians — First Legislature of Maryland — Trouble 
with Clayborne — Rapid Growth of the Colony — 
Progress of Popular Liberty — Policy respecting the 
Treatment of the Indians — Clayborne's Rebellion — 
Law granting Religious toleration enacted — Condi- 
tion of Maryland under the Commonwealth — The 
People declared Supreme — Lord Baltimore re- 
covers his Proprietary Rights — Characteristics of 
the Colony — Rapid Increase in Population — Charles 
Calvert, Governor — Death of the second Lord 



CONTENTS. 



IX 



Baltimore — Roman Catholics disfranchised — Maiy- 
land becomes a Royal Province — Triumph of the 
Protestants — Annapolis made the Seat of Govern- 
ment — Restoration of the Proprietary Government — 
Continued Prosperity of Maryland Ill 

CHAPTER X. 

The Pilgrim Fathers. 
Rise of the Puritans — Their Increase in England — 
They are Persecuted by the English Church and 
Government — Conduct of James I. — His Hatred of 
Puritanism — Puritans take Refuge in Holland — The 
Congregation of John Robinson — They Escape to 
Holland— The Pilgrims — their Sojourn at Leyden — 
They wi.sh to Emigrate to Virginia — -Failure of their 
Negotiations with the London Company — They 
form a Partnership in England — -A Hard Bargain — 
Departure of the Pilgrims from Holland — Voyage 
of the " Mayflower " — Arrival in New England — 
The Agreement on board the " Mayflower" — Car- 
ver chosen Governoi- — Settlement of Plymouth — 
The first Winter in New England — Sufferings of 
the Pilgrims — Arrival of new Emigrants — Continued 
Suffering — -Assignment of Lands — Friendly In- 
tercourse with Indians — Samoset and Squanto — 
Visit of Massasoit — A Threat of War — Bradford's 
Defiance — Weston's Men — A Narrow Escape — -The 
Colonists Purchase the Interests of their English 
Partners — Lands Assigned in Fee Simple — The 
Colony Benefited by the Change — Government of 
Plymouth — Steady Growth of the Colony .... 121 

CHAPTER XI. 

Settlement of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. 

Settlement of New Hampshire — The EngHsh Puritans 
determine to form a new Colony in America — The 
Plymouth Council — A Colony sent out to Salem 
under Endicott — Colonization of Massachusetts 
Bay begun — A Charter obtained — Concessions of 
the King — Progress of the Salem Colony — The 
Charter and Government of the Col<'ny removed to 
New England — Arrival of Governor Winthrop — 
Settlement of Boston — Sufferings ofthS Colonists — 
Roger Williams — His Opinions give offence to the 
Authorities — The Success of the Bay Colony Estab- 
lished — Growth of Popular Liberty — The Ballot 
Box — Banishment of Roger Williams — He goes 
into the Wilderness — Founds Providence — Growth 
of Williams's Colony — C nued Growth of Massa- 
chusetts — Arrival of Sir Henry Vane — Is elected 
Governor — Mrs. Anne Hutchinson — The Antino- 
mian Controversy — Mrs. Hutchinson banished — 
Settlement of Rhode Island — Murder of Mrs. 
Hutchinson . 1 38 



CHAPTER XH. 

Colonization of Connecticut. 

PAGE 

The Dutch claim the Connecticut Valley — They build 
a Fort at Hartford — Governor W'inslow makes a 
Lodgment in Connecticut for the English — With- 
drawal of the Dutch — The First Efforts of the Eng- 
lish to Settle Connecticut — Emigration of Hooker 
and his Congregation — They Settle at Hartford — 
Winthrop builds a Fort at Saybrook — Hostility of 
the Indians — Visit of Roger Williams to Miantono- 
moh — A Brave Deed — The Pequod War — Capture 
of the Indian Fort — Destruction of the Pequod 
Tribe — Effect of this War upon the other Tribes — 
Connecticut Adopts a Constitution — Its Peculiar 
Features — Settlement of New Haven 150 

CHAPTER Xni. 

The Union of the New England Colonies. 

Feeling of the Colonies towards England — Hostility of 
the English Government to New England — Efforts 
to Introduce Episcopacy — Massachusetts Threatens 
Resistance— The Revolution in England — Estab- 
lishment of Free Schools in New England — Har- 
vard College — The Printing Press — The Long Par- 
liament Friendly to New England — The United 
Colonies of New England — Rhode Island obtains a 
Charter — Maine Annexed to Massachusetts — The 
Quakers are Persecuted — Efforts to Christianize the 
Indians — John Eliot, the Apostle to the Indians . . 157 

CHAPTER XIV. 

New England After the Restoration. 
Arrival of the News of the Restoration of Charles II. 
— The Regicides in New England — They are Pro- 
tected — Revival of the Navigation Acts — Effect of 
this Measure upon the New England Colonies^ 
Massachusetts delays the Proclamation of the King 
—Connecticut obtains a Charter — Union of New 
Haven with the Connecticut Colony — Rhode Island 
given a new Charter — Massachusetts settles her diffi- 
culties with the Crown — Changes in the Govern- 
ment — High-handed acts of the Royal Commission- 
ers — Troubles with the Indians — Injustice of the 
Whites — King Philip's War — A Forest Hero — An 
Incident in the Attack upon Hadley — Sufferings of 
the Colonies — Destruction of the Narraganseits — 
Death of Philip — Close of the War — England asserts 
her right to Tax the Colonies — Massachusetts buys 
Gorges' claims to Maine — New Hampshire made a 
separate Piovince — James II. Revokes the Charter 
of Massachusetts — Dudley and Randolph in New 
England — Andros appointed Governor-General — ■ 



CONTENTS. 



His Tyranny — He demands the Charter of Connect- 
icut — It is carried away and Hidden — The Charter 
Oak— Fall of James II.— The people of Massachu- 
setts take up Arras — Andros arrested — Effects of 
the Revolution upon New England 1 66 

CHAPTER XV. 

Witchcraft in Massachusetts. 
Results of the Failure of Massachusetts to Resume her 
Charter — The New Charter — Loss of the Liberties 
of the Colony — Union of Plymouth with Massachu- 
setts Bay — Belief in Witchcraft — The History of 
Witchcraft in Massachusetts — The Case of the Good- 
win Children — Cotton Mather espouses the Cause of 
the Witches — Samuel Parris — He Originates the Sa- 
lem Delusion — A Strange History — A Special Court 
Appointed for the Tiial of the Witches — The Vic- 
tims — Execution of the Rev. George Burroughs — 
Cotton Mather's Part in the Tragedies — The Gen- 
eral Court takes Action in behalf of the People — 
End of the Persecution — Failure of Cotton Mather's 
Attempt to Save his Credit 182 

CHAPTER XVr. 

Tiuc Settlement of New York. 
Voyages of Henry Hudson — He is Employed by the 
Dutch — Discovery of the Hudson River — Early 
Dutch \'oyages — Adrian lUock — Fate of Hudson — 
The Dutch build a Foit on Manhattan Island — Set- 
tlement of New Amsterdam — The Province named 
New Netherlands — Fort Nassau — Peter Minuits 
Governor — The Dutch Settlement of Delaware — 
Wouter Van Twiller— Kieft Governor — His Unjust 
Treatment of the Indians — Massacre of the Indians 
at Hoboken — The Indian War — Stuyvesant Ap- 
pointed Governor — Disputes with the English in 
Connecticut — The Swedes Settle Delaware — Stuy- 
vesant Captures the Swedish Forts — Growth of New 
Amsterdam — Disputes between the Peo]ileand Gov- 
ernor — Growing .Spirit of Popular I.i'.^erty — The 
People Appeal to the .States General — Capture of 
New Netherlands by the English — The Name of the 
Province changed to New York — Results of the 
P'nglish Conquest — Progress of New Jersey — An- 
dros Governor of New York — He Fails to Establish 
his Authority over Connecticut — New York allowed 
an Assembly — Discontents of the People — Leisler's 
Rebellion — Execution of Leisler and Milbourne — 
lletcher Governor — His Attempt to obtain Com- 
mand of the Connecticut Militia — Episcopacy Es- 
tablished in New York — The Freedom of the Press 
Sustained — New Jersey a Royal I'rovince .... 193 



CHAPTER XVn. 
Colonization of Pennsylvania. 

PAGE 

The Quakers — Their Origin and Doctrines — William 
Penn — Becomes a Quaker — Is Persecuted for his 
Religious Opinions — Becomes interested in Ameri- 
can Colonization — Purchases West Jersey from the 
Proprietor — Conceives the Idea of Founding a P'ree 
State in America — Purchases Pennsylvania from 
Charles II. — Conditions of his Charter — Sends out 
a Colony — Arrival of Penn in America — Philadel- 
phia Founded — Penn's Treaty with the Indians — 
Religious Toleration Guaranteed — Penn's Relations 
with his Colonists — Rapid Growth of Pennsylvania 
in Population and Prosperity — William Penn and 
James II. — Renewal of Penn's Troubles — William 
HI. Declares Pennsylvania a Royal Province — Penn 
is Vindicated and Restored to his Proprietary Rights 
— His Return to Pennsylvania — Character of the 
Settlers of the Province — Penn Goes Back to 
P^ngland — Efforts to deprive him of his Possessions 
— Ilis Death 215 



CHAPTER XVni. 

Settlement of the Carolinas. 

Gradual Settlement of North Carolina from Virginia — 
Charles II. gi'ants Carolina to Clarendon and others 
— The " Grand Model " — An Ideal Aristocracy 
Proposed for Carolina — The Authority of the Pro- 
prietaries Established in North Carolina — Con- 
tinued Settlement of that Region — Characteristics 
of the Early Settlers of North Carolina — The People 
Reject the Grand Model — Hostility of England to 
the Colonial Commerce — Insurrection in North 
Carolina — Slothel Governor — Settlement of South 
Carolina — Charleston Founded — The Proprietary 
Constitutions Rejected by South Carolina — Rapid 
Growth of the Colony — Introduction of Slavery — 
Chracteristicsof the Early Settlers of South Carolina 
— Efforts to Enforce the Navigation Acts — Resis- 
tance of the People — The Proprietaries Abandon 
their Constitutions — Archdale's Reforms — Religious 
Intolerance — Eatablishment of the Church of Eng- 
land in South Carolina — Action of the Crown — 
Continued Prosperity of South Carolina — Governor 
Moore Attacks St. Augustine — Failure of the 
Effort — The Spaniards are Repulsed in an Attempt 
to Capture Charleston — Indian War in North Caro- 
lina — The Tuscaroras Driven Northward — War 
with the Yemmassees — Destruction of their Power 
— Separation of the Carolinas 227 



CONTENTS. 



XI 



CHAPTER XIX. 

Settlement of Georgia. 

PAGE 

General James Edward Oglethorpe — His Efforts to 
Reform Prison Discipline of England — Proposes to 
Found a Colony in America for the Poor and for 
Prisoners for Debt — A Charter Obtained from the 
King — Colonization of Georgia — Savannah Settled 
— First Years of the Colony — Labors of Oglethorpe 
— Arrival of New Emigrants — Augusta Founded — 
The Moravian Settlements — The Wesleys in Amer- 
ica — George Whitefield — War between England 
and Spain — Oglethorpe Invades Florida — Failure of 
the Attack upon St. Augustine — The Spaniards In- 
vade Georgia — Oglethorpe's Stratagem — Its Success 
— Battle of" Bloody Marsh " — Close of the War — 
Charges against Oglethorpe — His Vindication — 
His Return to Europe — Changes in the Colonial 
Government — Introduction of Slavery into Georgia 
— Prosperity of the Colony 241 

CHAPTER XX. 

The French in the Valley of the Mississippi. 

Origin of the Hostility of the Iriquois to the French 
— Settlement of Canada — Plans of the French res- 
pecting the Indians — The Jesuits — Their Work in 
America — Success of their Missions — The Early 
Missionaries — Foundation of a College at Quebec — 
Efforts of the Jesuits to Convert the Iroquois — 
Father Jogues — Death of Ahasistari — Father 
Allouez — The Missions on the Upper Lakes — 
Father Marquette — His Exploration of the Upper . 
Mississippi — Death of Marquette^ — La Salle — 
Eftbrts of France to Secure the Valley of the Missis- 
sippi — La Salle Descends the Mississippi to its 
Mouth — His Effort to Colonize the Lower Missis- 
sippi — The First Colony in Texas — Its Failure 
Death of La Salle — Lemoine d'Ibberville — Settle- 
ment of Louisiana — Colony of Biloxi — Settlement 
Mobile — Crozat's Monopoly — Founding of New 
Orleans — Detroit Founded — Slow Growth of the 
French Colonies — Occupation of the Ohio Valley 
by the French — Wars with the Indians — Exter- 
mination of the Natchez Tribe — War with the 
Chickasaws 251 

CHAPTER XXI. 

Conflicts Between the English and French. 
Relations Between the English and the Five Nations 
— The Hostility of the Latter to the French — King 
William's War — Destruction of Dover — The Jesuit 
Missionaries Incite the Indians to Attack the Eng- 
lish — Expedition against Quebec — Attack on Dus- 



tin's Farm — Peace of Ryswick — Hostility of the 
English to Roman Catholics — Queen Anne's War 
— Burning of Deerfield — Eunice Williams — Cruel- 
ties of the French — Effort of New England to Con- 
quer Acadia — Capture of Port Royal — Failure of 
the Expedition against Quebec — King George's 
War — Expedition against Louisburg — Its Composi- 
tion — Arrival of the Fleet at Cape Breton — Good 
Conduct of the Provincials — Capture of Louisburg 
— Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle — Unjust Treatment of 
the Colonies by England — Sentiment of the Ameri- 
cans towards England 267 



BOOK III. 
The French and Indian V/ar. 

CHAPTER XXII. 

Outbreak of Hostilities. 

England Claims the Valley of the Ohio — Organiza- 
tion of the Ohio Company — The French Extend 
their Posts into the Ohio Country — Washington's 
Mission to the French at Fort Duquesne — His Jour- 
ney — Reception by the French — His Journey Home 
— A Perilous Undertaking — Organization of the 
Virginia Forces — Washington Made Second in 
Command — The French Drive the English from the 
Head of the Ohio — Fort Duquesne Built by Them 
— Washington Crosses the Mountains — TheFightat 
Great Meadows— Beginning of the French and In- 
dian W^ar — Surrender of Fort Necessity to the 
French — Unjust Treatment of the Colonial Officers 
— Congress of the Colonies at New York — Frank- 
lin's Plan of a Union of the Colonies — Its Failure — 
Reasons of the British Government for Rejecting It 
— England Assumes the Direction of the War — Ar- 
rival of General Braddock — Plan of Campaign — 
Obstinacy of Braddock — He Passes the Mountains 
— Defeat of Braddock — Heroism of Washington — 
Retreat of Dunbar beyond the Mountains — Vigor- 
ous Action of Pennsylvania — Armstrong Defeats the 
Indians and Burns the Town of Kittanning . . . 278 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

Sanguniary Struggles on the Frontier. 

Expedition against Acadia — Brutal Treatment of the 
Acadians — They Are Expelled from their Country 
— A Sad Story — Fate of the Acadians — ^Johnson at 
Lake George — March of Dieskau — Battle of Lake 
George — Failure of Shirley's Expedition — Arrival 
of the Earl of Loudon — Montcalm in Canada — 



Xll 



CONTENTS. 



Capture of Oswego by the French — Outrages of the 
Earl of Loudon upon New York and I'hiladelpliia 
— Expedition against Louisburg — How the Eail of 
Loudon Beat the French — Capture of Fort William 
Henry by Montcalm — Massacre of the Prisoners by 
the Indians — Efforts of Montcalm to Save Them — 
The Royal Officers Attempt to Cover Their Failures 
by Outraging the Colonies 298 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

End ok the French and Indian War. 

A Change for the Better — William Pitt Prime Minister 
— Vigorous Measures Adopted — Recall of the Earl 
of Loudon — Capture of Louisburg — Abercrombie on 
Lake George — Advances against Ticonderoga— 
Death of Lord Howe — Failure of the English At- 
tack upon Ticonderoga — Disgraceful Conduct of 
Abercrombie — His Retreat — Capture of Fort Fron- 
tenac — Advance of General Forbes — Grant's Defeat 
— TheVirginians Again Save the Regulars— Capture 
of Fort Duquesne — Washington Retires from the 
Army — Ticonderoga and Crown Point Occupied by 
the English — Capture of Fort Niagara — The Expe- 
dition against Quebec — Failure of the First Opera- 
tions — Despondency of Wolfe — He Discovers a 
Landing-place — The Army Scales the Heights of 
Abraham— Montcalm's Surprise— Battle of the Plains 
of Abraham — Death of Wolfe — Defeat of the 
French — Death of Montcalm — Surrender of Quebec 
— Capture of Montreal — Treaty of Paris — Canada 
Ceded to England — France Loses all Her American 
Possessions — The Cherokee War — Hostility of the 
Indians to the English — Pontiac's War — Death of 
Pontiac — Bouquet Relieves Fort Duquesne — Results 
of the War 309 



BOOK IV. 
The American Revolution. 

CHAPTER XXV. 

Causes OF THE Struggle ior Independence. 

injustice of Great Britain towards Her Colonies — The 
Navigation Acts — Effects of these Laws upon the 
Colonies — Great Britain Seeks to Destroy the Man- 
ufactures of America — Writs of Assistance — They 
Are Opposed — Home Manufactures Encouraged by 
the Americans — Ignorance of Englishmen Concern- 
ing America — Great Britain Claims the Right to 
Tax America — Resistance of the Colonists — Samuel 
Adams — The Parsons' Cause — Patrick Henry — 



England Persists in Her Determination to Tax Amer- 
ica — Passage of the Stamp Act — Resistance of the 
Colonists — Meeting of the First Colonial Congress 
— Its Action — William Pitt — Repeal of the Stamp 
Act — Franklin before the House of Commons — 
New Taxes Imposed upon America — Increased Re- 
sistance of the Colonies — Troops Quartered in Bos- 
ton — The " Massacre " — The Non-Importation As- 
sociation — Growtli of Hostility to England — Burn- 
ing of the " Gaspe" — The Tax on Tea Retained by 
the King — Destruction of Tea at Boston — Wrath 
of the British Government — Boston Harbor Closed 
—Troops Quartered in Boston— The Colonists Come 
to the Assistance of Boston — Action of the Virginia 
Assembly — General Gage in Boston — The Regulat- 
ing Act — Its Failure — Gage Seizes the Massachu- 
setts Powder — Uprising of the Colony — Meeting of 
the Continental Congress — Its Action — Addresses to 
the King and People of England — The Earl of 
Chatham'slndorsement of Congress — The King Re- 
mains Stubborn 327 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

Progress of the War. 

Gage fortifies Boston Neck — Pie Summons the Gen- 
eral Court — Recalls his Proclamation — The Provin- 
cial Congress of Massachusetts — It takes Measures 
for Defence — The Militia Organized — The Minute 
Men — Friends of America in England — Gage re- 
solves to seize the Stores at Concord — Midnight 
March of the British Troops — The Alarm given — 
Skirmishes at Lexington and Concord — Retreat of 
the British — A Terrible March — Uprising of New- 
England — Boston Invested — Dunmore seizes the 
Virginia Powder — Is made to pay for it — Uprising 
of the Middle and wSouthern Colonies — The Meck- 
lenburg Declaration of Independence — Capture of 
Ticonderoga and Crown Point — Meeting of the Sec- 
ond Cantinental Congress — Congress resolves to sus- 
tain Massachusetts — Renewed Efforts for Peace — 
Congress Assumes the General Government of the 
Colonies — A Federal Union Organized — Its Charac- 
ter — A Continental Army formed — George Wash- 
ington Appointed Commander-in-chief — General 
Officers Appointed — Condition of the Army before 
Boston — Inaction of Gage — Battle of Breed's Hill 
— A Glorious Defence — The Battle Equivalent to a 
Victory in its Effects upon the Country — Arrival of 
Washington at Cambridge — He takes Command o( 
the Army — He Reorganizes the Army — Difficulties 
of the Undertaking — The Invasion of Canada Re- 
solved upon — March of Montgomery and Arnold — 
Rapid Successes of Montgomery — He Captures 



CONTENTS. 



Xlll 



Montreal — March of Arnold through the Wilder- 
ness — Arrival before Quebec- -Forms a Junction 
with Montgomery — The Siege of Quebec — The Ice 
Forts — Failure of the Attack — Death of Montgom- 
ery — Retreat of the Americans from Canada — Lord 
Dunmore's War in Virginia — Destruction of Nor- 
folk — The Thirteen United Colonies — Burning of 
Falmouth — Naval Matters — Action of Great Britain 
— The War to be carried on — The Hessians . . . 354 

CHAPTER XXYII. 
The Declaration of Independence. 
The Siege of Boston — Difficulties of the American 
Army — Activity of the Privateers — Clinton's Expe- 
tion — Colonel Knox arrives from Ticonderoga with 
Cannon — Seizure of Dorchester Heights by Wash- 
ington — The British Evacuate Bostori — Royalist 
Plots in New York — Paper Money Issued by Con- 
gress — Gates sent to the North — The British Attack 
Charleston — Battle of Fort Moultrie — The Plowes in 
New York Bay — Change in the Character of the War 
— Growing Sentiment in Favor of Independence — 
— Virginia Proposes the Colonies Assert their Inde- 
pendence — Action of Congress — The Declaration of 
Independence — Articles of Confederation Adopted 
by Congress — Lord Howe's Efforts at Conciliation — 
Addresses a Letter to Washington — Battle of Long 
Island — Defeat of the Americans — Retreat from 
Long Island — Evacuation of New York by the 
Americans — Loss of Fort Washington— Washington 
Retreats through New Jersey — He Crosses the Del- 
aware — Darkest Period of the War — Washington's 
Determination to Continue the War — Lord Howe's 
Proclamation — Its Effect — Congress at Baltimore — 
Carleton invades New York — Defeats Arnold on 
Lake Champlain — Carleton Retires into Canada — 
Battle of Trenton — Happy Effects of the Victory 
— Congress confers Dictatiorial Powers upon Wash- 
ington — Commissioners sent to France 377 

CHAPTER XXVin. 
The Year 1777. 
Howe Attempts to Crush Washington — Battle 01 
Princeton — The British Confined to the Seaboard — 
Recovery of New Jersey — The American Army in 
Winter Quarters at Morristown — Effects of the 
American Successes — Difficulty of Procuring Troops 
— Washington Pefuses to Exchange Prisoners — His 
Course Approved by Congress — Measures of Con- 
gress — Naval Affairs — Tryon Burns Danbury — Gal- 
lantry of Arnold — Troubles in the Northern Depart- 
ment — Congress Adopts a National Flag: — "The 
Stars and Stripes" — Course of France towards the 
United States — I'rance Decides to Assist the Amer 



icans — Lafayette — His Arrival in America — Capture 
of the British General Prescott — Howe Threatens 
Philadelphia — Washington Moves Southward — 
Battle of the Brandy wine — Washington Retreats to 
the Schuylkill — Wayne's Defeat at Paoli — Philadel- 
phia Exacuated by the Americans — It Is Occupied 
by the British — Battle of Germantown- -The British 
Attack the Forts on the Delaware — They Are Aban- 
doned by the Americans — Burgoyne's Army in 
Canada — Advance of Burgoyne into New York — 
Investment of Ticonderoga — It Is Abandoned by 
the Americans — The Retreat to Fort Edward — 
Burgoyne Reaches the Hudson — Murder of Miss 
McCrea — Siege of Fort Schuyler — Battle of Ben- 
nington — Critical Situation of Burgoyne — Gates in 
Command of the American Army — Battles of Beh- 
mus' Heights and Stillwater — Surrender of Bur- 
goyne's Army — Clinton in the Highlands .... 



405. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 
Aid From Abroad. 
Sufferings of the Army at Valley Forge — Appeals of 
Washington to Congress — The British in Philadel- 
phia — The Conway Cabal — Its Disgraceful Failure 
— Efforts to Improve the Army — Worthlessness of 
Continental Bills — General Lee Exchanged — Effect 
of Burgoyne's Surrender upon England — The King 
Is Forced to Agree to Measures of Conciliation — 
Action of France — Louis XVI. Recognizes the In- 
dependence of the United States — Alliance Between 
the United States and France — Failure of the Brit- 
ish Measures of Conciliation — Clinton Evacuates 
Philadelphia — Battle of Monmouth — General Lee 
Dismissed from the Army — Attack upon Newport 
— Its Failure — Withdrawal of the French Fleet to 
the West Indies — Outrages of the British on Long 
Island Sound — Massacre of Wyoming — ihe Winter 
of 1779-80 — The Army in Winter Quarters — 
Robert Morris — Condition of Congress — Georgia 
Subdued by the British — Prevost Attempts to Take 
Charleston — Siege of Savannah — Its Failure — Cap- 
ture of Stony Point — Capture of. Paulus Hook — 
The Indians Punished — Naval Affairs — Exploits of 
John Paul Jones — Evacuation of Newport — Settle- 
ment of Kentucky — Conquest of the Illinois Country 
bv George Rogers Clarke — Settlement of Tennessee. 429 

CHAPTER XXX. 

The Close of the War. 
Severity of the Winter of 1779-80 — Sufferings of the 
American Army — Clinton Sails for the Caroli- 
nas — Colonel Tarleton — Capture of Charleston — 
Conquest of South Carolina — Gates in Command of 
the Southern Army — Battle of Camden — Exploits 



XIV 



CONTENTS. 



of Marion and Sumter — Advance of Cornwallis — 
Battle of King's Mountain — Gates Succeeded by 
General Greene — Knyphausen's Expeditions into 
New Jersey — Arrival of the French Fleet and 
Ai-my — Arnold's Treason — The Plot for the Be- 
trayal of West Point — Arrest of Major Andr6 — 
Flight of Arnold — Execution of Andre — Mutiny of 
the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Troops — Meas- 
ures of Congress — Arnold Captures Richmond, Vir- 
ginia — Battle of the Cowpens — Masterly Retreat of 
General Greene — Cornwallis BatTled^Battle of 
Guilford Court House — Cornwallis at Wilmington 
— Battle of Hobkirk's Hill — Siege of Ninety-Six — 
Execution of Colonel Hayne — Battle of Eutaw 
Springs — Washington Decides to Attack New York 
— The French Army on the Hudson — Financial 
Affairs — Resumption of Specie Payments — Message 
from the Count De Grasse— Cornwallis at York- 
town — The American Army Moves Southward — 
Siege of Vorktown — Surrender of Cornwallis — Ef- 
fect of the News in England — Indian Troubles — 
Efforts in England for Peace — Negotiations Opened 
— Treaty of Paris — End of the War — The Army 
Disbanded — Washington Resigns His Commission 450 

BOOK V. 

From the Close of the Revolution to the 

Civil War. 

CHAPTER XXXI. 

The Adoption of the Constitution — Washington's 
Administration. 

Unsettled Condition of the Country — Failure of the 
Articles of Confederation — Desire for Reform — 
Meeting of the Federal Convention at Philadelphia 
— The Constitution of the United States — Adoption 
of a Decimal Currency — The Northwest Territory 
— Washington Elected President — His Journey to 
New York — Establishment of the New Government 
— The First Cabinet — Financial Measures — Re- 
moval of the Capital Agreed Upon — The Govern- 
ment at Philadelphia — The First Census — The In- 
dians of the Northwest Conquered — Re-electioji 
of Washington — Division of Parties — The French 
Revolution — The United States Neutral — Citizen 
Genet — Eflorts to Commit the United States to the 
French Alliance — Genet's Recall Demanded — The 
" Whiskey Insurrection" — Jay's Treaty with Eng- 
land — Opix)sition to It — Negotiations with Algiers 
— Political Disputes — Hostility to Washington — His 
Farewell Address — Its Effect upon the Country — 
Election of John Adams to the Presidency — Admis- 
sion cT Vermont, Kentucky and Tennessee — Retire- 
ment of W'asliington — His Administration . . . 481 



CHAPTER XXXH. 

The Administrations of John Adams and Thomas 
Jefferson. 

PAGS 

Inauguration of John Adams — Aggressions of France 
upon the United States — The American Commis- 
sioners Insulted by the French Government — The 
Alien and Sedition Laws — The United States Pre- 
pare for War with France — France Signifies her 
Willingness to Treat — New Commissioners Ap- 
pointed — Settlement of the Dispute — Hostilities at 
Sea — Capture of the " Insurgente " and " Ven- 
geance" — Death of Washington — Removal of the 
Capital to Washington City — The Second Census — 
Inauguration of Thomas Jefferson — The President's 
Message — His First Measures — Admission of Ohio 
— Ixjuisiana Purchased by the United States — War 
with the Barbary Powers — Burning of the " Phila- 
delphia " — Re-election of Mr. Jefferson — Aaron Burr 
Kills Alexander Hamilton in a Duel — Burr's Subse- 
quent Career — Fulton's Steamboat — Outrages of 
England and France upon American Commerce — 
American Vessels Searched and American Seamen 
Impressed by England — Efforts to Settle these 
Questions — Aflair of the " Chesapeake " and " Leop- 
ard" — The Embargo — Results of this Measure — 
Losses of the Eastern States — Election of James 
Madison to the Presidency — Repeal of the Embargo. 496 

CHAPTER XXXni. 

The Administration of James Madison — The Second 
W^AR WITH England. 

Inauguration of Mr. Madison — Negotiations with Mr. 
Erskine — Their Failure — Seizure of American Ves- 
sels in France — Sufferings of American Ship-owners 
— Great Britain Stations her Ships of W'ar off Amer- 
caa Ports — Affair of the "President" and "Little 
Belt " — Trouble with the Northwestern Indians — 
Tecumseh — Battle of Tippecanoe — Meeting of the 
Twelfth Congress — Measures for Defence — Admis- 
sion of Louisiana into the Union — Death of George 
Clinton — The British Ultimatum — War Declared 
Against Great Britain — Opposition to the War — The 
British Offer of Settlement Rejected — The War for 
"Free Trade and the Sailors' Rights" — Mr. Madi- 
son Re-elected — Campaign cf 1S12 — Preparations 
for the Invasion ( f Canada General Hull Sur- 
renders Detroit to the Brilish — Loss of the North- 
western Frontier — Failure of the Attack on Queens- 
town — Exploits of the Navy — Capture of the " Guer- 
riere" by the "Constitution" — The Privateers — 
Russia Offers to Mediate between the United States 
and England — Financial Affairs — Harrison's Cam- 
paign — Massacre at the River Basin — Defence of 
Forts Meigs and Stephenson- Perry's \'ictory on Lake 



CONTENTS. 



XV 



Erie — Battle of the Thames — Death of Tecumseh — 
Recovery of the Northwest — Capture of York- 
British Attack on Sackett's Harbor Repulsed — 
Removal of General Dearborn — Failure of the Cam- 
paign on the Lower Lakes — The Creek War — 
Jackson's Victories — Naval Affairs — The British 
Outrages in Chesapeake Bay — Negotiations for Peace 
— Capture of Fort Erie — Battles of Chippewa and 
Lundy's Lane — Siege of Fort Erie — Successes of 
the Americans — Advance of Prevost — Battle of 
riattsburgh — Macdonough's Victory on Lake Cham- 
plain — Battle of Bladensburg — Capture of Wash- 
ington — Destruction of the Public Buildings by the 
British — Attack on Baltimore — Death of General 
Ross—" The Star- Spangled Bunner "—The British 
Attack on the New England Coast — Opposition of 
New England to the War — The Hartford Conven- 
tion — The British in Florida — General Jackson 
Expels Them — Jackson at New Orleans — Arrival of 
the British Expedition off the Coast — Vigorous 
Measures of Jackson — Battle of New Orleans — 
Defeat of the British— Naval Affairs— The Treaty 
of Peace — The Barbary Powers Plumbled — The 
Tariff" — The Bank of the United States — Admis- 
sion of Indiana — James Monroe Elected President . 512 

CHAPTER XXXIV. 

Administrations of James Monroe and John Quincy 
Adams. 

Inauguration of Mr. Monroe — His Tour through the 
Eastern Stjites — Admission of Mississippi into the 
Union — Troubles with the Indians — General Jack- 
son's Vigorous Measures against the Spaniards in 
Florida — Purchase of Floridadiy the United States 
— Illinois Becomes a State — -The First Steamship 
— Maine Admitted into the Union — The Slavery 
Question — The Missouri Compromise — Admission 
of Missouri as a State — The Fourth Census — Re- 
flection of Mr. Monroe — The Tariff — Protective 
Policy of the Government — Recognition of the 
Spanish Republics — The Monroe Doctrine — Visit of 
Lafayette to the United States — Retirement of Mr. 
Monroe — John Quincy Adams Elected President — 
His Inauguration — Rapid Improvement of the Coun- 
try — Increase of Wealth and Prosperity — Internal 
Improvements — The Creek Lands in Georgia Ceded 
to the United States — Death of Thomas Jefferson 
and John Adams — The Anti-Masons — The Tariff of 
1828 — Andrew Jackson Elected President . . . 548 

CHAPTER XXXV. 

Administrations of Andrew Jackson and Martin 

Van Buren. 
Character of Andrew Jackson — Indian Policy of this 
Administration — The President Vetoes the Bill to 



Renew the Charter of the United States Bank — De- 
bate Between Hayne and Webster — Jackson's Quar- 
rel with Calhourn — Death of ex-President Monroe 
— The Cholera — Black Hawk's War — Re-election 
of President Jackson — The Tariff"— Action of South 
Carolina — The Nullification Ordinance — Firmness 
of the President — The Matter Settled by Compro- 
mise — Patriotism of Henry Clay — The Removal of 
the Deposits — The Seminole War Begun — Great 
Fire in New York — Settlement of the French 
Claims — Arkansas Admitted into the Union — The 
National Debt Paid — Death of ex-President Madi- 
son — Martin Van Buren Elected President — Michi- 
gan Admitted into the Union — The Panic of 1837 — 
Causes of It — Suspension of Specie Payments — 
Great Distress throughout the Union — The Sub- 
Treasury — Repudiation of State Debts — The Can- 
adian Rebellion — The President's Course — The 
Seminole War Ended — The Anti-Slavery Party — 
Resolutions of Congress Respecting Slavery- 
William Henry Harrison Elected President — The 
Sixth Census 561 

CHAPTER XXXVI. 

Administrations of William Henry Harrison and 
John Tyler. 

An Extra Session of Congress Summoned — Death of 
President Harrison — John Tyler Becomes President 
of the United States — Meeting of Congress — The 
Bankrupt Law — President Tyler Vetoes the Bills to 
Revive the United States Bank — His Quarrel with 
his Party — The " Tyler Whigs " — The Tariff" of 
1842 — The Treaty of Washington — The United 
States Will Not Tolerate the Exercise of the Right 
of Search — Dorr's Rebellion — The Mormons — In- 
vention of the Electric Telegraph — Explosion on 
the " Princeton " — Eff"orts to Secure the Annexation 
of Texas — Early History of Texas — The Texan 
War of Independence — Battle of San Jacinto — 
Texan Independence Established — Texas Applies 
for Admission into the Union — Opposition to the 
Measure — Significance of the Vote at the Presiden- 
tial Election — James K. Polk Elected President — 
Texas Admitted into the Union — Iowa and Florida 
Become States Jjp 

CHAPTER XXXVII. 
Administration of James K. Polk — The Wak 
WITH Mexico. 
The Oregon Question — Position of President Polk 
Respecting It — The Question Settled — Treaty for 
Settlement of Claims against Mexico — Mexico Re- 
sents the Annexation of Texas — General Taylor 
Ordered to Texas — He Advances to the Rio Grande 



XVI 



CONTENTS. 



— Battles of Talo Alto and Resaca de la Talma — 
The War with Mexico Begun — Invasion of Mexico 
— Occupation of Matamoras — Action of the United 
States Government — Taylor Advances into the 
Interior — The Storming and Capture of Monterey 
— The Armistice — Return of Santa Anna to Mexico 
— President Polk Duped — Santa Anna Seizes the 
Mexican Government — General Wool Joins General 
Taylor — Troops Taken from Taylor's Army — Ad- 
— vance of the Mexicans — Battle of Buena Vista — 
Conquest of California by Fremont and Stockton — 
Occupation of Santa Fe — New Mexico Conquered 
— Doniphan's March — Occupation of Chihuahua — 
Sailing of Scott's Expedition — Reduction of Vera 
Cruz — Santa Anna Collects a New Army — Battle of 
of Cerro Gordo — Occupation of Puebla by Scott — 
Trouble with Mr. Trist — Vigorous Measures of 
Santa Anna — Scott Advances upon the City of 
Mexico — El Penon Turned — Battles of Contreras 
and Cliurubusco — Capture of Molino del Key — 
Storming of Chapultepec — Capture of the City of 
Mexico — Siege of Puebla Raised — Flight of Santa 
Anna — Treaty of Peace Negotiated — Close of the 
War — Acquisition of California and New Mexico — 
Discovery of Gold in California — Rapid Emigration 
to the Pacific — Death of John Quincy Adams — The 
Wilmot Proviso — Revival of the Slavery Question 
>— General Taylor Elected President 593 

CHAPTER XXXVIII. 

Administrations of Zachary Taylor and Millard 
Fillmore. 

Character of General Taylor — Department of the Inte- 
rior — Death of ex-President Polk — The Slavery 
\gitation — Views of Clay and Webster — California 
asks admission into the Union — Message of President 
Taylor — The Omnibus Bill — Efforts of Henry Clay 
— A Memorable Debale — Webster's " Great Union 
Speech " — Death of John C. Calhoun — Death of 
President Taylor — Millard P'illmore becomes Pres- 
ident — Passage of the Compromise Measures of 
1850 — Death of Henry Clay — Dissa'isfaction with 
the Compromise — The Fugitive Slave Law Nul- 
lified, by the Northern States — The Nashville Con- 
vention — Organization of Utah Territory — The 
Seventh Census — The Expedition of Lopez against 
Cuba — The Search for Sir John Franklin — The 
Grinnell Expedition — Dr. Kane's Voyages — Inaug- 
uration of Cheap Postage — Laying the Corner- 
stone of the new Capitol — Death of Daniel W'ebster 
— Arrival of Kossuth — The President Rejects the 
Tripartite Trea'y — Franklin Pierce elected Pres- 
ident — Death of William R. King 626 



CHAPTER XXXIX. 

The Administration of Franklin Pierce. , 

rAc;B 
Dispute with Mexico — The Gadsden Purchase — Sur- 
veys for a Pacific Railway — The Japan Expedition 
— Treaty with Japan — The Koszta Affair — The 
" Black Warrior " seized by the Cuban Officials — 
The "Ostend Conference" — Dismissal of the British 
Minister — The Kansas-Nebraska Bill — History of 
the Bill — Its Passage by Congress — History of the 
Struggle in Kansas — Conflict between the Pro- 
Slavery and Free Soil Settlers — Lawrence Sacked — - 
Civil War — The Presidential Campaign of 1856 — 
James Buchanan elected President of the United 
States — Rapid Increase of the Republican Party . 639 

CHAPTER XL. 

The Administration of James Buchanan. 
Inauguration of Mr. Buchanan — The Mormon Re- 
bellion — The Financial Crisis of 1857 — Laying of 
the Atlantic Telegraphic Cable — Minnesota admit- 
ted into the Union — The San Juan Affair — Admis- 
sion of Oregon into the Union — The Kansas Ques- 
tion — The Lecompton Constitution — Its Defeat — 
The Wyandotte Constitution — Admission of Kansas 
into the Union — The John Brown Raid — Prompt 
Action of the Government — Brown and his Com- 
panions Surrendeaed to the State of Virginia — 
Their Trial and Execution — Presidential Campaign 
of 1S60 — Rupture of the Democratic Party — Abra- 
ham Lincoln elected President of the United Stales 
— Secession of South Carolina — Reasons for this Act 
— Secession of the other Cotton States — Major An- 
derson Occupies Fort Sumter — Trying Position of 
the General Government — Course of Mr. Buchanan 
— The " Star of the West " fired upon by the South 
Carolina Batteries — Organization of the Confeder- 
ate States of America — Jefferson Davis elected 
President of the Southern Republic — The Peace 
Congress — Its Failure 649 

BOOK VI. 
The Civil War. 

CHAPTER XLI. 

The Administration of Abraham Lincoln.. 
Inauguration of President Lincoln — His History — The 
Confederate Commi.ssioners at Washington — Attack 
ujion Fort Sumter by the Confederates — The Pres- 
ident calls for Troops — Response of the North and 
West — Secession of the Border States — Opening 
Events of the War in Virginia — Withdrawal of West 
Virginia — Admitted into the Union as a Separate 
State — Meeting of Congress — The W'est Virginia 



CONTENTS. 



xvu 



Campaign — Battle of Bull Run — The War in Mis- 
souri — Kentucky Occupied — The Blockade — Cap- 
ture of Port Royal — The "Trent" Affair — Insur- 
rection in East Tennessee — State of Affairs at the 
Opening of the Year 1S62 — Edwin M. Stanton made 
Secretaiy of War — Capture of Forts Henry and Don- 
elson — The Confederates fall back from Kentucky — 
Battle of Shiloh — Capture of Island No. 10 — Evac- 
uation of Corinth — Capture of Memphis — Bragg's 
Kentucky Campaign — His Retreat into Tennessee 
— Battles of luka and Corinth — Battle of Murfrees- 
boro', or Stone River — Grant's Campaign against 
Vicksburg — Its Failure — The War beyond the Mis- 
sissippi — Battle of Pea Ridge — Capture of Roanoke 
Island — Capture of New Orleans— Surrender of Fort 
Pulaski — The War in Virginia — Johnston's Retreat 
from Centreville — Battle betv/een the "Monitor" 
and " Virginia " — The Move to the Peninsula — 
Johnston Retreats to the Chickahominy — Battle of 
Seven Pines — Jackson's Successes in the Valley of 
Virginia — The Seven Days' Battles before Richmond 
— Battle of Cedar Mountain — Defeat of General 
Pope's Army — Lee Invades Maryland — Capture of 
Harper's Ferry — Battles of South Mountain and 
Antietam — Retreat of Lee into Virginia — McClellan 
Removed — Battle of Fredericksburg 666 

CHAPTER XLII. 

The Administration of Abraham Lincoln — the 
Civil War — Concluded. 
The Emancipation Proclamation — Battle of Chancel- 
lorsville — Death of Stonewall Jackson — Invasion of 
the North by Lee's Array — Battle of Gettysburg — 
Retreat of Lee into Virginia — Grant's Army crosses 
the Mississippi — Battle of Champion Hills — Invest- 
ment of Vicksburg — Surrender of Vicksburg and 
Port Hudson — Battle of Chickamauga— Rosecrans 
' shut up in Chattanooga — Grant in command of the 
Western Armies — Battles of Lookout Mountain and 
Mission Ridge — Defeat of Bragg's Army — The Cam- 
paign in East Tennessee — Retreat of Longstreet — 
Capture of Galveston — Attack on Charleston — Cap- 
ture of Fort W^agner — Charleston Bombarded — State 
of Affairs in the Spring of 1864 — The Red River 
Expedition — Grant made Lieutenant-General — 
Advance of the Army of the Potomac — Battles of the 
Wilderness, Spottsylvania and Cold Harbor — Sheri- 
dan's Raid — Death of General J. E. B. Stuart — Bat- 
tle of New Market — Early sent into the Valley of 
Virginia — Butler's Army at Bermuda Hundreds — 
Grant crosses the James River — The Siege of Peters- 
burg begun — Early's Raid upon Washington — Sheri- 
dan defeats Early at Winchester and Fisher's Hill — 
Battle of Cedar Creek — The final Defeat of Early's 



Army — Sherman's Advance to Atlanta — ^Johnston 
Removed — Defeat of Hood before Atlanta — Evacu- 
ation of Atlanta — Hood's Invasion of Tennessee 
— Battle of Franklin — Siege of Nashville — Hood 
Defeated at Nashville — His Retreat — Sherman's 
"March to the Sea" — Capture of Savannah — 
Battle of Mobile Bay — Attack on Fort Fisher — 
The Confederate Cruisers — Sinking of the "Ala- 
bama" by the " Kearsarge" — Re-election of Pres- 
ident Lincoln — Admission of Nevada into the Union 
— The Hampton Roads Peace Conference — Capture 
of Fort Fisher — Occupation of Wilmington — Sher- 
man advances through South Carolina — Evacuation 
of Charleston — Battles of Averasboro' and Benton- 
ville— Sherman at Goldsboro' — Critical Situation of 
Lee's Army — Attack on Port Steadman — Sheridan 
joins Grant — Advance of Grant's Army — Battle of 
Five Forks — Attack on Petersburg — Evacuation of 
Richmond and Petersburg — Retreat of Lee's Army 
— Richmond Occupied — Surrender of General 
Lee's Army — Rejoicings in the North — Assas- 
sination of President Lincoln — Death of Booth — 
Execution of the Conspirators — Johnston Sur- 
renders — Surrender of the other Confederate 
Forces — Capture of Jefferson Davis — Close of the 
War 7ig 

CHAPTER XLIII. 

The Administration of Andrew Johnson. 
The New President — Return of the Army to Civil 
Life — The Public Debt — The Reconstruction Ques- 
tion — Action of the President — He declares the 
Southern States Readmitted into the Union — The 
Fifteenth Amendment — Meeting of Congress — The 
President's Acts Annulled — Reconstruction Policy 
of Congress — The Fourteenth Amendment — The 
Freedman's Bureau and Civil Rights Bill — The 
Tenure of Office Act — Admission of Nebraska into 
the Union — The Southern States Organized as Mil- 
itary Districts — Admission of Southern States into 
the Union — The Fourteenth Amendment Ratified — 
President Johnson's Quarrel with Secretary Stanton 
— Impeachment of the President — His Acquittal — 
Release of Jefferson Davis — Indian War — The 
French in Mexico — Fall of the Mexican Empire — 
Laying of the Atlantic Telegraph — Purchase of 
Alaska — Naturlization Treaty with Germany — 
Treaty with China — Death of General Scott — Death 
of ex-President Buchanan — General Grant Elected 
President — The Fifteenth Amendment 790 

CHAPTER XLIV. 

The Administration of Ulysses S. Grant. 

Early Life of President Grant — Completion of the 

Pacific Railway — Death of ex-President Pierce — 



XVlll 



CONTENTS. 



The Fifteenth Amendment Ratifie 1 — Prosperity of 
the Country — The Enforcement Act — The Test Oath 
AboUshecl — The Constitutionality of the Legal- 
Tender Act Affirmed — Death of Admiral Farragut 
Death of General Lee — The Income Tax Repealed 
— The Alabama Claims — Treaty of Washington — 
The Geneva Conference — Award in Favor of the 
United States — The San Juan Boundary Question 
Settled — Efforts to Annex St. Domingo — Burning 
of Chicago — Forest Fires — The Civil Disabilities 
Removed from the Southern People — Re-election of 
of General Grant — Death of Horace Greeley — Great 
Fire at Boston — The Modoc War — Murder of Gen- 
eral Canby ard the Peace Commissioners — Execu- 
tion of the Modoc Chiefs — The Cuban Revolution 
— Capture of the " Virginius " — Execution of thi; 
Prisoners — Action of the Federal Government— 
The Panic of 1S73 — Bill for the Resumption of 
Specie Payments — The Centennial Exhibition — 
The Sioux War — Death of General Custer — Presi- 
dential Election — Controversy over it — The Elec- 
toral Commission — Count of the Vote — Hayes 
Declared Elected Sot 

CHAPTER XLV. 

The Administration of Rutherford B. Hayes. 
Inauguration of President Hayes — Sketch of the New 
President — Civil Service Reform — Troops in South 
Carolina — Two Legis'atures in Session — Investiga- 
tion by President Hayes — Prompt Action — Settle- 
ment of the Troubles in South Carolina and Louisi- 
ana — General Grant's Tour Around the World — 
Enthusiastic Reception by the Crowned Heads of 
Other Nations — Tenth Census of the United States 
— Election of General Garfield as President — Arctic 
Expedition of Lieutenant De Long — Hardy Adven- 
turers Two Winters in the Ice- Pack — Destruction 
of the '-Jeannette" — Relief Expeditions — Death 
from Starvation 841 

CHAPTER XLVL 
The Administration of James A. Garfield. 
General Garfield Declared President — Inaugural Cere- 
monies — Sketch of the New President — Contest 
with the Stalwarts — The Star Route Cases — Assassin- 
ation of President Garfield — His Illness — Removal 
to Long Branch — Death of President Garfield — 
Removal of the Remains to Washington and Cleve- 
land — Interment at Cleveland — Inauguration of 
President Arthur — Indictment of Guitcau for Murder 
— Trial and Execution of Garfield's Assassin — Re- 
markable Scene upon the Scaffold — The Greeley 



FACiB 

Arctic Expedition — Reaching a point beyond the 
Eighty-first Parallel — Lieutenant Lockwood's 
Heroic Exploit — Return of the Exploring Party — 
Valuable Records — Three Relief Expeditions — 
Terrible Sufferings and Privations — A Crew Chargjd 
with Cannibalism — Celebration of the Landing of 
William Penn — Great Suspension Bridge between 
New Vork and Brooklyn — Dimensions of the Biidge 
and Cost 8-4^ 

CHAPTER XLVII. 
The Administration of Grover Cleveland 
Mr. Cleveland's Early Life — Governor of New York 
— Elected President — Inauguration Ceremonies — 
Civil Service and Revenue Reform —The New 
Cabinet — Death of General Grant — Imposing Ob- 
sequies — Honors to the Illustrious Dead — Death 
of General George B. McClellan — Free Trade Con- 
ference at Chicago — Death of Vice-President 
Thomas B. Hendricks — Pension Granted to the 
Widow of President Grant — President Cleveland's 
Message — Bill Regulating the Presidential Succes- 
sion — Labor Agitations — Riot at Chicago Instigated 
by " Anarchists " — Statue of Liberty Enlightening 
the World — President Cleveland's Marriage — 
Soldiers' Pensions — Capital and Labor — Centennial 
Anniversary of the Adoption of the Constitution — 
Nomination of President Cleveland — Nomination of 
Benjamin Harrison — Harrison's Election .... 864 

CHAPTER XLVin. 
The Administration of Benjamin Harrison. 
Inauguration of President Harrison — Imposing Scene 
at Washington — Vast Assembly — Civic and Military 
Parade — President Harrison's Inaugural Address — 
Celebration of the Centennial Anniversary of Wash- 
ington's Inauguration — Fine Naval Parade — Relig- 
ious and Literary Exercises^— Military Display — 
President Harrison at the Banquet — The President's 
Address — The New Cabinet — Terrible Calamity at 
Johnstown — Admission of New States — President's 
Message to the Fifty-first Congress — Legislation of 
the First Session of the Fifty-first Congress — The 
New Tariff Law — Indian W' ar in the Northwest — 
Death of Sitting Bull — Restriction of Immigration 
— Mob Law in New Orleans — Trouble in Chile — 
Political Conventions of 1892 — Labor Contest at 
Homestead — Defeat of the Silver Bill 878 

CHAPTER XLIX. 
THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PAGE 

Frontispif.ce. 

Mounds at Marrietta, Ohio 19 

A Dead Town of the Moquis Indians 21 

Indian Village in Winter 24 

Navajo Boy 25 

Pueblo Indian at Prayer 26 

Civilized Indian Woman 27 

Thorvald W'ounded by the Red Men 30 

Christopher Columbus ^^ 

Columbus Watching for Land 37 

Landing of Columbus 38 

Reception of Columbus by Ferdinand and Isabella . 39 

Norse Sea-king 41 

Sebastian Cabot 44 

Samuel Champlain 47 

Cabot on the Shores of Labrador 48 

The Coast of Florida 51 

Hernando Cortez 52 

Fernando De Soto 55 

The Spaniards Descending the Mississippi after the 

Death of De Soto . 59 

The Renowned Explorer, Sir Martin Frobisher . . 64 

Sir Walter Raleigh 65 

Frobisher and His Ships Passing Greenwich .... 66 

Queen Elizabeth 67 

Murder of WHiite's Assistant 70 

Captain John Smith 76 

Pocahontas Interceding for the Life of Captain John 

Smith 78 

Pocahontas 80 

Building the First House in Jamestown 82 

Types of North American Indians 85 

Massacre of Settlers by Indians 90 

Flight of the Indians after the Massacre 92 

Indian Weapons 94 

King Charles II 99 

Indians Making a Midnight Attack upon Settlers . . 103 

Bacon Demands the Commission of Berkley .... 105 

Cecil, Second Lord Baltimore 113 

A Civilized Indian 115 

Oliver Cromwell 116 

William III 118 

Chained Bible, Time of James I 122 



The Puritans in Conference with James I 124 

The Pilgrims at Plymouth 126 

The" Mayflower" at Plymouth Harbor 12S 

Governor Brewster's Chair 129 

Landing of the Pilgrims 131 

The First Church in New England 133 

The Treaty between Plymouth Colony and Massasoit 135 

John Endicott 139 

John Winthrop 141 

Roger Williams Seeking Refuge Among the Indians . 145 

Landing of Roger Williams at Providence 147 

John Hampden 151 

A Group of Indians 153 

Yale College 155 

An American Free School 159 

John Eliot Preaching to the Indians 162 

Indian Medicine Man 164 

Indian Life in Their Native Forests 170 

King Philip 172 

The Burning of Brooktield by the Indians 173 

Mrs. Rowlandson Captured by the Indians 175 

Sir Edmund Andros 178 

The Charter Oak 180 

The Rev. Cotton Mather • • . . 183 

Execution of the Rev. George Burroughs ..... 189 

Nova Zembla — From an Old Print 194 

Mock Suns Seen by Early Explorers 195 

Henry Hudson 196 

Hudson Strait • . . 197 

Mutiny on Hudson's Ship 198 

First Settlement of New\ork 199 

Peter Stuyvesant 203 

Gustavus Adolphus 205 

Queen Anne . ; 212 

William Penn 217 

W'illiam Penn's Treaty with the Indians 220 

Penn Treaty Monument 221 

The Old Swedes' Church, Built in 1641 222 

Indian Amusements — Canoe Race between Squaws . 223 

The Coast of North Carolina 229 

A Settler's Cabin 231 

Birds' -Eye View of Charleston, South Carolina . . . 233 

Scene on a Tributary of the St. John's River .... 235 

xix 



XX 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PACE 

King George 1 239 

Oeneral Oglethorpe 243 

A Southern Plantation 244 

John Wesley 245 

George Whitefield 246 

University and Normal School Buildings at Toronto in 

1892 254 

Falls of St. Anthony 261 

Murder of La Salle 263 

View of Montreal from Mount Royal 268 

Return of the Daughter of Eunice Williams . . . . 272 

Cruel Murder of Rasle 274 

French Explorers Buying Eeaden Plates 279 

Scenes in the Allegheny Mountains 281 

The Half King 285 

Benjamin Franklin 289 

Wills' Creek Meadows 291 

Disastrous^Defeat of General Braddock 294 

Burning of Kittaning by General Armstrong .... 296 

The Palisades of the Hudson 302 

Site of Fort William Henry on Lake George .... 305 

Montcalm 306 

Arrival of Indian Allies at the French Camp . . . . 307 

William Pitt 310 

Washington Planting the Flag on Fort Duquesne . . 315 

Niagara Falls 317 

General James Wolfe 318 

Death of General Wolfe before Quebec 320 

King George HI 321 

Visit of Pontiac and the Indians to Major Gladwin . . 324 

Scene near the Source of the Raritan River 329 

Samuel Adams 332 

Patrick Henry 333 

Colonel Barr6 . . . • 335 

Hanging a Stamp Act Official in Effigy 337 

Stamp Act Official Beaten by the People 339 

British Troops in Boston 342 

Throwing the Tea Overboard in Boston Harbor . . 347 

John Hancock 349 

Carpenter's Hall, Philadelphia • . . . . 351 

The Minute Man . 355 

The Battle of Lexington, April 19, 1775 35^ 

Death of Isaac Davis 358 

Capture of Ticonderoga by Ethan Allen 360 

Signers of the Mecklenburg Declaration 361 

General Israel Putnam 364 

General Burgoyne 365 

Battle of Bunker Hill . . • 368 

Death of Major Pitcairn 370 

Bunker Hill Monument •^72 

General Richard Montgomery 374 

General Henry Knox 378 

Medal Struck by Congress in Honor of the Recapture 

of Boston 380 



PAc:x 

Continental Bills 381 

Sergeant Jasper at Fort Moultrie 383 

Independence Hall, Philadelphia 385 

House in which the Declaration of Independence was 

Written, Philadelphia 386 

Signing the Declaration of Independence 387 

Old Bell of Independence Hall 388 

Signatures of the Signers of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence 390 

General John Sullivan 393 

The Declaration of Independence Read to the Army 396. 

General Charles Lee 398 

Washington Crossing the Delaware . 401 

Washington Calls on Colonel Rahl 403 

American Marksman in a Tree 406 

Washington's Quarters at Morristown 408 

General Philip Schuyler 411 

Flag and Shield 412 

Seal of the United States — Obverse 412 

Seal of the United States — Reverse 412 

The Marquis de Lafayette 413 

Arrest of General Prescott 415 

Lafayette and Washington 417 

General Burgoyne Addressing the Indians 420 

Ruins of Fort Ticonderoga 421 

Herkimer Mortally Wounded • .... 423 

General John Stark 424 

General Horatio Gates 426 

An American Rifleman 431 

Louis XVI 434 

Sir Henry Clinton 435 

Indian Scalp Dance • 439 

General Benjamin Lincoln 441 

Gallant Charge of Count Pulaski • • • . 442 

General Anthony Wayne 443 

Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Lee 444 

Paul Jones Seizing the Silver Plate of Lady Sjlkirk . 445 

John Paul Jones 446 

Medal Struck in Honor of Paul Jones — Obverse . . 447 

Medal Struck in Honor of Paul Jones — Reverse . . 447 

Daniel Boone 448 

Lord Cornwallis 453 

Total Rout of the Loyal Recruits 454 

General Francis Marion 455 

General Nathaniel Greene . . • 457 

" Now Put Watts into them. Boys," 458 

Benedict Arnold 460 

Major Andre 461 

Escape of Benedict Arnold 463 

General Daniel Morgan 466 

Lord Rawden, afterwards Marquis of Hastings . . 468 

Scene in the Highlands of the Hudson 471 

View of Yorktown 473 

Surrender of Lord Cornwallis 474 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



XXI 



Captain Huddy led from Prison to be Hanged ... 477 

Washington's Headquarters at Newburg, New York . 479 

The Room with Seven Doors and One Window . . 479 

Oliver Ellsworth 482 

Washington's Reception at Trenton 483 

Rufus King 484 

C. C. Pinckney 485 

The Inauguration of Washington 486 

George Washington 487 

Indian Child in Cradle 488 

Alexander Hamilton 489 

Rufus Putman 490 

John Jay 491 

Fisher Ames 492 

Scene in the Mammoth Cave, Kentucky 493 

Washington's Home at Mount Vernon 494 

John Adams 497 

John Marshall 498 

Washington's Grave, Mount Vernon 500 

Thomas Jefferson 5°^ 

Aaron Burr 502 

Robert R. Livingston 503 

Napoleon 1 504 

Captain (afterward Commodore) Bainbridge and the 

Dey of Algiers 505 

Duel between Burr and Hamilton 506 

Fulton's First Steamboat 507 

William Pinkney 509 

Officers of the " Chesapeake " Surrendering their 

Swords 510 

James Madison 513 

A Pioneer Hero's Fight with the Savages 516 

John Randolph 517 

Stephen Van Rensselaer 519 

Massacre by Indians at Fort Dearborn 520 

Capture of the " Guerriere" by the "Constitution" . 522 

Commodore Hull 523 

The" Wasp" Boarding the "Frolic" 524 

Indians Torturing Prisoners 526 

Commodore Perry 527 

Perry's Victory on Lake Erie 528 

Battle of the Thames — Death of Tecumsch .... 529 

Captain (afterward Sir Philip) Broke 531 

Fight between the " Chesapeake" and the ".Shannon" 533 

Sceneof the Battle of Lake Champlain 536 

Commodore MacDonough 537 

A New England Farm-house 539 

Joseph Story 540 

The Plain ofChalmette — Scene of the Battle of New 

Orleans 541 

Pakenham Leading the Attack on New Orleans . . . 543 

Commodore Decatur 544 

Decatur and the Dey of Algiers 545 

William C. C. Claiborne 546 



PACK 

James Monroe 549 

Old Way of Picking Cotton 551 

Henry Clay • • • • 553 

Unique Cotton Harvester 555 

John Quincy Adams 557 

Steamboat Loading with Cotton 558 

Statue of Jefferson at Washington 559 

Daniel Webster 560 

Andrew Jackson 562 

Robert Y. Hayne 563 

A Lumberman's Camp in the Woods of Maine . . . 564 

John C. Calhourn 565 

Edward Livingston 566 

The United States Treasury at Washington, D. C. . • 567 

Osceola, Chief of the Seminoles 566 

Martin Van Buren 571 

Canadian Trappers 574 

The Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C. . . 575 

View of the National Capitol at Washington . . . . 577 

William Henry Harrison .580 

John Tyler 581 

Fac-Simile, According to Joe Smith, of the Writing on 

the Original Plates of the " Book Mormon " . . 583 

Murder of the Smiths , . . . 584 

The Mormon Hand-cart Company Crossing the 

Plains 585 

Mormon Tabernacle at Salt Lake, Utah 586 

Professor Morse 587 

A Village in Texas 588 

Santa Anna 589 

General Houston 590 

General Post Office, Washington 591 

James K. Polk 594 

Columbia River, Oregon 595 

Battle of Palo Alto 598 

Major Ringgold Mortally Wounded 599 

Charge of the Dragoons 600 

General Winfield Scoit 601 

Capture of a Battery at Monterey 603 

Lieutenant Grant Going for Ammunition at Mon- 
terey 604 

Mexican Cart and Oxen 607 

Battle of Buena Vista 609 

General View of the Yosemite Valley 6ii 

The Cheat Canon and Lower Falls, Yellowstone . . 613 

East Side of Plaza — Santa Fe 614 

Bombardment of Vera Cruz 616 

Battle of Cerro Gordo 617 

Storming of Chapultepec 621 

General Scott Entering the City of Mexico 622 

A Mexican Cathedral 623 

Hydraulic Mining 624 

Zachary Taylor 627 

The White House, Washington, D. C 62S 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PAGE 

Robert Toombs 629 

Millard Fillmore 631 

Portraits of Leading Mormons 632 

Culian Fillibusters on the March 633 

Sir John F lin 635 

•Relics of Franklin's Polar Voyage 636 

Dr. E. K. Kane and his Companions 637 

Franklin Pierce 640 

Stephen A Douglas 642 

Salmon P. Chase 644 

Scene on the Allegheny River 645 

Charles Sumner 647 

James Buchanan 650 

The Mormon Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah .... 651 

Mountain Meadow Massacre 652 

Washington Irving 655 

Edward Everett 658 

IJridge Crossing the Susquehanna River at Harris- 
burg 660 

Jefferson Davis 663 

Inaugiu-ation of Jefferson Davis 664 

Abraham Lincoln 666 

William H. Seward 667 

Arrival of President Lincoln at the Capitol 668 

Fort Prickens 669 

Major Anderson 670 

Fort Sumter in 1861 671 

Forts Sumter and Moultrie 672 

Fort Moultrie, Charleston Harbor 673 

The Confederate Flag 674 

The Sixth Massachusetts Regiment Passing through 

Baltimore 675 

Fortifications in and around Washington 676 

Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 677 

Map Showing the Shenandoah Valley 678 

The Battle of Manassas, or Bull Run 680 

Capitol at Richmond, Virginia 681 

Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 682 

The ♦' Nashville" Destroying a Federal " Merchant- 
man " 684 

Lieutenant-General Polk 685 

John M. Mason 686 

John Slidell 686 

The Arrest of Mason and Slidell on the British Steamer 

"Trent " 687 

Grant's Headquarters near Fort Donelson 688 

A View of the Country, Showing Fort Donelson in 

the Distance 689 

Map Showing Pittsburg Landing and Corinth .... 690 

Charge of the Federals at Corinth 691 

Iron-clad Gunboat 692 

Island No. 10 694 

Burning Horses at Shiloh 695 

Massacre of the Morrisites 696 



PAGB 

Portraits of Prominent Confederate Generals .... 697 

General Sherman at the Outbreak of the War . . . . 699 

Burnside's Expedition Crossing Hatteras Bar .... 700 
Portraits of the Principal Naval Commanders during 

the War 702 

The "Merrimac " Sinking the "Cumberland" .... 704 

General George B. McClellan 706 

View of the Chickahominy near Mechanicsville . . . 707 

Map of Northern Virginia 708 

Lieutenant-General T. J. Jackson 709 

Portraits of Prominent Confederate Generals . . . . 711 

Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 714 

Major-General Philip Kearney 715 

McClellan at the Battle of Antietam 717 

View of Antietara Battle Ground 718 

Portraits of Some of the Generals of the Army of the 

Potomac 720 

General John Sedgwick 721 

General George G. Meade 722 

Battle of Gettysburg 724 

Positions during the First Day's Fight at Gettys- 
burg 727 

Positions during the Second and Third Days' Fight at 

Gettysburg 727 

Map Showing Vicksburg and Its Approaches .... 730 

Vicksburg, Mississippi 731 

Gunboats Running Past Vicksburg at Night .... 732 

General John C. Pemberton 733 

Grant's Headquarters near Vicksburg 734 

Map of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga Cam- 
paigns • 735 

Positions of the Armies at the Battle of Missionary 

Ridge 736 

Grant's Headquarters at Chattanooga 737 

Capture of Lookout Mountain 738 

Missionary Ridge from the Cemetery at Chattanooga 739 

The Attack on Fort Sumter by the Monitor Fleet . . 740 

Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 721 

Fort De Russy 742 

Bailey's Red River Dam 743 

Grant Writing Dispatches before Crossing the 

Ripadan 744 

General James Longstreet 745 

The Place where Sedgwick was Killed 746 

General Fitzhugh Lee 747 

Battle of Cold Harbor 748 

Battle of Spottsylvania Court-house 749 

General J. E. B. Stuart 750 

General Winfield S. Hancock 751 

Stuart's Cavalry Cutting Telegraph Wires 752 

Pontoon Bridge at Deep Bottom 753 

General Philip H. Sheridan 754 

Portraits of Federal Cavalry Commanders 755 

Sheridan's Cavalry Charge at Cedar Creek .... 756 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



XXlll 



PAGE 

'Country between Chattanooga and Atlanta 757 

General Joseph E. Johnston 758 

General James B. McPherson 761 

General George H. Thomas 762 

Portraits of Sherman and some of his Commanders . 763 
The Country Traversed by Sherman in His March 

through Georgia 764 

Map Showing the City of Mobile and Its Defences . . 765 

Commodore David G. Farragut 766 

Cape Fear River and Approaches to Wilmington, 

N. C 767 

Boat of the "Deerhound " Rescuing Captain Semmes 768 

Sinking of the " Alabama" by the " Kearsarge " . . 769 

Raphael Semmes 770 

Portraits of Prominent Federal Generals 771 

Major-General J. M. Schofield 772 

Portraits of Federal Cavalry Commanders 773 

Interior of Fort Steadm an 774 

Positions of the Annies near Petersburg, Va 775 

General Robert E. Lee 776 

The Last Cavalry Charge of the War 777 

General John B. Gordon 780 

The McLean House 781 

Surrender of General Lee 782 

General Lee's Farewell to His Soldiers 783 

Assassination of President Lincoln 785 

The Grave of President Lincoln 786 

Interview between Generals Sherman and Johns- 
ton 788 

Andrew Johnson 791 

Ruins of Richmond after the War 792 

Fort Warren, Boston Harbor 793 

Lincoln Monument in Fairmount Park, Philadel- 

pJiia 795 

Emperor Maximilian 798 

Natives of Alaska Building Houses 799 

Ulysses S. Grant 802 

View on the Greene River at the Crossing of the Union 

Pacific.Railroad, Wyoming 803 

President Grant on his way to the Inauguration. . . 804 

Humboldt Palisades, Pacific Railway 805 

Cheyenne Indians Reconnoitering the First Train on 

the Pacific Railroad 806 

The Geneva Board of Arbitration Settling the Ala- 
bama Claims 807 

The Burning of Chicago 808 

Horace Greeley 809 

President Grant Passing Through the Rotunda to 

take the Oath of Office 810 

Mrs. U. S. Grant 811 

The Lava Beds — Scene of the Modoc War . . . . 812 
Scene in the New York Stock Exchange During the 

Panic of 1873 814 

Scene on the Colorado River 815 



PAGB 

View in the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River . 81S 
Memorial Hall, Fairmount Park, Philadelphia . . . 820 
View of the Main Building of the International Cen- 
tennial Exhibition 822 

General J. R. Hawley 824 

Intersection of Ninth and Chestnut Streets, Philadel- 
phia 826 

Obverse of Centennial Medal • • • . . 827 

Reverse of Centennial Medal 827 

Shoshone Falls, Idaho 828 

General George Crook 829 

Indians Surprised and Defeated 830 

Horseshoe Bend on the Pennsylvania Railroad near 

Altoona 831 

Canyon of the Lodore and Greene Rivers, Wyoming . 832 

Samuel J. Tilden S;^^ 

Thomas A. Hendricks 834 

Point Pleasant, Ohio, the Birthplace of General 

Grant 835 

Samuel J. Randall 8^6 

The New Department of State, Washington, D. C . . 837 

George F. Edmunds 838 

Thomas F. Bayard 839 

Rutherford B. Hayes 842 

William A. Wheeler 843 

Arrival of General Grant at San Francisco in the 

Steamer " City of Tokio " 844 

William H. English 845 

The " Jeannette " Crushed by the Ice 846 

The Mirage — A Scene in the Arctic Regions .... 847 

James A. Garfield 850 

Mrs. Lucretia R. Garfield 851 

James G. Blaine 852 

The Assassination of James A. Garfield 853 

Death-bed of James A. Garfield 854 

The Catafalque at Cleveland, Ohio 855 

James A. Garfield Lying in State in the Rotunda of 

the Capitol at Washington 856 

Chester A. Arthur 857 

John A. Logan 858 

John G. Carlisle 859 

Sanderson's Hope, Upernavik, Baffin Bay 860 

Arctic Region — Beechey Head 861 

Scene in the Arctic Region — Among the Icebergs . . 862 

The Brooklyn Suspension Bridge 863 

Grover Cleveland 865 

Chief Justice Waite Administering the Oath of Office 

to President Cleveland 866 

Death of General Grant 867 

Cottage in which Grant Died at Mount McGregor . . 868 
General Grant's Temporary Tomb, Riverside Park, 

New York 869 

Mrs. Frances Folsom Cleveland 872 

The New Post Office Building, Philadelphia .... 873 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PAGE 

The New City Hall, Philadelphia 874 

Steamship Docks on the Delaware River, Philadel- 
phia 875 

Allen G. Thurnian 876 

Levi P. Morton 877 

Benjamin Harrison 879 

Bird's-eye View of New York City 880 

The Post Office, New York S81 

The Battery and Castle Garden, New York .... 882 

The Harbor of New York 883 

The Break in the South Forks Dam, Johnstown, Pa. 884 

William McKinley 885 

Charles F. Crisp 886 

Sitting Bull in his War- Dress. . 8S7 

Chief American Horse 888 



PAGE 

General Nelson A. Miles 889 

Captain Wallace Found After the Wounded Knee 

Fight 890 

Scene on the Yellowstone River 892 

Bird's-eye View of the World's Columbian Exposi- 
tion at Jackson Park 900 

Map of Jackson Park Showing Site of theWorld's Fair 901 
Manufactures and Arts — the Main Building .... 903 

United States Government Building 905 

Administration Building 907 

The Electrical Building 909 

Agricultural Building 910 

Machinery Hall 912 

View Looking South over the Lagoon 914 

Horticultural Building 917 




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Story of the New World 



OR 



Thrilling Events of American History 



BOOK I 



Discovery of the Western Continent 

CHAPTER I 
Strange People in a Strange Land 

Tlarliest Inhabitants of the United States— The Mound Builders— Remarkable Works Constructed by them— Evidences 
of a Primitive Civilization — Indications of the Antiquity of this Period — The American Indians — Division of the 
Country Among the Tribes — Names and Location of the Various Tribes — Organization and Government of the 

Indians — Their Dress, Manners and Customs — Villages — Indian Inventions — The 
War Dance — Legends of the Norsemen Respecting the Discovery of America. 




E do not know who 
were the inhabitants, 
or what was the his- 
tory of North America 
previous to its discov- 
ery and settlement by 
the Europeans. That 
it was at some remote 
period occupied by a 
more civilized and 
powerful race than the Indians, found by the 
first explorers, is very certain ; but who they 
were, what was their history, or what the 
cause of their extinction, are among the 
profoundest mysteries of the past. Traces 
as distinct as those which mark the various 
physical changes which the continent has 
undergone, exist to show that these primitive 
inhabitants were both numerous and far 
advanced in civilization ; but this is all that 
we know concerning them. 

In various parts of the country, and especi- 
ally in the valley of the Mississippi, large 
mounds and other structures of earth and 



stone, but chiefly of earth, remain to show 
the magnitude of the works constructed by 
these people, to whom the name " Mound 
Builders " is generally applied. Some of 
these earth-works embrace as much as 
fifteen or sixteen miles of embankment. 

As no domestic animals existed in this 
country at that period, these works must 
have been constructed by bringing the earth 
used in them by hand ; a fact which shows 
that the primitive population was a large 
one. The construction of the works proves 
that they had considerable engineering skill. 
The square, the circle, the ellipse, and the 
octagon are all used in these structures; 
being all combined in a single system of 
works in some places. The proportions are 
always perfect. The square is always a true 
square, and the circle a true circle. Many 
implements and ornaments of copper, silver, 
and precious stones — such as axes, chisels, 
knives, bracelets, beads, and pieces of thread 
and cloth, and well-shaped vases of pottery 
have been found in these mounds, and show 



i8 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



the extent of the civilization ot the " Mound 
Builders " and their knowledge of the arts. 
In the region of Lake Superior are found 
old copper mines worked by these ancient 
people. In one of these mines there was 
discovered an immense block of copper 
weighing nearly six tons. It had been left 
in the process of removal to the top of the 
mine, nearly thirty feet above, and was sup- 
ported on logs of wood which were partly 
petrified. The stone and copper tools used 
by the miners were discovered lying about 
as they had been left by their owners ages 
before. At the mouth of this mine are piles 
of earth thrown out in digging it, and out of 
these embankments trees are growing which 
are nearly four hundred years old. 

Who were the "Mound Builders"? 

The following interesting account of the 
mounds and their builders is from the pen 
of Mr. J. H. Beadle, who has kindly given us 
permission to quote from his valuable work, 
entitled The Undeveloped West'. 

In his description, Mr. Beadle says : 
A people for whom we have no name, 
vaguely included under the general term of 
Mound Builders, have left evidences of exten- 
sive works in the vicinity of the Mississippi 
and Ohio Rivers and their tributaries. These 
are of three kinds : mounds, square and 
circular inclosures, and raised embank- 
ments of various forms. Of mounds, the 
following are most important and best 
known : One at Grave Creek, West Virginia, 
70 feet high and 1,000 feet in circumference 
at the base ; one near Miamisburg, Ohio, 68 
feet high and 852 feet in circumference ; the 
great truncated pyramid at Cahokia, Illinois, 
700 feet long, 500 wide, and 90 in height ; 
the immense square mound, with face of 188 
feet, near Marietta, Ohio ; and some hun- 
dreds of inferior mounds from 60 to 30 feet 
in height, in different States, from Wisconsin 



to the mouth of the Mississippi. Unlike- 
all the mounds in Mexico and Central and 
South America, those in our country have 
no trace of buildings on them. W^hy?' 
Until I visited Arizona I had no answer. 
There the solution was easy. In those 
regions stone was abundant and timber was 
scarce ; here the reverse was the case. Our 
predecessors built of wood, the others of 
stone ; the works of the latter remain to 
this day, while wooden buildings would 
leave no trace after one or two centuries, 
if indeed they were not burnt by the savages 
as soon as abandoned. 

Immense Structures. 

Of the second class the best known are : 
the square fortification at Cedar Bank, 
Scioto River, Ohio, with face of 800 feet, 
inclosing a mound 245 feet long by 150 
broad ; the works four miles north of Chilli- 
cothe, Ohio, a square and a circular fortifica- 
tion inclosing twenty acres each ; the graded' 
way near Piketon, Ohio ; about a hundred 
mounds and inclosures in Ross County, 
Ohio ; the pyramid at Seltzertown, Missis- 
sippi, 600 feet long and 40 feet high, and a 
vast number of mounds, inclosures, squares 
and pyramids on the upper lakes, and scat- 
tered through the Southern and Western 
States. Every State in this great region 
contains these ancient structures. 

By far the greatest division is in Central 
and South America ; and here we find our- 
selves at the point where our ancient civiliza- 
tion reached its height, among works which 
are the astonishment of explorers and per- 
plexity of scholars. Yucatan is a vast field 
for antiquarian research, dotted from one end 
to the other with the ruins of cities, temples 
and palaces. But in the great forest which 
covers the northern half of Guatemala, the 
southern half of Yucatan, and parts of other 
States, covering an area larger than Ohio, is- 



STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 



19 



to be found the key to our ancient history. 
Within a few years past cities have been dis- 
covered which must have contained a popu- 
lation of a quarter of a million, in an advanced 
condition of civilization ; and yet, owing to 
the jealousy of the natives and the indiffer- 
ence of modern scholars, next to nothing is 
known, and few scientific researches have 
been made upon this intensely interesting 
subject. 

In my limited space I confine this inquiry 
mostly to the remains in our own country. 



2. They were an agricultural people. The 
barbarous state requires many times as 
large an area for the same number of people 
as the civilized state ; and the savage condi- 
tion a much larger. The State of Ohio will 
support an agricultural population of many 
millions; yet it never contained fifty thousand 
savages. It is easily proven that that 
portion of the United States east of the 
Mississippi never contained half a million 
Indians. It follows, also, that a very large 
portion of the country around their works 




MOUNDS AT MARIETTA, OHIO. 



From what we see in the Western and 
Southern States, the following conclusions 
are evident : 

I. The Mound Builders constituted a 
considerable population, under one govern- 
ment. No wandering and feeble tribes could 
have erected such works ; and the extent of 
the works, evidently many years in erection, 
as well as their completeness and scientific 
exactness, show the controlling energy of one 
directing central power, Avhich alone can 
account for their uniform character. 



must have been cleared of timber and in 
cultivated fields. 

3. They left our country a long time 
ago. Nature does not give a forest growth 
at once to abandoned fields ; a preparatory 
growth of shrubs and softer timber comes 
first. But forest trees have been found upon 
the summit of their mounds, which show, by 
annual rings and other signs, at least six 
hundred years of growth. There could be 
no better proof of their great antiquity. 

Their works are never found upon the 



20 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



lowest terrace of the formation on the rivers ; 
though many signs indicate that they built 
some as nearly on a level with the streams as 
possible. Their " covered ways," leading 
down to water, now terminate on the second 
terrace above. It is demonstrable that of the 
various terraces — " second bottoms " — on 
our streams, the lowest was longest in form- 
ing. From these and many other signs, it is 
proved that the last of the Mound Builders 
left the Ohio valley at least a thousand years 
ago. 

How Long were they Here ? 

4. They occupied the country, at least 
the southern part of it, where their popula- 
tion was densest, a very long time. This is 
shown by the extent of their works, the 
evidences of their working the copper-mines 
of the Superior region, and many other 
proofs. The best judges estimate that nearly 
a thousand years elapsed from the time of 
their entrance till their departure from the 
Mississippi valley. 

5. At the south they were at peace ; but 
as they advanced northward, they came 
more and more into contact with the wild 
tribes, before whom they finally retired — 
again towards the south. These facts are 
clearly proved by the increase of fortifica- 
tions northward, and broad flat mounds, 
suitable only for buildings, southward. 

So much for proof; and, connecting these 
with other proofs, the latest antiquarians are 
of the opinion that the Toltecs — the civilized 
race preceding the Aztecs — were our Mound 
Builders. This opinion is the only reason- 
able one that can be formed under all the 
circumstances. 

When we pass to the more southern 
ruins the proofs of great antiquity, large 
population and long occupation are vastly 
increased. Some of them have been alluded 
to. The great forest of Guatemala and 
Yucatan is nearly as large as Ohio and 



Indiana combined, and could easily have 
sustained a civilized population of ten mil- 
lions. The Aztecs, whom the Spaniards 
found, were the last of at least three civilized 
races, and much inferior to the Toltecs 
immediately preceding them. Their history 
indicates that they were merely one of the 
original races, who overthrew and mingled 
with the Toltecs, adopting part of their reli- 
gion and civilization. The Peruvian Incas, 
found by Pizarro, seemed to have been the 
second in the series of races. But civiliza- 
tion is not spontaneous ; it must have re- 
quired nearly a thousand years for the first 
of the three dynasties to have developed art 
and learning far enough to erect the build- 
ings we find. To that race before the Incas, 
the authors of the original civilization, De 
Bourbourg and others have given the name 
of Colhuas. 

What may Reasonably be Conjectured. 

Thus we have the series : a thousand 
years since the Mound Builders left our 
country; a previous thousand years of set- 
tlement and occupation, and a thousand ♦ 
years for the precedent civilization to develop. 
Or, beginning in Mexico, etc. : a thousand 
years of Spaniard and Aztec ; a previous 
thousand years for Toltec migration and 
settlement, and a thousand years before that 
for the Colhuas to develop, flourish and 
decline. This carries us back to the time 
when the same course of events was inaugu- 
rated on the Eastern Continent. We know 
that it has required so long to produce all 
we see in Europe and Asia; all reasoning, 
by analogy, goes to show that at least as 
long a time has been required to produce 
equally great evidences in America. 

Besides a host of surmises there have 
been at least nine theories promulgated, and 
strenuously defended, in regard to the origin 
of this civilization. 



STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 



21 



I. The Jewish theory. Some sixty years 
since Major Noah maintained that the " Lost 
Tribes " were the ancestors of the American 
Indians and the builders of the ruins de- 



such a people as the Jews could, in a few 
centuries, lose all trace of their language, 
religion, laws, form of government, art, 
science and general knowledge, and sink into 




A DEAD TOWN OF THE MOQUIS INDIANS. 



scribed ; and a few others held that, if not 
the Ten Tribes, there was a Jewish Colony. 
It would certainly be an amazing thing if 



a tribe of barbarians. But when we add 
that their bodily shape must have completely 
changed, their skulls lengthened, the beard 



22 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



dropped from their faces, and their lan- 
guage undergone a reversion from a deriv- 
ative to a primitive type — a thing unknown 
in any human tongue — the supposition be- 
comes too monstrous even to be discussed. 

2. The Malay theory is that a great 
Malay Empire, once existing in the island of 
Malaysia, planted colonies here ; but this is 
easily disproved. 

Works of the Phcenicians. 

3. The Phoenician theory : that those 
ancient navigators planted colonies in Amer- 
ica. If correct, this would be certain of 
demonstration ; for they were preeminently 
a people of letters and monuments. The 
Phoenician alphabet is the parent of all the 
alphabets of Europe except the Turkish. 
They must have left some trace of their lan- 
guage. But none has been found. Nor can 
any similarity be traced in the ruins with the 
works of the Phoenicians. 

4, 5 , 6. The Assyrian, Egyptian and Roman 
theories fell for the same reasons as the 
Phoenician. The works of none of these 
people have any marked resemblance to 
those found in America. A pyramid or 
temple here is no more like an Egyptian or 
Assyrian one than a Chinese pagoda is like 
an American church. 

7. The Northmen in America have been 
credited with these works. It is barely 
possible the remains in the United States 
might be thus accounted for ; but how about 
the far more extensive and elaborate works 
in Mexico, Central and South America? 
The cause ascribed is utterly inadequate for 
the effect. 

8. The Chinese or Tartary theory is, 
that about the year 1.250 Kublai Khan sent 
Tartar colonies to America; that among 
them were some Nestorian Christians, which 
accounts for the crosses found. The time is 
utterly inadequate. Palenque and Copan 



were built and abandoned before the year 
1250. 

9. The Atlantean theory is, by far, the 
most brilliant and fascinating of all proposed, 
and appeals with subtle power to the imagi- 
nation. It is propounded by Brasseur de 
Bourbourg, who maintains that the Island of 
Atlantis, often mentioned by ancient poets, 
had a real existence ; that it extended nearly 
across the Atlantic, and was the cradle of 
civilization ; that it actually sank in the sea 
as the Greek poets tell us, and that the West 
India Islands are the only portions that 
remain above water. He conjectures that 
from this common centre civilization spread 
east and west, and supports this view by 
numerous traditions from both sides of the 
Atlantic. Of this theory we m ust regretfully 
say, " Not proven." 

A False Assumption. 

To dispose of so many theories to make 
way for my own opinion, is scarcely in 
keeping with the modesty I had proposed to 
myself; but, in my humble judgment, these 
theorists all start from one fatal assumption : 
that this civilhation was necessarily an exotic. 
Why not a civilization native to America as 
well as to any other country ? I would sug- 
gest that a good basis might be laid by 
analogy with the course of civilization in 
Europe. There it began in the South, spread 
slowly by successive developments towards 
the North, where it was overwhelmed and 
driven back, as it were, by an irruption of 
barbarians ; it again revived in the South, 
and slowly extended to the North, where it 
is now advanced beyond the original. 

Similarly here the Colhuas originated 
civilization in the South ; their successors 
the Toltecs, carried it towards the North, 
about the line of Ohio, they encountered the 
irruption of northern barbarians, and slowly 
retired towards the South ; there civilization 



STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 



23 



again revived, and was steadily advancing 
towards the North when the Spaniards came 
and destroyed it. On each continent the 
full cycle required a period of about three 
thousand years. 

On this basis I should place the Moquis 
and other Pueblo races the last in a series of 
four, the second the greatest, and a decline 
thence to the last : Colhuas, Toltecs, Aztecs, 
Pueblos. In summing up, why are we 
reduced to the necessity of adopting any 
hypothesis of an Eastern origin ? Is it 
unreasonable to believe that self-improve- 
ment began among savages in America, as it 
did three thousand years ago among savages 
in Egypt and Greece ? Does sound philos- 
ophy forbid the theory of a spontaneous 
civilization in America ? We are, perhaps, 
too much in the habit of thinking that 
everything really good originated with our 
branch of the human race. To my mind, 
the evidences are many — though a profound 
American archaeologist might smile at the 
supposition — that this civilization was sui 
generis, native and not derived. 

A Remarkable Indian. 

We now know that in China a civiliza- 
tion developed spontaneously, totally unlike 
and receiving no aid from that of Europe. 
Two starting points proved, what is there to 
forbid the idea of a third? This is as dis- 
tinct from the European as is the Chinese ; 
it shows no signs of derivation, and facts 
indicate clearly that the native mind of Amer- 
ica is naturally equal to either of the others. 
Within the memory of man a Cherokee has 
invented a complete alphabet, one serving 
the purpose in his language better than ours 
does in the English. (Better because each 
letter represents invariably one and the same 
sound.) This fact is worth a volume of con- 
jecture. It shows that the human mind was 
slowly working toward something better in 



America, the same as in Europe, the only 
difference being that, from reasons of race or 
climate, it there got an earlier start. 

Outgrowing Barbarism. 

And as to the northern barbarians who 
destroyed this civilization, why are we driven 
to inventing a plausible theory as to how 
they crossed from Asia? On the whole, I 
incline to flank all the difficulties of the main 
question thus : America, as shown by geo- 
logy, is the oldest of the continents, and it 
is quite reasonable, therefore, to suppose was 
early inhabited. This race had a native 
genius peculiarly its own, totally unlike that 
which developed in Asia the Chinese civili- 
zation, or that in Europe which created that 
of the Greek and Roman and the later 
nations. Like them, many hundreds of years 
passed in barbarism before even a start was 
apparent. But civilization did begin in Amer- 
ica, and was reviving from its first over- 
throw when the whites came. 

Mexico had advanced through the savage 
and barbarous to the half-civilized state ; the 
New England tribes had taken the first steps 
toward improvement, and the New York 
Indians had already a political organization, 
code of laws, national confederacy and sys- 
tem of representative council and govern- 
ment. Had the whites discovered America 
a thousand years later, they might have 
found on the Atlantic coast a completed 
native civilization as perfect as that of China 
to-day. The innate power of the Indian 
mind among the superior tribes is evident. 
The inferior ones would have perished as did 
inferior aboriginal races before Asiatic and 
European civilization. 

The foregoing theories, by Mr. Beadle, are 
doubtless the best solution to this problem. 
At the time of its discovery by the whites 
the Indians were the sole human occupants 
of the continent, which was covered with vast 



24 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



woods and plains abounding with game of 
every description. 

Though nominally divided into tribes and 
"nations," the Indians were really one great 
family in physical appearance, manners, cus- 
toms, religion, and in the observance of their 
social and political systems. The division 



and Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, 
Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina as far 
south as Cape Fear, a large part of Kentucky 
and Tennessee, and nearly all of Ohio, Indi- 
ana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Min- 
nesota. This nation was subdivided into the 
following tribes : the Ottawas, Chippewas 




into tribes was the result of their difference 
in language. Each tribe had a dialect pecu- 
liar to itself and distinct from those of the 
others. The tribes were for the most part 
hostile to and were constantly engaged in 
war with each other. They were generally 
divided into eight nations, speaking eight 
radically distinct languages. These were : 

I. The Algonqidns, who inhabited the ter- 
ritory now comprised in the six New 'Eng- 
land States, the eastern part of New York 



INDIAN VILLAGE IN WINTER. 

Sacs and Foxes, Miamis, Potawatomies, 
Shawnees, Powhatans, Delawares, Mohegans, 
Narragansetts and Pequods. 

The Famous " Five Nations." 

II. Iroquois, who occupied almost all of 
that part of Canada south of the Ottawa, and 
between lakes Ontario, Erie and Huron, the 
greater part of New York, and the country 
lying along the south shore of Lake Erie, 
now included in the States of Ohio and Penn- 
sylvania. This territory, it will be seen. 



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UNITED STATES. 



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U. S. COMMODOBB PENNANT. 




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UNION JACK. 




U. S. REVENUE. 




U. S. TACHT. 





U. S. ADMIRAL. 



GERMANT. 






PENNSYLVANIA STATE. 




GERMAN MBBOHANT. 



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FLAGS OF ALL NATIONS. 



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VENEZUELA. 




BOUADOB. 




INDIA. 





DENMARK. 




PARAGUAY. 









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FLAGS OF ALL NATIONS. 
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FLAGS OF ALL NATIONS. 

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SWITZERLAND. 



NORWAY. 



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CHINA. 




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URUGUAY. 




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NEW aRANAQA. 



FLAGS OF ALL NATIONS. 



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STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 



25 



bordered on the domains of their powerful 
and bitter enemies, the Algonquins. The 
nation was subdivided into the following 
tribes : the Senecas, Cayugas, Onondagas, 
Oneidas and Mohawks. These five were 
afterwards called by the English the " Five 
Nations." In 1722 they admitted the Tus- 
caroras into their confederation, and were 
afterwards called the " Six Nations." 

Tribes of the South. 

III. The Catawbas, who dwelt along the 
banks of the Yadkin and Catawba rivers, 
near the line which at present separates 
the States of North and South Carolina. 

IV. The Cherokees, whose lands were 
bounded on the east by the Broad river 
of the Carolinas, including all of north- 
ern Georgia. 

V. The Uchees, who dwelt south of 
the Cherokees, along the Savannah, the 
Oconee, and the head-waters of the 
Chattahoochee. They spoke a harsh 
and singular language, and are believed 
to have been the remnant of a once 
powerful nation. 

VI. The Mobilian Nation, who inhabi- 
ted all of Georgia and South Carolina 
not mentioned in the above statements, 
a part of Kentucky, Tennessee and Mis- 
sissippi and all of Florida and Alabama. 
Their territory was next in extent to that 

of the Algonquins, and extended along the 
Gulf of Mexico from the Atlantic Ocean to 
the Mississippi River. The nation was 
divided into three great confederations — the 
Creeks or Muscogees, the Choctaws and the 
Chickasaws — and was subdivided into a 
number of smaller tribes, the principal of 
which were the Seminoles and Yemassees, 
who were members of the Creek Confed- 
eration. 

VII. The Natchez, who dwelt in a small 
territory east of the Mississippi, and along the 



banks of the Pearl River. They were almost 
surrounded by the tribes of the Mobilian 
language, yet remained until their extinction 
a separate nation, speaking a distinct lan- 
guage peculiar to themselves, and worship- 
ping the sun as their God. They are believed 
to have been the most civilized of all the 
savage tribes of North America. 

VIII. The Dacotahs or Sioux, whose terri- 
tory was bounded on the north by Lake 
Winnipeg, on the south by the Arkansas 
River, on the east by the Mississippi, and on 




NAVAJO BOY. 

the west by the Rocky Mountains. The 
nation was divided into the following 
branches : the Winnebagoes, living between 
Lake Michigan and the Mississippi ; the 
Southern Sioux, living between the Arkan- 
sas and the Platte ; and the Mandans and 
Crows, who lived north of them. 

The great plains, the Rocky Mountains 
and Pacific coast were held by the powerful 
tribes of the Pawnees, Comanches, Apaches, 
Utahs, Black Feet, Snakes, Nezperces, Flat- 
heads, Navajos and CaHfornia Indians. 



26 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



Each tribe was divided into classes or 
clans, which wore distinguished by a mark 
tattooed on the breast. This mark was 
called the totem, and was generally the 
representation of an animal or bird. The 
Indians believed that all animals had protect- 
ing spirits, and each class was supposed to 
be protected by the spirit of the animal it 
chose for its totem. Over each class was a 
chief, and the head of the tribe was a chief 
or sachem, who was usually a man, but some- 




PUEBLO INDIAN AT PRAYER. 

times a woman. The Indians had no writ- 
ten laws, but the customs and traditions of 
the tribe took the place of these. The reli- 
gious belief of the Indians was simple. 
They adored a Great Spirit — some tribes had 
many gods — and believed in a future state. 
The brave were admitted to the happy hunt- 
ing-grounds of the spirit-world, but cowards 
were excluded from them. The weapons of 
a warrior were buried with him that he might 
use them in his spirit home, and pursue the 
-occupations of his earthly life. 



Their heaven lay far beyond the mountains 
of the setting sun. It was a land rich in 
game, and abounding in fertile meadows and 
sparkling streams. There the warrior, re- 
leased from the cares and hardships of life, 
passed the ages of eternity in the chase ; and 
there parting from friends, suffering, fatigue, 
hunger and thirst were unknown. The 
Indian heard voices of spirits in the wind, 
and saw them in the stars. The shades of 
his ancestors were constantly hovering over 
him, stimulating him to brave deeds, keep- 
ing fresh in his mind the duty of avehging 
them upon the enemies they had left behind, 
and of proving himself a true warrior. 

Grotesque Dress of the Savages. 

The dress of the savages consisted of the 
skins of animals, which were prepared by 
smoking them. After the settlement of the 
colonies they added a blanket to this dress. 
Their garments were decorated with skins 
and feathers, and on special occasions they 
painted their faces with various bright colors. 
In the warm weather they wore scarcely any 
clothing. Their houses or wigwams were 
formed of poles set firmly in the ground and 
bent toward each other at the top. These 
were covered with chestnut or birch bark. 
Some of the tribes had large houses, often 
thirty feet high and over two hundred feet 
long, which accommodated a number of 
families. Some of the Indian villages were 
laid off regularly and were permanent; others 
were broken up with each migration of the 
tribe. All the Indians, however, pursued a 
roving life, passing from point to point in 
search of game and the means of subsist- 
ence. Some of the tribes lived by hunting 
only ; others added to this pursuit the culti- 
vation of maize or Indian corn, beans, hemp, 
tobacco and pumpkins. The food of the 
Indians was coarser and less nourishing than 
that of the Europeans, and they were conse- 



STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 



27 



quently inferior to the latter in bodily 
strength. They surpassed them in endur- 
ance, however, and could bear tests which 
the whites could not. They were swift run- 
ners, and could accomplish long distances in 
this way. It was a common thing for a good 
runner to run seventy or eighty miles in a 
single day. They were thoroughly proficient 
in the craft of the woodsman. Sounds and 
sights which had no meaning to the white 
man were eloquent to them ; and they sur- 
passed the latter in keenness of hearing and 
of vision. They communicated with each 
■other by signs or marks on rocks and trees. 
For money they used wampum beads ; and 
belts made of this wampum were used to 
record treaties and other important events. 
They had no intoxicating drinks before the 
arrival of the whites ; but used tobacco, 
which they smoked in pipes made of clay. 
They were expert marksmen with the bow 
until they learned the use of firearms from 
the whites, when they lost much of their 
ancient skill with this weapon. 

Canoes and Snow-shoes. 

" The most ingenious inventions of the In- 
dians," says Colonel Higginson, " were the 
snow-shoe and the birch canoe. The snow- 
shoe was made of a maple-wood frame three 
or four feet long, curved and tapering, and 
filled in with a network of deer's hide. This 
network was fastened to the foot by thongs, 
only a light, elastic moccasin being worn. 
Thus the foot was supported on the surface 
of the snow ; and an Indian could travel 
forty miles a day upon snow-shoes, and could 
easily overtake the deer and moose whose 
pointed hoofs cut through the crust. The 
peculiar pattern varied with almost every 
tribe, as did also that of the birch canoe. 
This was made of the bark of the white 
birch, stretched over a very light frame of 
white cedar. The whole bark of a birch 



tree was stripped off and put around the 
frame without being torn. The edges were 
sewed with thongs cut from the roots of 
the cedar, and were then covered with pitch 
made from the gum of trees. If torn, the 
canoe could be mended with pieces of bark, 
fastened in the same way. The largest of 
these canoes was thirty feet long, and would 
carry ten or twelve Indians. They were 
very light and could be paddled with ease. 
They were often very gracefully shaped, and 
drew very little water. 

"The Indians had great courage, self-con- 
trol, and patience. They were grave and 




CIVILIZED INDIAN WOMAN. 

dignified in their manners on important occa- 
sions ; in their councils they were courteous 
to one another, and discussed all important 
questions at great length. They were often 
kind and generous, and sometimes even for- 
giving ; but they generally held sternness to 
be a virtue, and forgiveness a weakness. They 
were especially cruel to captives, putting 
them to death with all manner of tortures, 
in which women took an active part. It was 
the custom among them for wom^n to do 
most of the hard work, in orclfci- that the 



28 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



bodies of the men might be kept supple and 
active for the pursuits of the chase and war. 

Great Power of Endurance. 

" When employed on these pursuits, the 
Indian men seemed incapable of fatigue ; 
but in the camp or in travelling the women 
carried the burdens ; and when a hunter had 
carried a slain deer on his shoulders for a 
longdistance, he would throw it down within 
sight of the village, that his squaw might go 
and bring it in. 

*' Most of the Indian tribes lived in a state 
of constant warfare with one another. When 
there was a quarrel between tribes, and war 
seemed ready to break out, strange cere- 
monies were used. Some leading chief 
would paint his body black from head to 
foot, and would hide himself in the woods or 
in a cavern. There he would fast and pray, 
and call upon the Great Spirit; and would 
observe his dreams to see if they promised 
good or evil. If he could dream of a great 
war-eagle hovering before him it would be a 
sign of triumph. After a time he would 
come forth from the woods and return among; 
his people. Then he would address them, 
summon them to war, and assure them that 
the Great Spirit was on their side. Then he 
would bid the warriors to a feast at his wig- 
wam. There they would find him no longer 
painted in black, but in bright and gaudy 
colors, called * war paint' The guests would 
also be dressed in paint and feathers, and 
would seat themselves in a circle around the 
wigwam. Then wooden trenchers, contain- 
ing the flesh of dogs, would be placed before 
them, while the chief would sit quietly smok- 
ing his pipe, and would not yet break his 
long and wearisome fast. 

" After the feast, the war-dance would fol- 
low, perhaps at night, amid the blaze of fires 
and lighted pine knots. A painted post 
would be driven into the ground, and the 



crowd would form a wide circle round it. 
The war chief would leap into the open 
space, brandishing his hatchet, and would 
chant his own deeds and those of his fathers, 
acting outall that he described and striking 
at the post as if it were an enemy. Warrior 
after warrior would follow, till at last the 
whole band would be dancing, shouting, and 
brandishing their weapons, striking and stab- 
bing at the air, making hideous grimaces 
and filling the forest with their yells. 

Making the Attack. 

" Much of the night would pass in this 
way. In the morning the warriors would 
leave the camp in single file, still decorated 
with paint and feathers and ornaments ; and, 
as they entered the woods, the chief would 
fire his gun, and each in turn would do the 
same. Then they would halt near the vil- 
lage, would take off their ornaments and 
their finery, and would give all these to the 
women, who had followed them for this pur- 
pose. Then the warriors would go silently 
and stealthily through the forest to the 
appointed place of attack. Much of their 
skill consisted in these silent approaches, and 
in surprises and stratagems, and long and 
patient watchings. They attached no shame 
to killing an unarmed enemy, or to private 
deceit and treachery, though to their public 
treaties they were always faithful. They were 
desperately brave, and yet they saw no dis- 
grace in running away when there was no 
chance of success." 

At the time of the discovery of America 
the Indians were rapidly disappearing. Their, 
relentless wars and frequent pestilences were 
sweeping them away. Contact with the 
white race has hastened the work of destruc- 
tion. Many of the tribes exist now but in 
name, and those which remain are growing 
smaller in numbers with each generation ; 
and it would seem that the time is not far 



STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 



29 



distant when the last trace left of the red man 
in America will be his memory. 

Old Traditions. 

Whether any white men ever trod the 
shores of America previous to the coming of 
Columbus is a disputed question. It would 
seem, however, that, several centuries previ- 
ous to his discovery, a Norwegian vessel from 
Iceland to Greenland was driven out of her 
course by storms to the coast of Labrador 
or Newfoundland. The national pride of the 
Icelanders and the Danes has led them to 
accept as literal history the traditions of their 
race concerning this voyage, and they have 
given it a definite date. According to them 
this voyage took place in A. D. 986, and was 
followed in looi by a voyage of Lief Erick- 
son, an Icelandic navigator, who is said to 
have discovered America, reaching Labrador 
first, and then sailing southward to Newport 
and New York harbors. This voyage is 
said to have led the way to the further 
exploration of the coast as far south as the 
capes of Virginia, and to the planting of 
colonies, which soon perished, in Newfound- 
land and Nova Scotia. That some Icelandic 
voyagers visited the American continent pre- 
vious to the expedition of Columbus is most 
likely ; but we cannot accept the definite and 
explicit statements of the writers in ques- 
tion ; at least in the present state of our 
knowledge upon this subject. We must con- 
tent ourselves with the bare fact, without 
admitting all the details narrated. 

Among the strange, stirring and wonder- 
ful stories of early voyages there was none 
which excited such interest as that of Bjarni, 
a native of Iceland, who had cruised along 
the coast of an unknown world, and looked 
upon hills, woods and mountains, of whose 
existence no one had ever dreamed. It 
naturally occurred to the hardy sailors who 
discussed the question, that they could do 



what Bjarni had done, and indeed far more, 
for he had not set foot on the shores he had 
seen at the west. 

The oldest son of Eric the Red was Lief — 
Lief the Lucky, he was afterward called. 
In the year lOOO he set sail from Herjulfness 
with a crew of thirty-five men, Bjarni being 
among them. Heading boldly out to sea, the 
sailors ploughed through the icy waters until 
land, supposed to be Newfoundland, was 
reached. They went ashore and examined 
it, but there was little to please the eye and 
they soon left. The next place visited was 
probably Nova Scotia, as it is now called. 
It was found to correspond with the account 
given by Bjarni. Two days further sail, 
before a favoring wind, carried the explorers 
so far south that when land was once more 
descried, it must have been New England. 
The main facts of the remarkable voyage of 
Lief the Northman have been proven beyond 
all dispute, but the accounts themselves are 
so confused in minor details that it can 
never be positively known where it was these 
navigators first landed. There is good rea- 
son, however, to believe it was on the coast 
of Rhode Island, and probably at some point 
on the Narragansett Bay. 

A Bold Navigator. 

The Northmen were astonished and 
delighted when they came to explore the 
woods to find luscious grapes in abundance. 
To the Northmen, the climate seemed won- 
derfully mild. Lief gave the country the 
name of Vinland, and when he sailed north- 
ward, his vessel was loaded with grapes and 
valuable timber, as proof of the fertility of the 
region he had visited. 

The Northmen were not men to rest con- 
tent with the voyage and discoveries made 
by Lief. Eric the Red had another son, a 
brave and skillful navigator named Thorvald, 
who was eager to visit the new country* 




.30 



STRANGE PEOPLE IN A STRANGE LAND. 



31 



Lief gave him much help, and in 1003 he set 
sail with a crew of thirty men. Good fortune 
attended them, and they found the rough 
houses left by Lief still strong and secure. 
The men spent the winter in hunting and 
fishing, but, so far as is known, never saw the 
face of any native of the New World. When 
spring came, part of the company went on 
an exploring tour along the coast of Rhode 
Island, Connecticut and Long Island. There 
is good reason to believe they entered the 
harbor of New York, but not a living person 
beside themselves was to be seen, and where 
stands to-day the most populous city in the 
New World, there was not so much as an 
Indian wigwam. 

The records show that in the spring of 
1004 Thorvald entered on a more extended 
voyage of exploration. He sailed slowly 
northward along the coast of Cape Cod, and 
was driven ashore by a tempest. It took the 
crew a long time to repair damages, but 
when everything was ready, they resumed 
their voyage, keeping close, no doubt, along 
the south shore of Massachusetts Bay. 
Being favorably impressed with the appear- 
ance of a certain spot, they dropped anchor 
and went ashore. When they had done so, 
they saw for the first time some of the 
natives of the new country. 

Under a couple of rude tents they dis- 
covered nine quietly lolling on the ground 
with no suspicion of the presence of the 
strangers who had landed near them. Who 
would think that the Northmen could offer 



harm to the poor savages ? There was not 
the slightest excuse for the dreadful cruelty 
of the white men, and yet, no sooner did 
they see the natives, than they resolved to kill 
them all. Creeping silently forward, they 
made a sudden rush, and with their heavy 
swords killed all but one. 

Having completed the massacre, "the 
triumphant Northmen lay down under the 
trees to sleep ; but they had hardly closed 
their eyes when the woods resounded with 
shouts and yells, and the natives rushed upon 
them from every side. The single survivor 
of the slaughter had made haste to tell what 
had been done by the visitors, who were now 
compelled to flee to their ship, fighting as 
they went. Under the shelter of the vessel, 
however, they were able to beat back the 
natives, only one of the Northmen receiving 
a wound : he was Thorvald, who had been 
pierced so deeply by an arrow that he was 
past help. He died and was buried near the 
shore, the grave covered with stones and a 
cross placed both at the head and foot. Then 
the survivors sailed back toVinland and told 
their countrymen the sad tidings. The next 
spring the whole colony returned to Green- 
land. 

Thus ends all authentic history of the dis- 
covery and settlement of America by the 
Northmen. Having found one of the great 
continents of the world, it may be said they 
lost it, and, during nearly five centuries 
afterward there is no positive proof that it 
was known to Europeans. 



CHAPTER II 



The Voyages of Columbus 




Maritime Enterprise in the Fifteenth Century — Theories Respecting the Earth's Surface — Christopher Columbus— His Early 
Life — His Theory of a Western Passage to India — His Struggles to Obtain the Means of Making a Voyage — Is Aided by 
Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain — His First Voyage — Discovery of America — Reception in Spain — His Second Voyage — 
Settlement of Ilayti — Third Voyage of Columbus — He Reaches the Mainland — Discovery of Gold in Hayti — Troubles 
in^the Colony — Columbus Sent to Spain in Irons — Indignation of the Queen — Last Voyage of Columbus — His Ship- 
wreck — Returns to Spain — Refusal of Ferdinand to Comply with his Promises — Decth 
of Columbus — Amerigo Vespucci — Origin of the Name America. 



could be reached. Among those who held 
this opinion was Christopher Columbus. He 
was a native of Genoa, in Italy, was born 
about the year 1435, and was the son of a 
weaver of cloth. His ancestors had been 
sailors, for which calling he at an early age 
evinced a preference. He received a com- 
mon school education, and afterwards went 
to the University of Pavia, where he studied 
geometry, astronomy, geography and navi- 
gation. He stayed at Pavia but a short time ; 
only long enough to gain a decided relish for 
mathematical studies. 

At the early age of fourteen he went on 
a voyage with a relative, and followed the 
calling of a sailor until he had completed his 
thirtieth year. During this period he had 
married, and by this marriage he had become 
possessed of the papers of the former hus- 
band of his wife, who had been a distinguished 
Portuguese navigator. He had learned but 
little at school, but he had been a close stu- 
dent all his life, and had stored his mind 
with a valuable fund of information. This 
habit of study he never abandoned, and his 
extensive knowledge, added to his years of 
practical experience, made him one of the 
most learned navigators of his day. In 1470, 
being then about thirty years old, Columbua 



HE fifteenth century witnessed a 
remarkable awakening of human 
thought and enterprise, one of 
the most important features of 
which was the activity in mari- 
time undertakings which led to 
the discovery of lands until then unknown 
to the civilized world. The invention, and 
the application to navigation, of the mariner's 
compass, had enabled the seamen of Europe 
to undertake long and distant voyages. The 
Portuguese took the lead in the maritime 
enterprises of this period, the chief object of 
which was to find a route by water from 
Europe to the Indies. The equator had 
been passed ; Bartholomew Diaz had even 
•doubled the Cape of Storms, and had estab- 
lished the course of the eastern coast of Af- 
rica ; and it was hoped by some of the most 
daring thinkers that the ports of India could 
be reached by sailing around this cape. 

Others, still bolder, believed that although 
the earth was a sphere, it was much smaller 
than it is, and that the central portion of 
its surface was occupied by a vast ocean 
which washed the shores of what they 
regarded as its solitary continent, on either 
side, and that by sailing due west from Eu- 
rope, the shores of India, China or Japan 
32 




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PQ 
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P 

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I— I 
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PQ 
CO 

P 
PQ 

O 
O 



THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. 



took up his residence in Portugal, which was 
then the centre of maritime enterprise in 
Europe. Here his spirit of discovery was 
quickened, and he became convinced that 
there were continents still unknown. 

He continued to make voyages to the 
then known parts of the world, and while on 



33 

fortified by his experience, induced him to 
believe that there was land beyond the 
western seas, which could be reached by 
sailing in that direction. This land he 
believed to be the eastern shores of Asia. 
He was confirmed in his belief by his corres- 
pondence with the learned Italian Toscanelh', 




CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS. 



shore engaged in the work of making and 
selling maps and charts. The papers given 
him by his wife were now of the greatest 
service to him. He entered eagerly into the 
speculations of the day concerning the short- 
est passage to the Indies, and his studies. 
3 



who sent him a map of his own projection,, 
in which the eastern coast of Asia was laid 
down opposite the western coast of Europe,' 
with only the broad Atlantic between them. 
Other things also confirmed him in what had 
now become the profoundest conviction of 



34 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



his life. Sailors who had been to the Canary- 
Islands told him they had seen land far to the 
westward of those islands. A piece of wood 
strangely carved had been thrown by the 
waves upon the Portuguese coast after a long 
westerly gale, and had been seen by the 
brother-in-law of Columbus. 

Seven Years of Disappointment. 

An old pilot related to him the finding 
of a carved paddle at sea, a thousand miles 
to the westward of Europe. Pine trees had 
been cast ashore at Madeira, and at the Azores 
he learned that the bodies of two men, whose 
features and dress showed that they belonged 
to no nation of Europe, had been thrown on 
the land by the waves. Having settled it 
in his own mind that there was land to the 
westward, Columbus was eager to go in 
search of it. He was not possessed of suffi- 
cient means to accomplish this at his own 
expense, and began his efforts to interest 
some European state in the enterprise. His 
first application was addressed to his native 
country, the Republic of Genoa. He met 
with a refusal, and then turned to Venice, 
with a like result. His next effort was to 
enlist the Portuguese king, John II., in his 
scheme. Here he was subjected to delays 
and vexations innumerable, and once the 
Portuguese sovereign attempted to make a 
dishonorable use of the information given by 
Columbus in support of his theory. 

Disgusted with the conduct of this sover- 
eign, Columbus, after years of waiting, aban- 
doned the hope of obtaining his assistance, 
and applied to Henry VII. of England, 
from whom he received a decided refusal. 
Quitting Lisbon in 1484, Columbus went to 
Spain, intending to lay his plans before Fer- 
dinand and Isabella, the sovereigns of that 
country. He could scarcely have chosen a 
more unpropitious time. The Spanish nation 
was engaged in the Moorish war, which had 



exhausted the treasury, and which absorbed 
the attention of the sovereigns to the exclu- 
sion of every other matter. He spent seven 
years in endeavoring to interest the govern- 
ment in his plans. " During this time 
Columbus appears to have remained in attend- 
ance on the court, bearing arms occasionally 
in the campaigns, and experiencing from the 
sovereigns an unusual degree of deference 
and personal attention." At last,' wearied 
with the long delay to which he had been 
subjected, he pressed the court for an 
answer, and was told by the sovereigns that, 
" although they were too much occupied at 
present to embark in his undertaking, yet, at 
the conclusion of the war, they should find 
time to treat with him." 

He accepted this answer as a refusal, 
and prepared to go to France to ask the 
assistance of the king of that country, from 
whom he had received a friendly letter. 
Travelling on foot, he stopped at the monas- 
tery of Santa Maria de Rabida, near Palos, 
to visit the Prior Juan Perez de Marchena, 
who had befriended him when he first came 
to Spain. The prior, learning his intention 
to quit Spain, persuaded him to remain until 
one more effort could be made to enlist the 
government in his plans. Leaving Columbus 
at the convent, Juan Perez, who had formerly 
been the queen's confessor, mounted his 
mule and set off for the Spanish camp before 
Granada. He was readily granted an inter- 
view by Queen Isabella, and he urged the 
suit of Columbus with all the force of elo- 
quence and reasoning of which he was master. 

Columbus at the Royal Court. 

His appeal was supported by several 
eminent persons whom Columbus, during 
his residence at the court, had interested in 
his project, and these represented to the 
queen the impolicy of allowing Columbus to 
secure the aid of a foreign power which 



THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. 



35 



would reap the benefits of his discoveries, if 
he were successful. The result was that the 
sovereigns consented to reopen the negotia- 
tion, and Columbus was invited to return to 
the court, and was furnished with a sum of 
money to enable him to do so. Columbus 
promptly complied with the royal mandate, 
and reached the camp in time to witness the 
surrender of Granada. Amidst the rejoic- 
ings which attended this event he was admit- 
ted to an audience with the king and queen, 
and submitted to them the arguments upon 
which he based his theory. Isabella was 
favorably disposed toward the undertaking, 
but Ferdinand looked coldly upon it. Co- 
lumbus demanded, as the reward of his suc- 
cess, the title and authority of admiral and 
viceroy over all lands discovered by him, 
with one-tenth of the profits, and that this 
dignity should be hereditary in his family. 
The archbishop of Granada advised the king 
to reject the demands of Columbus, which, 
he said, " savored of the highest degree of 
arrogance, and would be unbecoming in their 
highnesses to grant to a needy foreign 
adventurer." 

Columbus firmly refused to abate his 
pretensions, and abruptly left the court, 
" resolved rather to forego his splendid anti- 
cipations of discovery, at the very moment 
when the career so long sought was thrown 
open to him, than surrender one of the hon- 
orable distinctions due to his services." His 
friends, however, remonstrated with the 
queen, and reminded her that if his claims 
were high, they were at least contingent on 
success. By representing to her the certainty 
of his being employed by some other poten- 
tate, and his peculiar qualifications for success, 
and by reminding her of her past generous 
support of great and daring enterprises, they 
roused her to listen to the impulses of her 
own noble heart. " I will assume the under- 



taking," she exclaimed, " for my own crown 
of Castile, and am ready to pawn my jewels 
to defray the expenses of it, if the funds of 
the treasury shall be found inadequate." 
Louis de St. Angel, the receiver who had 
been chiefly instrumental in bringing about 
this decision of the queen, offered to ad- 
vance the necessary funds from the reve- 
nues of Aragon. That kingdom, however, 
was indemnified against loss, and all the 
charges and profits of the expedition were 
reserved exclusively for Castile. A messen- 
ger was despatched in haste after Columbus. 
He overtook him a few leagues from Granada, 
and delivered the royal order to return. 

Three Ships of Renown. 

On the seventeenth of April, 1492, a 
formal agreement was signed between 
Columbus and the Spanish sovereigns. Fer- 
dinand and Isabella, " as lords of the ocean- 
seas, constituted Christopher Columbus their 
admiral, viceroy and governor-general of 
all such islands and continents as he should 
discover in the Western Ocean, with the 
privilege of nominating three candidates, for 
the selection of one by the crown, for the 
government of each of these territories. 
He was to be vested with the exclusive 
right of jurisdiction over all commercial trans- 
actions within his admiralty. He was to be 
entitled to one-tenth of all the products and 
profits within the limits of his discoveries, 
and an additional eighth, provided he should 
contribute one-eighth part of the expense. 
By a subsequent ordinance, the official digni- 
ties above enumerated were settled on him 
and his heirs forever, with the privilege of 
prefixing the title of Don to their names, 
which had not then degenerated into an 
appellation of mere courtesy." 

A fleet of three vessels was assembled 
in the little harbor of Palos in Andalusia, 



3^ 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



Two of these were furnished by the govern- 
ment, and one by Columbus, aided by his 
friend, the Prior of La Rabida, and the Pin- 
zons, " a family in Palos, long distinguished 
for irs enterprise among the mariners of that 
active community." The admiral had some 
difficulty in equipping his vessels, for his 
voyage was regarded by the sailors of the 
country as rash and perilous in the extreme. 
At length, however, a sufficient crew was 
obtained. One hundred and twenty per- 
sons were enlisted in the expedition. The 
three vessels were all small. The Santa 
Maria, the largest, was ninety feet lon-g, was 
decked all over, had four masts, and carried 
a crew of sixty-six seamen. The Pi?tta and 
Nina were smaller, and were without decks. 
All the vessels were provisioned for a year. 
The admiral was instructed to keep clear of 
the African coast, and other maritime posses- 
sions of Portugal. 

The Fleet Sails. 

At length all things were in readiness, 
and, Columbus and his whole crew having 
confessed themselves and received the sacra- 
ment, the fleet sailed from Palos on the 
morning of Friday, the third of August, 
1492. A month later the Canary Islands 
were reached. A brief delay was made there 
to refit, and then the vessels turned their 
prows to the westward, and sailed out into 
the unknown seas. As the night came on 
the sailors, imagining they had seen the 
land for the last time, gave way to tears. 
Columbus soothed their fears, and held his 
course. At length he fell in with the trade- 
winds, which wafted him steadily towards 
the west. The sailors were greatly alarmed 
at this, and declared, that if the wind did not 
change it would be impossible for them to 
reach home again. The variation of the 
compass also alarmed them, and their mur- 
murs increased to almost open mutiny. It 



required all the firmness of the admiral to 
restrain them, and to keep them from aban- 
doning the enterprise and returning to 
Europe. 

Ten weeks of anxiety and disappoint- 
ment had passed since the departure of the 
fleet from Palos ; but still no land was seen. 
There were unmistakable signs that land was 
was near, such as the flight of land birds 
around the ship, the finding of a bush floating 
on the waters with fresh berries upon it, and 
the frequent discovery of land weeds upon the 
waves. Often the lookout would startle the 
fleet by the cry of land, but as often the sup- 
posed shore would prove to be only a bank 
of clouds low down upon the western horizon, 
Still the ships held their westward course, 
and at length the sailors broke into open 
mutiny, and demanded that the fleet should 
return home. They were even ready to 
throw the admiral overboard if he refused to 
grant their demands. 

The Torch that Lighted up a New 
Continent. 

Columbus alone had been calm and hope- 
ful throughout the voyage. He was resolved 
to succeed or perish in the attempt to find 
the land. The success of the mutiny would 
have destroyed alt his hopes, and as the 
events of each succeeding day strength- 
ened him in his conviction that they were 
rapidly approaching land, he condescended to 
plead with his men, and obtained from them 
a promise to obey him for a few days longer. 
The next night the land breeze, laden with 
the rich perfumes of tropical flowers, con- 
vinced the weary crews that the admiral was 
right, and that the long wished-for shore 
was indeed near. The ships were ordered to 
lie to for the night lest they should go ashore 
in the darkness. No one slept on board that 
night. About ten o'clock, Columbus saw a 
light moving along the shore, as if it were a 



THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. 



37 



torch carried in a man's hand. He called 

Martin Alonzo Pinzon, one of his captains, 

and pointed it out to him. Pinzon confirmed 

the admiral's 

opinion, and 

all waited in 

the most in- 

tense eager- 
ness for the 

approach of 

the morning. 
With the 

first hght, on 

the morning 

of Friday, the 

twelfth of Oc- 
tober, 1492, a 

gun from one 

of the vessels 

announced 

that land was 
indeed in 
sight, and the 
rising sun re- 
vealed to the 
delighted sea- 
men a large 
island, luxu- 
riant in foliage 
and of very 
beautiful ap- 
pearance, ly- 
ing about six 
miles away, 
with crowds 
of natives run - 
ningalongthe 
beach. As the 
great admiral 
stood with folded arms, and heaving breast, 
gazing upon the world which his genius 
had discovered, the penitent sailors crowded 
about him, and, kissing his garments, im- 
plored his pardon for their rebellious conduct. 




COLUMBUS WATCHING FOR LAND. 



Orders to land were promptly issued and 
the fleet stood in and anchored near the 
shore. The boats were manned, and the 

admiral, clad 
in rich scarlet, 
and bearing 
the royal ban- 
ner of Spain, 
and accompa- 
nied by his 
captains, each 
of whom bore 
a green ban- 
ner inscribed 
with a cross, 
went ashore. 
As he set foot 
on the land, 
Columbus 
knelt rever- 
ently and 
kissed the 
ground, and 
then rising 
and drawing 
his sword, 
took posses- 
sion of the 
island in the 
name of Fer- 
dinand and 
Isabella, king 
and queen of 
Spain. The 
island was one 
of the Bahama 
■group, and 
was called by 
the natives 
Guanahani. Columbus named it San Sal- 
vador. He explored the island, and then 
sailing on discovered Cuba, Hayti,and other 
West India islands. He believed these 
islands to lie off the coast of Asia and to 



38 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



form a part of the Indies. For this reason 
he called the natives Indians, a name which 
they have since borne. Having built a gar- 
rison, a small fort in Hayti, Columbus took 
on board seven of the natives, and laid in a 
stock of fruits, plants and a number of ani- 
mals as specimens of the products of the 
country, and set sail on his return to Spain. 
The voyage was a very tempestuous one. 
He arrived at Palos on the fifteenth of March, 
1493. His arrival was greeted with enthusi- 
asm. From Palos he set out for the court 



covered Jamaica, and many of the Caribbee 
Islands. 

In 1498 Columbus made a third voyage, 
and in this expedition he discovered the 
mainland of the American Continent near 
the mouth of the Orinoco, and explored the 
coast of the provinces, since called Para and 
Cumana. He was not aware of the true nature 
of his discovery, but supposed that the South 
American coast was a part of a large island 
belonging to Cathay or Farther India. 

In the meantime, gold had been discov- 




LANDING OF 

of Barcelona. Every step of the journey 
was a triumphal progress. He was received 
with the most distinguished honors by the 
sovereigns, and the whole court joined in a 
Te Deiitn of thankfulness for the success of 
his voyage. 

A second expedition, consisting of seven- 
teen ships and fifteen hundred men, was now 
fitted out, and sailed from Cadiz under the 
command of Columbus on the twenty-fifth of 
September, 1493. On this voyage he dis- 



COLUMBUS, 

ered in Hayti, and crowds of adventurers 
were drawn hither from Spain. They in- 
flicted great hardships upon the natives, 
and when Columbus arrived he found the 
affairs of the colony in a most deplor- 
able state. The sovereigns at length 
sent over a commissioner named Boba- 
dilla to investigate the affairs of the co- 
lony. He was a narrow-minded, incom- 
petent man, and instead of investigating the 
charges against the admiral, arrested him. 




RECEPTION OF COLUMBUS BY FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 



39 



40 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



and sent hitn back to Spain in irons. When 
the officers of the ship which bore him back 
home wished to remove his fetters, he refused 
to allow them to do so, saying, " I will wear 
them as a memento of the gratitude of 
princes." The news of this outrage filled 
the people of Spain with honest indignation. 
" All seemed to feel it as a national dis- 
honor," says Prescott, "that such indignities 
should be heaped upon the man, who, wliat- 
ever might be his indiscretions, had done so 
much for Spain, and for the civilized world." 

The Fetters Stricken Off. 

Queen Isabella at once ordered his fetters 
to be struck off, and he was summoned to 
court, reinstated in all his honors, and treated 
with the highest consideration. Isabella 
gained from the king a promise to aid her in 
doing justice to the admiral, and in punish- 
ing his enemies ; but Ferdinand, who could 
never bear to do a generous or noble act, 
evaded his promise, and the admiral failed 
to receive his just recompense. 

In 1504 Columbus sailed on his fourth 
voyage ; his object this time being to find a 
passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific 
Ocean, by which he might reach India. He 
explored the Gulf of Honduras, and saw the 
continent of North America, but was com- 
pelled by the mutiny of his crew and by 
severe storms to abandon his attempt and 
return to the northward. He was ship- 
wrecked on the coast of Jamaica, where he 
remained more than a year. Returning to 
Spain in November, 1505, he found his best 
friend. Queen Isabella, on her death-bed. 
The enemies whom his great success had 
raised up for him were numerous and power- 
ful, while he was now old and broken in 
health. He vainly sought from Ferdinand 
a faithful execution of the original compact 
between them ; but though he received fair 
words and promises in abundance from the 



king, Ferdinand steadily refused to comply 
with the just demands of the admiral. 

The Great Navigator's Death. 

At last, worn out with care and disap- 
pointments, Columbus died at Valladolid, on 
the twentieth of May, 1506, being about 
seventy years old. He was buried with great 
pomp in the Convent of St. Francis, at Valla- 
dolid, In 1 5 13 his remains were removed to 
the monastery of Las Cuevas, at Seville, and 
Ferdinand caused thisinscription, which cost 
him nothing and expressed his excuse for his 
conduct towards the dead man, to be placed 
upon his tomb : '' To Castile and Leon 
Columbus gave a New World!" In 1536 
the body of the great admiral was conveyed 
with appropriate honors to St. Domingo. 
Upon the cession of that island to France in 
1795, the body was removed to Cuba, and 
buried in the Cathedral of Havana. Not yet 
have the ashes of the Discoverer of America 
found their true resting place. That place 
is under the great dome of the Capitol of the 
Republic, for whose existence he prepared 
the way. 

Though Columbus reached the continent 
of South America on his third voyage, he 
was not the first European who beheld the 
mainland of the western world. In the 
winter of 1497-98, Amerigo Vespucci, or 
Americus Vespucius, a Florentine navigator, 
made a voyage to the West Indies and the 
South American coast, thus reaching the 
mainland of the continent nearly a year 
before Columbus. Returning to Europe he 
published an account of his discoveries. 
This was the first account of the new world 
published in Europe, and some years later a 
German geographer gave to the continent 
the name of " Americi Terra'' or the land 
discovered by Americus. From this time 
the name America was applied to the west- 
ern continent. 



THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. 



41 



Columbus was a man of great and invent- 
ive genius. The operations of his mind 
were energetic but irregular ; bursting forth 
at times with that irresistible force which 
characterizes intellects of such an order. 
His mind had grasped all kinds of knowl- 
edge connected with his pursuits ; and 
though his information may appear limited 
at the present day, and some of his errors 
palpable, it is because that knowledge, in his 
peculiar department of science, was but 
scantily developed in his time. His own 
discoveries enlightened the ignorance of that 
age ; guided conjecture to certainty ; and 
dispelled numerous errors with which he 
himself had been obliged to struggle. 

Character of Columbus. 

His ambition was lofty and noble. He 
was full of high thoughts, and anxious to 
distinguish himself by great achievements. 
It has been said that a mercenary feeling 
mingled with his views, and that his stipula- 
tions with the Spanish court were selfish and 
avaricious. The charge is inconsiderate and 
unjust. He aimed at dignity and wealth in 
the same lofty spirit in which he sought 
renown ; but they were to arise from the 
territories he should discover, and be com- 
mensurate in importance. No condition 
could be more just. 

He asked nothing of the sovereigns but a 
command of the countries he hoped to give 
them, and a share of the profits to support 
the dignity of his command. If there should 
be no country discovered, his stipulated 
viceroyalty would be of no avail ; and if no 
revenues should be produced, his labor and 
peril would produce no gain. If his com- 
mand and revenues ultimately proved mag- 
nificent, it was from the magnificence of the 
regions he had attached to the Castilian 
crown. What monarch would not rejoice 
to gain empire on such conditions ? 



But he did not merely risk a loss of labor 
and a disappointment of ambition in the 
enterprise ; on his motives being questioned, 
he voluntarily undertook, and, with the assist- 
ance of his coadjutors, actually defrayed 
one-eighth of the whole charge of the first 
expedition. This shows that his fiith in the 
new enterprise was unbounded, and he was 
willing to stake everything on its success. 

A peculiar trait in his rich and varied 
character was that ardent and enthusiastic 
imagination which threw a magnificence over 




A NORSE SEA-KING. 

his whole course of thought. Herrera inti- 
mates that he had a talent for poetry, and 
some slight traces of it are on record, in the 
book of prophecies which he presented to 
the Catholic sovereigns. But his poetical 
temperament is discernible throughout all 
his writings, and in all his actions. It spread 
a golden and glorious world around him, 
and tinged every thing with its own gorgeous 
colors. It betrayed him into visionary spec- 
ulations, which subjected him to the sneers 



42 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



and cavillings of men of cooler and safer, but 
more grovelling minds. 

Such were the conjectures formed on the 
coast of Paria about the form of the earth 
and the situation of the terrestrial paradise ; 
about the mines of Ophir in Hispaniola, and 
of the Aurea Chersonesus in Veragua ; and 
such was the heroic scheme of a crusade for 
the recovery of the holy sepulchre. It min- 
gled with his religion, and filled his mind 
with solemn and visionary meditations on 
mystic passages of the scriptures, and the 
shadowy portents of the prophecies. It ex- 
alted his office in his eyes, and made him 
conceive himself an agent sent forth upon a 
sublime and awful mission, subject to im- 
pulses and supernatural intimations from the 
deity ; such as the voice which he imagined 
spoke to him in comfort, amidst the troubles 
of Hispaniola, and in the silence of the night 
on the disastrous coast of Veragua. 

A Man in Advance of His Time. 

He was decidedly a visionary, but a vision- 
ary of an uncommon and successful kind. 
The manner in which his ardent, imaginative 
and mercurial nature were controlled by a 
powerful judgment, and directed by an acute 
sagacity, is the most extraordinary feature in 
his character. Thus governed, his imagina- 
tion, instead of exhausting itself in idle flights, 
lent aid to his judgment, and enabled him to 
form conclusions, at which common minds 
could never have arrived, nay, which they 
could not perceive when pointed out. 

To his intellectual vision it was given to 
read in the signs of the times, and to trace in 
the conjectures and reveries of past ages, the 
indications of an unknown world ; as sooth- 
sayers were said to read predictions in the 
stars, and to foretell events from the visions 
of the night. " His soul," observes a Spanish 



writer, " was superior to the age in which he 
lived. For him was reserved the great en- 
terprise of traversing a sea which had given 
rise to so many fables, and of deciphering the 
mystery of his time." 

With all the visionary fervor of his imagi- 
nation, its fondest dreams fell short of the 
reality. He died in ignorance of the real 
grandeur of his discovery. Until his last 
breath, he entertained the idea that he had 
merely opened a new way to the old resorts 
of opulent commerce, and had discovered 
some of the wild regions of the east. He 
supposed Hispaniola to be the ancient Ophir, 
which had been visited by the ships of Solo- 
mon, and that Cuba and Terra Firma were 
but remote parts of Asia. What visions of 
glory would have broken upon his mind, 
could he have known that he had indeed dis- 
covered a new continent, equal to the whole 
of the old world in magnitude, and separated 
by two vast oceans from all the earth hither- 
to known by civilized man ! And how would 
his magnanimous spirit have been consoled 
amidst the afflictions of age and the cares of 
penury, the neglect of a fickle public, and the 
injustice of an ungrateful king, could he have 
anticipated the splendid empires which were 
to spread over the beautiful world he had 
discovered, and the nations, and tongues, and 
languages which were to fill its lands with 
his renown, and to revere and bless his name 
to the latest posterity ! 

It may be questioned whether any old 
Norse Sea-King, who braved the storms and 
billows of the North Atlantic, ever exhibited 
a purpose more resolute, a courage more 
daring, or a self-sacrifice more complete than 
characterized Columbus. Our illustration of 
the royal Norseman shows him to have been 
a man born to command and achieve ; the 
hero of 1492 was no less illustrious. 



CHAPTER III 



English and French Discoveries 

Discovery of the North American Continent by John Cabot — Voyages of Sebastian Cabot — The Enghsh fail to follow 
up these Discoveries — Efforts of the French to Explore America — Voyage and Discoveries of Veirazzani — Cartier 
Explores the St. Lawrence — Reaches Montreal — Efforts to Found a Colony on the St. Lawrence — Failure — Roberval's 
Colony — Trading Voyages — Explorations of Champlain — Colonization of Nova Scotia — Founding of Quebec — Dis- 
covery of Lake Champlain — Arrival of the Jesuits in Canada — Death of Champlain. 




N the meantime the success of 
the first voyage of Columbus 
had stimulated other nations to 
similar exertions. The Eng- 
lish court had experienced a 
feeling of keen regret that the petition of 
Columbus had been refused, and when John 
Cabot, a native of Venice, then residing at 
Bristol, applied for leave to undertake a voy- 
age of exploration his request was readily 
granted. 

On the fifth of March, 1496, a patent or 
commission was granted to him and his three 
sons by Henry VII., authorizing either of 
them, their heirs or their agents, to under- 
take with a fleet of five ships, at their own 
expense, a voyage of discovery in the east- 
ern, western or northern seas. Though they 
were to make the attempt at their own cost, 
they were to take possession of the countries 
they should discover for the king of Eng- 
land. They were to have the exclusive pri- 
vilege of trading to these countries, but were 
bound to return to the port of Bristol, and 
to pay to the king one-fifth of the profits of 
their trade. 

Early in 1497 Cabot sailed from Bristol, 
accompanied by his son, Sebastian. The 
object of his voyage was not only the dis- 
covery of new lands, but the finding of a 



northwest passage to Asia. He sailed due 
west, and on the twenty-fourth of June, 1497, 
reached the coast of Labrador. He thus 
discovered the mainland of the North Amer- 
ican continent, fully fourteen months before 
Columbus reached the coast of South 
America, and nearly a year before Amerigo 
Vespucci made his discovery. He explored 
the coast to the southward for over a thou- 
sand miles, made frequent landings, and took 
possession of the country in the name of the 
English king. Returning home, he was 
received with many marks of honor by 
Henry VII., and was called the " Great 
Admiral " by the people. 

Towards the close of the year 1497, the 
Cabots undertook a new voyage, and the 
king, pleased with the success of the first 
venture, became a partner in the enterprise, 
and assumed a portion of the expense. The 
object of this voyage was to trade with the 
natives, and to ascertain if the country was 
suited to colonization. The expedition sailed 
from Bristol in May, 1498, and was com- 
manded by Sebastian Cabot, who reached the 
Labrador coast about four hundred miles 
north of the point discovered by his father. 

He found the country cold and barren, 
though it was but the beginning of the sum- 
mer, and sailed southward. " The coast to 

43 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



44 

which he was now borne was unobstructed 
by frost. He saw there stags larger than 
those of England, and bears that plunged 
into the water to take fish with their claws. 
"The fish swarmed innumerably in such shoals 
they seemed to affect even the speed of his 



" Continuing his voyage, according to the 
line of the shore, he found the natives of 
those regions clad in skins of beasts, but 
they were not without the faculty of reason, 
and in many places were acquainted with the 
use of copper. In the early part of his 













SEBASTIAN CABOT. 



vessels, so that h'e gave to the country the 
name of Bacallaos, which still linger, on the 
cast side of Newfoundland, and has passed 
into the language of the Germans and the 
Italians, as well as the Portuguese and 
Spanish, to designate the cod. 



voyage he had been so far to the north that 
in the month of July the light of day was 
almost continuous ; before he turned home- 
wards, in the late autumn, he believed he 
had attained the latitude of the Straits of 
Gibraltar and the longitude of Cuba."* On 

* Bancroft. 



ENGLISH AND FRENCH DISCOVERIES. 



45 



his homeward voyage he noticed the Gulf 
Stream. 

This was the last voyage from England 
made by Sebastian Cabot. On the death of 
Henry VII., he took service with Ferdinand 
of Spain, and under him and his grandson, 
Charles V., he made many voyages, and was 
for nearly sixty years the foremost man in 
Europe in maritimeenterprises. 

A Renowned Explorer. 

He explored the eastern coast of South 
America, and in his efforts to find the north- 
west passage sailed within twenty degrees of 
the North Pole, and explored the eastern 
coast of North America from Hudson's 
Straits to Albemarle Sound. He was in 
many things one of the most remarkable men 
of his day, and besides his own discoveries 
contributed generously by his advice and 
encouragement to those of others. " He 
gave England a continent, and no one knows 
his burial place." 

The English made no effort to take advan- 
tage of the discoveries of the Cabots. They 
sent a few vessels every year to fish on the 
banks of Newfoundland, but pursued even 
this industry without vigor. The other 
nations were more energetic, and showed a 
keener appreciation of the value of the new 
lands. The French were especially active in 
this respect. Their vessels engaged in the 
fisheries far outnumbered those of the Eng- 
lish, and many plans were proposed in France 
for the colonization of those regions. In 
1523 F'rancis I. employed a Florentine named 
John Verrazzani, an experienced navigator, 
to undertake the discovery of a northwest 
passage to India. Verrazzani sailed on the 
seventeenth of January, 1524, and, after a 
stormy voyage of fifty days, reached the 
American coast in the latitude of Wilming- 
ton, North Carolina. Failing to find a good 
harbor, he sailed southward for 150 miles, 



and then turned northward, examining the 
coast as he proceeded on his journey. 

An Earthly Paradise. 

Verrazzani was surprised and delighted by 
the appearance of the new country and its 
inhabitants. The latter welcomed with hos- 
pitality the strangers whom they had not yet 
learned to fear, and the Europeans, on their 
part, regarded with wonder the " russet "- 
colored natives in their dress of skins orna- 
mented with feathers. Judging from the 
accounts which they carried to Europe, the 
voyagers regarded the country as a sort of 
terrestrial paradise. " Their imagination 
could not conceive of more delightful fields 
and forests ; the groves spreading perfumes 
far from the shore, gave promise of the spices 
of the East; and the color of the earth 
argued an abundance of gold." The harbors 
of New York and Newport were carefully 
explored, and in the latter the voyagers 
remained fifteen days. 

They then proceeded along the New 
England coast to Nova Scotia, and still farther 
to the north. They found the natives here less 
friendly than those farther south. A Portu- 
guese commander, Caspar Cortereal, had 
visited their coast a few years before, and 
had carried away some of their number and 
sold them into slavery. 

Returning to France, Verrazzani published 
an account of his voyage. This narrative 
forms the earliest original description now in 
existence of the American coast, and added 
very much to the knowledge of the Euro- 
peans concerning this country. France at 
a subsequentperiod based, upon Verrazzani's 
discoveries, her claim to the whole coast of 
America from Newfoundland to South Car- 
olina. The French, however, were not des- 
tined to obtain a foothold in the new world. 

The struggle in which Francis I. was 
engaged with the Emperor Charles V, pre- 



46 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



vented him from taking advantage of these 
discoveries, and nothing was done with regard 
to them by the French until ten years later, 
when Chabot, Admiral of France, induced 
King Francis to make another effort to 
explore and colonize America. An expedi- 
tion was fitted out, placed under the com- 
mand of James Cartier, a mariner of St. Malo, 
and despatched in April, 1534, for the pur- 
pose of exploring the American coast with 
a view to colonizing it. A quick voyage of 
twenty days carried Cartier to Newfound- 
land. Having passed through the straits of 
Belleisle, he crossed the gulf and entered a 
bay which he named Des Chaleurs, from the 
extreme heats he experienced there. 

France Sends Out a Colony. 

He proceeded along the coast as far as the 
small inlet called Gaspe, where he landed 
and took formal possession of the country in 
the name of the king of France. Leaving 
Gaspe Bay, Cartier discovered the great river 
of Canada, and sailed up the stream until he 
could see the land on either side. His 
explorations consumed the months of May, 
June and July. Being unprepared to pass the 
winter in America, the fleet sailed for Europe- 

The reports of Cartier concerning America 
aroused the deepest interest in France, and 
it was determined by the government to pro- 
ceed at once to the founding of a colony in 
the new world. A fleet of three well-equipped 
ships was fitted out, and volunteers from 
some of the noblest families in France were 
not lacking. The whole company repaired 
to the cathedral, where they received the 
bishop's blessing, and on the nineteenth of 
May, 1535, the expedition sailed from St. 
Malo. The voyage was long and stormy, 
but Newfoundland was reached at length. 
Passing through the straits of Belleisle, they 
entered the gulf lying west of Newfoundland 
on the tenth of August, the festival of St, 



Lawrence the Martyr, and gave to the gulf the 
name of that saint, which was subsequently 
applied to the great river emptying into it. 

A Beautiful Country. 

The voyagers ascended the stream to the 
island since called Orleans. There the fleet 
anchored, while Cartier proceeded farther up 
the river to the chief Indian settlement on the 
island of Hochelega. It was the delightful 
season of September, and the country was 
beautiful and inviting. Cartier ascended a 
hill at the foot of which the Indian settle- 
ment lay, and gazed with admiration at the 
magnificent region which spread out before 
him. He named the hill Mont Real, or 
Royal Mount, a name which is now borne by 
the island and by the great city which marks 
the site of Indian village. 

The balminess of the autumn induced 
Cartier to hope that the climate would prove 
as mild as that of France ; but a rigorous 
winter, which was rendered horrible by the 
prevalence of scurvy among the ships' crews, 
disheartened the whole expedition. The 
winter was spent at the Isle of Orleans, and 
in the early spring Cartier erected a cross on 
the shore, to which was affixed a shield 
inscribed with the arms of France and a 
legend declaring Francis I. the true and 
rightful king of the country. The fleet then 
sailed for France, and arrived at St. Malo on 
the sixth of July, 1536. Cartier published 
a truthful account of his voyage, setting 
forth the severity of the Canadian climate 
and the absence of mines of precious metals. 
His report checked for the time the enthu- 
siasm with which the French had regarded 
America, and for four years the plan of col- 
onizing the new country was laid aside, and 
all attempts were abandoned until a more 
favorable opportunity should present itself. 

Some ardent spirits, however, still believed 
in the possibility of planting successful col- 
onies in the new world and brincfinGf that 



ENGLISH AND FRENCH DISCOVERIES. 



47 



vast region under the dominion of France. 
Among these was Francis de la Roque, lord 
of Roberval, a nobleman of Picardy. He 
was appointed, by King Francis, Viceroy of 
the territories on or near the gulf and river 
of St. Lawrence, to which the high-sounding 
name of Norimbega was given, and was 
empowered to colonize it. The assistance of 
Cartier was necessary to such an undertak- 
ing, and he had the additional advantage of 
possessing the entire confidence of 
his royal master the king. 

Roberval was forced to employ 
him, and Cartier was given author- 
ity by the king to search the prisons . 
and take from them such persons 
as he needed for the expedition. 
Roberval and Cartier, however, 
failed to agree, and their dissensions 
defeated the object of the under- 
taking. Cartier sailed from St. Malo 
in May, 1541, and ascended the St, 
Lawrence to a point near the pres- 
ent city of Quebec, where he built 
a fort. The winter was passed in 
idleness and discord, and in the 
spring of 1542 Cartier abandoned 
the attempt, and sailed away for 
France with his ships just as Rob- 
erval arrived with a large reinforce- 
ment, prepared to render aid. 

Roberval was unable to accom- 
plish more than Cartier. His new 
subjects had been largely drawn 
from the prisons, and they gave him con- 
siderable trouble, if we may judge from the 
efforts resorted to to keep them quiet. One 
of them was hanged for theft during the 
winter, several were put in irons, and a num- 
ber of men and women were whipped. After 
remaining in Canada for a year, Roberval 
became disheartened, and re-embarked his 
subjects and returned to France. Thus 
ended the attempt to colonize Canada. 



Nearly thirty years passed away, during 
which the French made no effort to secure 
to themselves the region of the St. Law- 
rence. Their fishermen, however, continued 
to frequent the American waters. By the 
close of the sixteenth century one hundred 
and fifty vessels were engaged in the fisheries 
of Newfoundland, and voyages for the pur- 
pose of trading with the Indians had become 
common. In 1 598 the Marquis de la Roche, 




£J^ONj\T 



SAMUEL CHAMPLAIN. 



a nobleman of Brittany, attempted to plant 
a colony on the Isle of Sable. The colonists 
consisted of criminals from the prisons of 
France, and the effort proved a failure, as 
might have been expected from the outset. 
In 1600, Chauvin obtained a patent from 
the crown, conferring upon him a monopoly 
of the fur trade, and Pontgrave, a merchant 
of St, Malo, became his partner in the enter- 
prise. Two successful voyages were made 



48 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



to Canada, and Chaiivin intended founding a 
colony there. His death, in 1602, prevented 
the execution of tiiis phin. 

In 1603, a company of merchants of Rouen 
\vas organized, and Samuel Champlain, an 
able and experienced officer of the French 
navy, was placed in charge of an expedition, 




CABOT ON THE SHORES OF LABRADOR 

and sent to Canada to explore the country. 
He was in every way qualified for the task 
committed to him, and after making a thor- 
ough and systematic examination of the 
region of the St. Eawrence, and fixing upon 
Quebec as the proper site for a fort, returned 



to France, and laid before his employers his 
report, which is still valuable for its accurate 
description of the country and the manners 
of the natives. 

Soon after Champlain's return to France, 
a patent was issued to Des Monts, conferring 
upon him the sole right to colonize the vast 
region lying between the fortieth 
and forty-sixth parallels of latitude. 
As this territory embraced the St. 
Lawrence region, the Rouen com- 
pany were unable for the present to 
accomplish anything. Des Monts 
proceeded with his preparations, 
and in March, 1604, an expedition, 
consisting of two ships, was sent 
out to Acadie or Nova Scotia, 
The summer was passed in trading 
with the Indians and exploring the 
coast, and in the autumn the col- 
onists made a settlement on the 
island of St. Croix, at the mouth of 
the river of the same name. 

In the spring of 1605, they aban- 
doned this settlement and removed 
to Port Royal, now known as An- 
napolis. Efforts were made to find a 
more southern location in the latter 
part of 1605 and 1606, but the ex- 
peditions sent out for this purpose 
were driven back by storms or 
wrecked among the shoals of Cape 
Cod, and the colonists decided to 
remain at Port Royal. Thus the 
permanency of the colony was estab- 
lished. Some years later a number 
of Jesuit missionaries were sent out 
to Port Royal. These labored dili- 
gently among the tribes between the Penob- 
scot and the Kennebec, and not only spread 
the Christian faith among them, but won for 
the F'rench the constant affection of the 
savages. During all her contests with the 
English in America, these tribes remained 



THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS. 



49 



the faithful and unwavering allies of France. 
In 1613 a French colony was planted on the 
eastern shore of Mount Desert. The settle- 
ment was named St. Sauveur, and became 
another centre of missionary enterprise 
among the savages of Maine. 

In the meantime the French merchants 
had succeeded in obtaining a revocation of 
the impolitic monopoly of Des Monts. A 
company of merchants of St. Malo and 
Dieppe was formed, and an expedition was 
sent out to Canada under Champlain, who 
" aimed not at the profits of trade, but 
at the glory of founding a state." On the 
third of July, 1608, the city of Quebec 
was begun by the erection of one or two 
cottages. 



In 1609, Champlain, with but two Euro- 
peans, joined a party of Hurons from Mon- 
treal, and Algonquins from Quebec, in an 
expedition against the Five Nations. He 
ascended the Sorel, explored the lake 
which is now called by his name, and exam- 
ined a considerable part of northern New 
York. The religious disputes of France 
spread to the colony, and Champlain was 
obliged to use all his energy and authority 
to overcome the evils which these inflicted 
upon the infant settlement. He succeeded 
in overcoming them, and by his energy and 
perseverance the fortunes of Quebec were 
placed beyond the reach of failure. Cham- 
plain died in 1635, and was buried in " New 
France," of which he is called " the father." 



CHAPTER IV 



The Spaniards in America 



Settlement of the West Indies — Discovery of the Pacific Ocean — Voyage of Magellan — Discovery of Florida — Ponce de 
Leon's Search for the Fountain of Youth — Vasquez de Ayllon Kidnaps a Cargo of Indians — Effort of Pamphilo de 
Narvaez to Conquer Florida — A Terrible March — The Voyage on the Gulf of Mexico — Fate of the Fleet — Escape ot 
Cabeza de Vaca and his Comrades — Discovery of New Mexico — Fernando de Soto — Obtains leave to Conquer Florida 
— Sails from Spain — Arrival in Cuba — Departure for Florida — Landing at Tampa Bay — Events of the First Year — De 
Soto enters Georgia — Decendsthe Alabama — Battle of Mavilla — Destruction of Chickasaw — Sufferings of the Spaniards 
— Discovery of the Mississippi — The Spaniards Cross the Great River — De Soto in Arkansas — Reaches the Mississippi 
again — Sickness and Death of De Soto — His Burial — Escape of his Followers to Mexico — The Huguenot Colony in 
Carolina — Its Failure — The French Settle in Florida — Wrath of Philip II. — Melendez ordered to Exterminate the 
Huguenots — Foundation of St. Augustine — Massacre of the French at Fort Carolina — The Vengeance of De Gourges. 



were 

in the south. In the 
sixteenth century the 



WHILE the French were seek- 
ing to obtain a footing in the 
north, the Spaniards 
busy 
first years of the 
more important of the West India Islands 
were subdued and colonized, and from 
these, expeditions were from time to time 
sent out to explore the shores of the 
Gulf of Mexico. The southern part of the 
peninsula of Yucatan was explored, and a 
colony was established on the Isthmus of 
Darien. One of the governors of this colony 
was Vasco Nunez de Balboa. In 15 13, while 
searching the Isthmus for gold, he discovered 
the Pacific Ocean, and took possession of it 
in the name of the king of Spain. 

In 1520, a Portuguese navigator named 
Magellan, employed by the king of Spain, 
passed through the straits south of Cape 
Horn, which bears his name, and entered the 
Western ocean, which he named the Pacific, 
because it was so calm and free from storms. 
He died on the voyage, but his ship reached 
the coast of Asia, and returned thence to 
Spain by the Cape of Good Hope, thus 
5° 



making the first voyage around the world, 
and establishing its spherical form beyond 
dispute. 

In 1 5 13, Juan Ponce de Leon, who had 
been a companion of Columbus on his sec- 
ond voyage, and had been governor of Porto 
Rico, fitted out three ships at his own 
expense to make a voyage of discovery. He 
had heard the reports which were then com 
monly believed by his countrymen, tha'; 
somewhere in the new world was a fountain 
flowing in the midst of a country sparkling 
with gold and gems, whose waters would 
give perpetual youth to the man who should 
drink of and bathe in them. 

Ponce de Leon was an old man, and he 
longed to taste again the pleasures and the 
dreams of youth. He gave a willing ear to 
the stories of this wonderful fountain, and in 
March, 15 13, set sail from Porto Rico in 
search of it. He sailed among the Bahamas, 
but failed to find it, and on Easter Sunday, 
which the Spaniards call Pascua Florida, 
land was discovered. It was supposed to be 
an island, but was in reality the long south- 
ern peninsula of the United States. Ponce 



THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 



SI 



de Leon gave it the name of Florida — which 
it has since borne — partly in honor of the 
day, and partly because of the beauty of its 
flowers and foliage. The weather was very 
bad, and it was some days before he could 
go ashore. He landed near the site of St. 
Augustine, and took possession of the coun- 
try for Spain on the eighth of April, 15 13. 
He remained many weeks on the coast, 
exploring it, and sailing southward, doubled 
Cape Florida, and cruised among the Tor- 
tugas. He failed to 
find the fountain of 
youth and returned in 
despair to Porto Rico. 
The king of Spain 
rewarded his discov- 
ery by appointing him 
governor of Florida, 
on condition that he 
should colonize the 
country. 

A few years later he 
attempted to plant a 
colony in Florida, but 
was attacked by the 
Indians, who were 
very hostile, and driv- 
en to his ships with 
the loss of a number 
of his men. Ponce de 
Leon himself received 
a painful wound, and 

returned to Cuba to die. He had staked his 
life upon the search for perpetual youth ; 
he found only a grave. 

Between the years 15 18 and 1521, the 
expeditions of Hernando Cortez against 
Mexico, and of Francesco Pizarro against 
Peru, were despatched from Cuba. They 
resulted in the conquest of those countries 
and their colonization by Spain. These expe- 
ditions, however, form no part of this narra- 
tive, and we cannot dwell upon them. 



The native population of the West Indies 
died out rapidly under the cruel rule of the 
Spaniards, and it soon became necessary to 
look elsewhere for a supply of laborers for 
the plantations and the mines. In 1520, 
Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon, at the head of a 
company of seven Spaniards, fitted out a fleet 
of two slave-ships from St. Domingo or His- 
paniola, for the deliberate purpose of seizing 
the natives of the mainland and selling them 
as slaves. The vessels went first to the 




THE COAST OF FLORI'DA. 

Bahamas, from which they sailed to the North 
American coast, reaching it at or near St. 
Helena sound, in the present State of South 
Carolina. The Indians had not yet learned 
to fear the whites, and were utterly unsus- 
picious of the fate which awaited them. They 
were timid at first, but this feeling was soon 
overcome by the distribution of presents 
among them. Their confidence being won, 
they received the Spaniards with kindness, 
and at their request visited the ships. 



52 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



When the decks of the vessels were cov- 
ered with the unsuspecting natives Vasquez 
made sail, and standing out to sea steered for 
the West Indies, regardless of the entreaties 
of the natives who were thus torn from their 
friends and relatives on the shore, A retrib- 
utive justice speedily avenged this crime. 
A violent storm arose and one of the ships 
foundered with all on board, A pestilence 
broke out in the remaining vessel, and swept 
away many of the captives. Returning to 




HERNANDO CORTEZ. 

Spain, Vasquez boasted of his infamous deed, 
and even claimed a reward for it at the hands 
of the Emperor Charles V,, who acknow- 
ledged his claim, and appointed him governor 
of Chicora, as South Carolina was called, with 
authority to conquer that country. Vasquez 
spent his entire fortune in fitting out an expe- 
dition, and reached the coast of Chicora in 

1525- 

There he met with nothing but misfortune. 
His largest ship was stranded in the Com- 



bahee River, then called by the whites the 
River Jordan, and so many of his men were 
killed by the Indians that he was obliged to 
abandon the undertaking. He returned to 
Europe to die of grief and mortification for 
his failure. " It may be," says Bancroft, 
" that ships sailing under his authority made 
the discovery of the Chesapeake and named 
it the Bay of St, Mary ; and perhaps even en- 
tered the Bay of Delaware, which in Spanish 
geography was called Saint Christopher's." 

Adventurers Seeking Fortune. 

In 1526, Pamphilo de Narvaez obtained 
from the Emperor Charles V, authority to 
explore and conquer all the country be- 
tween the Atlantic and the River of Palms. 
He was very wealthy, and spent his entire 
estate in preparation for the expedition. 
There was no lack of volunteers, and many 
younger sons of nobles joined him, hoping 
to find fame and fortune in the new world. 
Among the adventurers was Cabezade Vaca, 
the historians of the expedition, who held 
the second place in it as treasurer. Narvaez 
sailed from the Guadalquivir- in June, 1527, 
touched at St. Domingo, and passed the 
winter in Cuba. In the spring of 1528, he 
was driven by a strong south wind to the 
American coast, and on the fourteenth of 
April his fleet cast anchor in Tampa Bay. 
A week later he landed and took possession 
of the peninsula of Florida in the name of 
Spain. 
The natives showed unmistakable signs of 
hostility, but they exhibited to the governor 
samples of gold, which he believed, from 
their signs, came from the north. In spite 
of the earnest advice of Cabeza de Vaca, he 
determined to go in search of the precious 
metal. He directed his ships to meet him at 
a harbor with which his pilot pretended to be 
acquainted, and then, at the head of three 
hundred men, forty of whom were mounted^ 



THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 



53 



set off into the interior of the country. No 
one knew whither he was going, but all be- 
lieved that each step led them nearer to the 
land ot gold. 

The beauty of the forest, the richness of its 
vegetation, and the size of its gigantic live- 
oaks, filled them with wonder and admira- 
tion, and the variety and abundance of the 
birds and wild beasts of the country excited 
their surprise ; but they found neither the 
gold nor the splendid cities they had fondly 
believed they were about to discover. The 
forest grew denser and more intricate at every 
step, and the rivers were broad and deep, 
with swift currents, and could be crossed 
only by means of rafts, which were con- 
structed with great difficulty. The march 
lay through swamps, in which the Indian 
warriors harassed the strangers painfully, 
and, their provisions becoming exhausted, 
they began to suffer with hunger. Late in 
June they reached Appalachee, which they 
had supposed was a large and wealthy city. 
They found it only a hamlet of some forty 
poor wigwams ; but remained there twenty- 
five days, searching the neighboring country 
for gold and silver, and finding none. 

A Perilous Voyage. 

It was plain now even to the governor that 
there was no gold to be found in this region, 
and every nerve was strained to hasten the 
march to the harbor where they had ap- 
pointed to meet the ships. There was but 
one impulse now in the whole expedition — 
to escape from the terrible country which was 
proving so fatal to them. After a painful 
march they reached a bay which they called 
the Baia de Caballos, now the harbor of St. 
Marks. The ships could not be seen, and it 
was resolved at once to build boats and 
attempt to reach some of the Spanish pos- 
sessions by sea. The horses were slain to 
furnish food, and several hundred bushels of 



corn were seized from the Indians. Subsist- 
ing upon these supplies, the Spaniards beat 
their spurs, stirrups, cross-bows, and other 
implements into saws and axes and nails, and 
in sixteen days built five boats, each more 
than thirty feet long. Pitch for the calking 
of the boats was made from the pine trees, 
and the fibre of the palmetto served as 
oakum. Ropes were made of twisted horse- 
hair and palmetto fibres, and the shirts of the 
men were pieced together for sails. Fifty 
men had been lost on the march, and on the 
twenty-second of September the survivors, 
two hundred and fifty in number, began their 
perilous voyage. 

The Fleet Scattered by a Storm. 

They followed the shore, encountering 
many dangers, and suffering greatly from 
hunger and thirst. On the thirtieth of 
October they discovered one of the mouths 
of the Mississippi, and on the fifth of Novem- 
ber a storm scattered the little fleet, Cabeza 
de Vaca's boat was wrecked upon an island 
which is believed to be that of Galveston. 
Castillo's boat was driven ashore farther to 
the east, but he and his crew were saved 
alive. Of the fate of the other boats noth- 
ing is known with certainty. Of those who 
were cast ashore, all but Cabeza de Vaca, 
Dorantes, Castillo, and Estevanico, a negro, 
died of exposure and hardship. These four 
were detained captives among the Indians 
for nearly six years. 

At the end of this period, Cabeza induced 
his companions to join him in an attempt to 
escape. In September, 1534, they set out, 
naked, ignorant of the way, and without any 
means of sustaining life. In this , condition 
these men accomplished the wonderful feat 
of traversing the continent. The journey 
occupied upwards of twenty months, and 
extended from the coast of Texas to the 
Canadian River, and thence into New 



54 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



Mexico, from which they continued their 
way to the village of San Miguel, in Sonora, 
near the Pacific Ocean. They reached this 
village in May, 1536, and found themselves 
again among their countrymen. They were 
escorted to Compostella by Spanish soldiers, 
and from that place were forwarded to the 
City of Mexico by the authorities. 

Fabulous Tales of Gold. 

The reports of Cabeza and his compan- 
ions made the Viceroy Mendoza anxious to 
send out an expedition to explore New 
Mexico, which was believed to be richer in 
wealth and splendid cities than Mexico itself. 
A Franciscan friar boasted that he had vis- 
ited a region in the interior named Cibola, 
the Land of Buffaloes, in which were seven 
splendid cities. He declared that the land 
was rich in silver and gold, and that his In- 
dian guides had described to him a region 
still wealthier. The friar's story was religi- 
ously believed, and an expedition set out in 
1539, under command of Francisco Vasquez 
Coronado, the governor of New Galicia. 

The expedition explored the region of the 
Colorado, examined the country now known 
as New Mexico, and penetrated as far east as 
the present State of Kansas. Coronado 
found neither gold nor precious stones, and 
the only cities he discovered were the towns 
of the Zuni Indians of New Mexico. He 
reported to the viceroy on his return to 
Mexico that the region was not fit to be col- 
onized, and his description of the country 
through which he marched is so accurate as 
to challenge the admiration of every suc- 
ceeding traveler. 

Still the Spaniards refused to abandon the 
belief that fabulous wealth was to be found 
in the interior of the continent ; and even 
those who had borne a part in the conquest of 
Mexico and Peru gave credit to the wild 
stories that were told concerning the undis- 



covered regions. Among those who gave 
such implicit faith to these stories was Fer- 
nando de Soto, of Xeres, a veteran soldier, 
who had served with distinction with Pizarro 
in the conquest of Peru, and had amassed a 
considerable fortune from the spoils of that 
province. The fame and wealth acquired by 
him in this expedition opened the way to 
other successes in Europe. He was honored 
with the favor of the Emperor Charles V., 
and received the hand of a noble lady in 
marriage. Eager to distinguish himself still 
further, he determined to attempt the con- 
quest of Florida. He demanded and re- 
ceived from the emperor permission to 
undertake this at his own cost, and was also 
made governor of Cuba and all the terri- 
tories he should conquer. As soon as he 
made known his intentions applications for 
leave to serve in the expedition poured in 
upon him. Many of the volunteers were of 
noble birth, and sold their lands and 
other property to equip themselves for the 
undertaking. 

Adventures of De Soto. 

De Soto selected six hundred well- 
equipped men from the number who had 
volunteered, and in 1538 sailed from Spain to 
Cuba, where he was welcomed with great 
rejoicings. A vessel was despatched from 
Cuba to find a harbor in Florida suitable for 
the landing of the expedition. On its return 
it brought two Indian captives, who per- 
ceiving what was wanted of them, told by 
signs such stories of the wealth of the country 
as greatly delighted the governor and his 
companions. Volunteers in Cuba swelled 
the ranks of the expedition to nearly one 
thousand men, of whom three hundred were 
horsemen. 

In May, 1 539, leaving his wife to govern 
the island, De Soto sailed with his fleet for 
Florida, and a fortnight later landed at Espi- 



THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 



55 



ritu Santo, now Tampa Bay. Everything 
had been pi ovided which the foresight of an 
experienced commander deemed necessary, 
and De Soto, in order to remove any tempta- 
tion to retreat, sent his ships back to Cuba. 
He never dreamed of failure, for he believed 
that at the most the task before him would 
not be more difficult than those which had 
been accomplished by Cortez and Pizarro. 
After a brief halt at Tampa Bay the march 
into the interior was begun. It was long 
and tedious, and was full of danger. The 
Indians were hostile, and the guides con- 
stantly led the Spaniards astray, and plunged 
them into difficult swamps. The guides were 
instantly given to the bloodhounds, and torn 
in pieces by the ferocious animals ; but not 
even this dreadful punishment was sufficient 
to prevent a renewal of such acts. Before 
the close of the first season the whole com- 
pany, save the governor, had become con- 
vinced that their hope of finding gold was 
vain, and they besought De Soto to return 
to Cuba. He sternly refused to abandon the 
effort, and pushed on to the country of the 
Appalachians, east of the Flint River, and not 
far from the Bay of Appalachee. The winter 
was passed in this region, and a scouting 
party during this season discovered Pensacola. 
In the spring of 1540 the march was 
resumed. An Indian guide promised to con- 
duct the Spaniards to a country abounding 
in gold and governed by a woman, and he 
described the process of refining gold so ac- 
curately that De Soto believed his story. It 
is possible that the Indian may have referred 
to the gold region of North Carolina. One 
of the guides told the governor plainly that 
he knew of no such country as his companion 
had described, and De Soto had him burned 
for what he supposed was his falsehood. 
The Indians, terrified by his fate, from this 
time invented all manner of fabulous stories 
to excite the cupidity of the Spaniards. De 



Soto, with a singular perversity, held to his 
belief that he would yet realize his hopes, 
and continued to push on long after his men 
had become disheartened ; and so great was 
his influence over them that in their deepest 
despondency he managed to inspire them 
with something of his own courage and 
hopefulness. 




FERNANDO DE SOTO. 

Instead of conciliating the Indians, the 
Spaniards seized their provisions, and pro- 
voked their hostility in numberless ways 
They treated their captives with the greatest 
cruelty. They cut off the hands of the poor 
Indians, burned them at the stake, or turned 
them over to the bloodhounds, who tore 
them in pieces. They were chained together 
by the neck, and forced to carry the baggage 
and provisions of the troops. The march 
was now into the interior of Georgia, as far as 
the headwaters of the Chattahoochee, from 
which the Spaniards passed to the head- 
waters of the Coosa. Here they turned to 



56 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



the southwest, and marched through Ala- 
bama to the junction of the Alabama and 
Tombigbee Rivers. 

At til is point there was a large and 
strongly fortified town called Mavilla, or 
Mobile, a name which has since been given 
to the river and ba\'. The town consisted 
of" eighty handsome houses, each sufficiently 
capacious to contain a thousand men. They 
were encompassed by a high wall, made of 
immense trunks of trees, set deep in the 
ground and close together, strengthened 
with cross-timbers and interwoven with large 
vines." It was the middle of October when 
Mavilla was reached, and the Spaniards tired 
of living in the open country so long, wished 
to occupy the town. The Indians resisted 
them, and a desperate battle ensued, which 
was won by the Spanish cavalry. The vic- 
tory cost the whites dear, however, for the 
town was burned during the battle, and with 
it all the baggage of the Spaniards was con- 
sumed. The Indians fought with a desperate 
bravery, and numbers of them were slain and 
burned to death in the town. The Spaniards 
had eighteen killed and one hundred and 
fifty wounded ; twelve horses were killed and 
seventy-two wounded. 

De Soto Presses On. 

Ships had arrived in the meantime, accord- 
ing to appointment, at Pensacola, and by them 
Ue Soto received letters from his wife. He 
would send no news home, however. He 
had not yet realized the objects of the expe- 
dition, and he determined to send no news of 
himself to his countrymen until he had found 
or conquered some rich country. Turning 
his back resolutely upon the ships, the gov- 
ernor resumed his march to the northwest. 

By the middle of December he reached the 
northwestern part of the State of Mississippi, 
and finding a deserted village in the country 
of the Chickasaws, occupied it as the winter 



quarters of the expedition. December, 1540, 
the winter was severe, and the ground was 
covered with snow, but the corn was still 
standing in the fields, and this furnished the 
Spaniards with food. Their force was now 
reduced to five hundred men, and it was evi- 
dent to all, except the governor, that they 
would never find the cities or the wealth they 
had set out to seek. 

Discovery of the Mississippi, 

With the opening of the spring of 1541 a 
new disaster befell the Spaniards. De Soto, 
as had been his custom with the other tribes, 
demanded of the Chickasaw chief two hun- 
dred men to carry the baggage of the troops. 
The demand was refused, and that night the 
Indians, deceiving the sentinels, set fire to the 
village. The bewildered Spaniards were 
aroused from their slumbers to meet a fierce 
attack of the savages. The latter were re- 
pulsed after a hard fight, but the whites were 
left in an almost helpless condition. The 
little they had saved from the flames at 
Mavilla was destroyed in the burning village. 
Armor and weapons were rendered worth- 
less, and scarcely any clothing was saved. 
The troops were forced to resort to dresses 
of skins and the long moss of the country 
woven into mats. In this condition, they 
suffered greatly from the cold. To supply 
the weapons destroyed forges Avere erected, 
and the swords were retempered and new 
lances made. 

Renewing their march the Spaniards 
pushed on still farther west, and about the 
second of May reached the banks of the 
Mississippi, at a point a short distance below 
the present city of Memphis. They were the 
first white men to gaze upon the mighty 
flood of this noble river, but De Soto had no 
admiration to express for it. It was only an 
obstacle in his westward march, and would 
require greater efforts for its passage than 




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THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 



57 



any stream he had yet encountered. A 
month was passed on the banks of the river 
in constructing barges large enough to hold 
three horsemen each. At length they were 
completed, and the Spaniards were trans- 
ported in safety to the opposite shore. The 
natives received them kindly, and presented 
them with food, and regarding them as the 
children of their god, the sun, brought to 
them their sick to be healed, and their blind 
to be restored to sight. The blunt soldier, 
cruel as he had been to the savages, shrank 
from claiming the power of heaven. " Pray 
only to God, who is in heaven, for whatso- 
ever ye need," he answered. 

Exploring the Country. 

De Soto remained forty days on the west- 
ern bank of the Mississippi, and during this 
time an exploring party was sent to examine 
the country to the north. They reported 
that this region was thinly inhabited by 
hunters, who lived by chasing the bison, 
which abounded in this region. The gover- 
nor then turned to the west and northwest, 
and advanced two hundred miles farther into 
the interior of the continent, probably to the 
highlands of the White River. 

Then turning southward, he passed 
through a succession of Indian tribes who 
♦ lived by cultivating the soil, and who enjoy- 
ed a civilization superior to that of their 
nomadic brethren. The winter was passed 
near the Hot Springs of Arkansas. The 
Indians west of the Mississippi were treated 
with the same cruelties that had marked the 
conduct of the Spaniards towards the sav- 
ages east of that stream. " Any trifling 
consideration of safety would induce the 
governor to set fire to a hamlet. He did 
not delight in cruelty, but the happiness, the 
life and the rights of the Indians were held 
of no account." 

In the spring of 1542, De Soto determined 



to descend the Washita to its mouth, and 
endeavor to reach the sea. At last, after a 
most arduous march, in which he frequently 
lost his way amid the swamps and bayous of 
the region, he reached the Mississippi. The 
chieftain of this region could not tell him the 
distance to the sea, but informed him that 
the country along the lower river was a vast 
and uninhabited swamp. An exploring 
party was sent to descend the banks of the 
river, and returned, after penetrating about 
thirty miles in eight days, to confirm the 
Indian's report. 

Reaching the vicinity of Natchez, the 
governor found the Indians prepared to con- 
test his occupation of that town. He at- 
tempted to overawe them by claiming to be 
the child of the sun, their chief deity. The 
chieftain answered him scornfully: "You 
say you are the child of the sun. Dry up 
the river, and I will believe you. Do you 
desire to see me ? Visit the town where I 
dwell. If you come in peace, I will receive 
you with special good will ; if in war, I will 
not shrink one foot back." The savages 
were becoming more dangerous every day, 
and the Spaniards less able to resist their 
assaults. 

Burial of De Soto. 

De Soto was now conquered. It was at last 
as plain to him as it had been all along to 
his followers thatthe expedition was a failure. 
He had spent three years in roaming over 
the continent, and he had found neither the 
cities nor the wealth he had hoped for. His 
magnificent anticipations had disappeared; 
his little army was reduced to a mere hand- 
ful of the splendid force that had left Cuba ; 
and he was in the midst of a region from 
which he could see no escape. A deep mel- 
ancholy took the place of the stern pride 
that had hithereto marked his demeanor, 
and his heart was torn by a conflict of 



58 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



emotions. His health gave way rapidly, and 
he was seized with a violent fever. 

When informed by his medical attendant 
that his end was at hand, he expressed his 
resignation to the will of God, and at the 
request of his men appointed Louis de 
AIocoso his successor, and advised him to 
continue the expedition. He died on the 
fifth of June, 1542. In order to conceal his 
death from the savages, who had come to 
regard him as immortal, his body was 
wrapped in a mantle, and in the silence of 
midnight was rowed out into the middle of 
the Mississippi. There, amid the darkness 
and the wailing requiems of the priests, the 
mortal remains of Fernando de Soto were 
committed to the great river he had dis- 
covered. 

Harrassed by the Indians. 

The Spaniards at once prepared to disre- 
gard the advice of their dead leader, and 
resolved to set out across the country for 
Mexico, believing it less dangerous to go by 
land than by sea. They roused the whole 
country against them by their barbarous 
treatment of the people, and, having pro- 
ceeded upwards of three hundred miles west 
of the Mississippi, were driven back to that 
stream by the savages. It now became 
necessary to build vessels and descend the 
river. Seven of these were constructed with 
great difficulty, and amidst the constant 
hostility of the Indians. They were frail 
barks, without decks, and in order to con- 
struct them the Spaniards were obliged to 
beat their weapons, and even their stirrups, 
spurs and bridles into saws, axes and nails. 

During this period they suffered greatly 
from the lack of clothing, for it was the 
winter season. They obtained provisions by 
plundering the granaries of the neighboring 
tribes, and thus dooming many of the sav- 
ages to death by starvation. On the first of 



July, 1543, they embarked in their vessels, 
their number being now reduced to about 
two hundred and fifty, and began the descent 
of the river. Their progress was harassed 
at every mile by the Indians, who covered 
the stream with their canoes and kept up an 
almost constant assault upon the fleet. On 
the eighteenth of July, the vessels entered the 
Gulf of Mexico, and by the tenth of Septem- 
ber the Mexican coast was reached. The 
vessels succeeded in gaining the Spanish set- 
tlement of Panuco, where the survivors were 
hospitably received by their countrymen. 

Ribault's Expedition. 

The failure of Narvaez and De Soto pre- 
vented the Spaniards from making any 
further attempt for many years to colonize 
the Florida coast. The next effort to found 
a settlement in that region was by the French. 
The religious wars which had distracted 
France for so many years made the great 
Huguenot leader, Coligny, Admiral of France, 
anxious to provide in the new world a refuge 
to which his persecuted brethren of the faith 
might fly in times of danger, and be free to 
worship God after the dictates of their own 
conscience. He succeeded in obtaining 
authority for this undertaking from Charles 
IX., and in 1 562 an expedition was despatched 
to America under the command of Jean ♦ 
Ribault, a Protestant. Ribault was instructed 
to avoid the more rigorous climate of Cana- 
da, and to select a southern location for the 
colony. Land was made in May, 1562, in 
the vicinity of St. Augustine, Florida, and 
the fleet anchored in Port Royal Harbor. 

Ribault was delighted with the noble har- 
bor, which he believed to be the outlet of a 
large river, and with the beauty and richness 
of the country. A fort was built on an 
island in the harbor, and called Carolina, 
which name was also applied to the country 
in honor of Charles IX. of France. A force 



THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 



59 



of twenty-five men was left to garrison the 
fort, and Ribault returned to France to report 
his success and bring out reinforcements for 
the colony. He reached France in the 
midst of the civil war, which prevented any 
attention being paid to the colony. The 
garrison of Fort Carolina waited in vain for 
the promised reinforcements and supplies, 
and at last, becoming disheartened, built a 



In 1564 there was a lull in the struggle 
between the contending parties in France, 
and Coligny took advantage of it to renew 
his efforts to colonize America. Three ships 
were furnished by the king, and were placed 
in command of Laudonniere,who had accom- 
panied Ribault in the first expedition. Emi- 
grants volunteered readily, and the required 
number was soon completed. In order to 




THE SPANIARDS DESCENDING THE MISSISSIPPI AFTER THE DEATH OF DE SOTO. 



brigantine and set sail for their own country. 
Their provisions soon gave out, and they 
began to suffer the horrors of famine. When 
they were nearly exhausted, they were res- 
cued by an English vessel, which set the 
most feeble upon the coast of France, but 
carried the remainder to England. In 
both countries the colonists spread their 
accounts of the beauty and fertility of 
Carolina. 



obtain reliable information concerning the 
country, Coligny sent out with the expedi- 
tion a skillful painter, James le Moyne, called 
Des Morgues, with orders to make accurate 
colored sketches of the region. The fleet 
sailed on the twenty-second of April, 1564, 
and on the twenty-second of June reached 
the coast of Florida. Avoiding Port Royal, 
the site of the first colony, the colonists chose 
a location in Florida, on the banks of the 



6o 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



St. John's then called the River May- A 
fort was built, and called, like the first, Caro- 
lina. 

The colony was begun with prayers and 
songs of thanksgiving, but the bulk of the 
colonists were by no means religious men. 
Their true character soon began to appear. 
They wasted the supplies they had brought 
with them, as well as those they succeeded 
in extorting from the Indians, whom they 
alienated by their cruelties. Mutinies were 
frequent. The majority of the men had 
joined the enterprise in the hope of acquiring 
sudden wealth, and, finding their hopes vain, 
resolved to abandon the colony. They com- 
pelled Laudonniere to sign an order allowing 
them to embark for New Spain, under the 
pretext of wishing to avoid a famine, and at 
once equipped two vessels and began a career 
of piracy against the Spaniards. Their ves- 
sels were soon captured, and the pirates were 
sold as slaves. A few escaped in a boat and 
took refuge at Fort Carolina. Laudonniere 
caused them to be hanged; but their out- 
rages had already drawn upon the colony the 
bitter hostility of the Spaniards. 

Beginning of the Slave-Traffic. 

Famine now began to be felt by the lit- 
tle settlement, and as month after month 
passed by the sufferings of the colonists in- 
creased. The natives, who were at first 
friendly, had been rendered hostile by the 
cruel treatment they had received from the 
French, and no provisions could be obtained 
from them. On the third of August, 1565, 
Sir John Hawkins, an English commander, 
arrived with several ships from the West 
Indies, where he had just sold a cargo of 
negro slaves whom he had kidnapped in their 
native Africa. He is said to have been 
the first Englishman who engaged in this 
infamous traffic. He proved himself a 
generous friend to the suffering colonists, 



however, and supplied them with provisions 
and gave them one of his own ships. They 
had suffered too much to be content with 
this, and were resolved to adandon the settle- 
ment. They were on the point of embark- 
ing in the ship furnished them by Sir John, 
when a fleet of several vessels was discovered 
standing into the river. It was the squadron 
of Ribault, with reinforcements and all the 
supplies necessary for founding a permanent 
settlement. The despair of the colonists was 
changed to rejoicing, and all were now will- 
ing to remain in the colony. 

Thrilling Events in Florida. 

When the news of the planting of the 
French colony in Florida •reached Philip II. 
of Spain, he was greatly incensed. Florida 
was a part of his dominions, and he not only 
resented the intrusion of the French, but 
could not tolerate the idea of allowing a 
Protestant colony to enjoy its settlement in 
peace. He determined at once to exterminate 
the heretics, and for this purpose employed 
Pedro Melendez de Aviles, an officer who 
had rendered himself notorious for his cruelty 
when engaged against the pirates and in the 
wars of Spanish America. His son and heir 
having been shipwrecked among the Ber- 
mudas, Melendez desired to return to 
America to search for him. 

Philip, who knew his desperate character, 
suggested to him the conquest of Florida, and 
an agreement was entered into between the 
king and Melendez, by which the latter was 
to invade and conquer Florida within three* 
years, and establish in that region a colony 
of not less than five hundred persons, of 
whom one hundred should be married men, 
twelve priests of the Catholic Church and 
four members of the order of the Jesuits. 
Melendez also agreed to transport to Florida 
all kinds of domestic animals, and five hun- 
dred negro slaves. All this was to be done 



THE SPANIARDS IN AMERICA. 



6e 



by Melendez at his own cost, and he was 
secured by the king in the government of the 
province for hfe with the privilege of naming 
his successor, and was granted large estates 
in the province and a comfortable salary. 

Though the destruction of the French 
colony was not named in the agreement, 
Philip and Melendez understood each other 
on that point. The cry was at once raised 
in Spain that the heretics must be extermin- 
ated, and Melandez had no trouble in obtain- 
ing recruits. Twenty-five hundred persons 
gathered under his orders, " soldiers, sailors, 
priests, Jesuits, married men with their fami- 
lies, laborers and mechanics, and, with the 
exception of three hundred soldiers, all at the 
cost of Melendez." 

Escape of the French Fleet. 

The expedition sailed in June, 1565, but 
the vessels were parted by a storm, and Mel- 
endez reached Porto Rico in August with 
but a third of his force. Unwilling to lose 
time, however, he sailed at once to the main- 
land, and arrived off the coast of Florida on 
the twenty-eighth of August. On the second 
of September, he discovered a fine harbor and 
river, and selected this place as the site of 
his colony. He named the river and bay in 
honor of St. Augustine, on whose festival he 
had arrived off the Florida coast. Ascer- 
taining from the Indians the position of the 
French, he sailed to the northward, and on 
the fourth of September arrived off Fort 
Carolina, where a portion of Ribault's fleet 
lay anchored in the roadstead. 

The French commander demanded his name 
and the object of his visit. He was answered : 
" I am Melendez of Spain, sent Avith strict 
orders from my king to gibbet and behead all 
the Protestants in these regions. The French- 
man who is a Catholic I will spare ; every 
heretic shall die." The French fleet being 
unprepared for battle, cut its cables and 



stood out to sea. Melendez gave chase, but 
failed to overtake it. Returning to the har- 
bor of St. Augustine, he went on shore on 
the eighth of September, and took possession 
of the country in the name of Phillip II. of 
Spain, who was proclaimed monarch of all 
North America. A solemn mass was said,, 
and the foundations of the town of St. Augus- 
tine were laid. Thus was established the 
first permanent town within the limits of the 
United States. This task accomplished, 
Melendez prepared to attack Fort Carolina 
by land. 

Ribault had returned with his ships to 
Fort Carolina after escaping from the Span- 
iards. A council of war was held, and it was 
debated among the French whether they 
should strengthen their works and await the 
approach of the enemy, or proceed to St. 
Augustine and attack them with the fleet. 
Ribault supposed that Melendez would attack 
the fort by sea, and favored the latter plan, 
but his officers opposed his design. Disre- 
garding their advice, Ribault put to sea, but 
had scarcely cleared the harbor when a 
violent storm wrecked his entire fleet on the 
Florida coast. Nearly all the men reached 
the shore unharmed, about one hundred and 
fifty miles south of Fort Carolina. 

Terrible Massacre. 

The wreck of the French fleet was known 
to Melendez, and he resolved to strike a 
blow a once at the fort, which he knew to be 
in a defenceless state. Leading his men. 
through the forests and swamps, which lay 
between the two settlements, he surprised 
and captured the fort on the twenty-first of 
September. Every soul within the walls 
including the aged, the women and children, 
was put to death. A few escaped to the 
woods before the capture of the fort, among 
whom were Laudonniere, Challus and Le 
Moyne. Their condition was pitiable. They 



62 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



could expect no mercy from the Spaniards, 
and death awaited them in the forest. A 
few gave themselves up to the Spaniards, and 
were at once murdered ; the remainder suc- 
ceeded in gaining the sea-shore, where they 
were rescued by two French vessels which 
had remained in the harbor and escaped the 
storm. These immediately sailed for France. 

The number of persons massacred by the 
Spaniards at Fort Carolina amounted to 
nearly two hundred. When the victims 
were all dead, mass was said, a cross 
raised, and a site selected for a church. Then 
Melendez set out to find the survivors of 
the shipwrecked fleet. They were discovered 
in a helpless condition, worn out with fatigue, 
hunger and thirst. Melendez promised to 
treat them with kindness if they would sur- 
render to him, and trusting to his plighted 
word, they placed themselves in his hands. 
They were at once seized and bound, and 
marched towards St. Augustine. As they 
approached the settlement a signal was given, 
and the Spaniards fell upon them and mas- 
sacred all but a few Catholics and some 
mechanics, who were reserved as slaves. 
French writers place the number of those 
who perished in the two massacres at nine 
hundred. The Spaniards gave a smaller 
number. On the scene of his barbarity, 
Melendez set up this inscription : " I do not 
this as unto Frenchmen, but as unto Lu- 
therans." 

In 1 566 Melendez attempted to plant a col- 
ony on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay, but 
the vessel despatched for this purpose met 
such contrary winds that the crew abandoned 
the effort to reach the bay, and sailed for 
Spain. Melendez, the next year, returned to 



Spain, having spent his fortune in establish- 
ing the colony of St. Augustine, from which 
he had derived no benefit. 

The massacre of the French and the 
destruction of the colony at Fort Carolina 
excited not even a remonstrance from the 
French court, which was blinded to its true 
interests by its religious bigotry. The Hu- 
guenots and the better part of the nation felt 
keenly the wrong the country had suffered, 
and Dominic de Gourges, a gallant gentle- 
man of Gascony, determined to avenge it. 
Selling his ancestral estate, he equipped three 
vessels, and with one hundred and fifty men 
sailed for Florida, in August, 1567. He 
surprised and captured a Spanish fort near 
the site of Fort Carolina, and took the garri- 
son prisoners. 

He spent the winter here, and finding 
himself too weak to maintain his position, 
sailed for France in May, 1568. Before doing 
so, however, he hanged his prisoners, and 
set up over them the inscription : " I do not 
this as unto Spaniards or mariners, but as 
unto traitors, robbers and murderers." His 
expedition was disavowed by the French 
government, and he was obliged to conceal 
himself to escape arrest after his return to 
France. 

France now abandoned her efforts to col- 
onize the southern part of North America, 
and relinquished her pretensions to Florida. 
Spain, on the other hand, gave more attention 
to this region, and emigrants from her domin- 
ions were encouraged to settle, and new 
colonies were formed within its limits. In 
the West Indies, and in Mexico, Central and 
South America, Spain, during the sixteenth 
and seventeenth centuries, was supreme. 



CHAPTER V 



The First English Colony 



I'he English Claim to America — Voyages of Frobisher — Exploits of Sir Francis Drake — Sir Humphrey Gilbert — In- 
tends to Found a Colony in America — Is Lost at Sea — Sir Walter Raleigh Obtains a Patent of Colonization — Dis- 
coveries of Amidas and Barlow — Raleigh Sends Out a Colony to Virginia — Settlement on Roanoke Island — Its Failure 
— Arrival of Grenville — Second Effort of Raleigh to Colonize Virginia — Roanoke Island Again Settled — The "City 
of Raleigh" — Virginia Dare — Fate of the Colony — Death of Raleigh — Other Voyages of the English. 



THOUGH England had made no 
effort to colonize America during 
the long period we have been con- 
sidering, she never abandoned her 
claims to that region, claims which were 
based upon the discoveries and explorations 
of John and Sebastian Cabot. The voy- 
ages of her fishermen to Newfoundland kept 
the country fresh in the minds of the sea- 
faring Englishmen, and from time to time 
voyages were made to the American coast 
for the purpose of trading with the savages. 
Under Elizabeth, who pursued the wise pol- 
icy of fostering her navy, a race of hardy and 
daring sailors grew up in England, and car- 
ried the flag of their country into every sea. 

In this reign Martin Frobisher with two 
small ships made a voyage to the frozen 
regions of Labrador in search of the north- 
west passage. He failed to find it, but pene- 
trated farther north than any European had 
yet gone, A. D. 1576. His second voyage was 
made the next year, and was undertaken in 
the hope of finding gold, as one of the stones 
he had brought home on his first cruise had 
been pronounced by the refiners of London to 
contain the precious metal. 

The fleet did not advance as far north as 
Frobisher had done on his first attempt, as a 

63 



large mass of yellow earth was found which 
was believed to contain gold. The ships 
were loaded with this, and all sail was made 
for home, only to find on reaching England 
that their cargo was but a heap of worthless 
dirt. A third voyage with fifteen ships was 
attempted in 1578, but no gold was found, 
and the extreme northern latitudes were 
ascertained to be too bleak for colonization. 
Between the years 1577 and 1580 Sir 
Francis Drake sailed to the Pacific, and by 
levying exactions upon the Spanish settle- 
ments on the western coast of America 
acquired an immense treasure. As Bancroft 
well observes, this part of Drake's career 
"was but a splendid piracy against a nation 
with which his sovereign and his country 
professed to be at peace." Having acquired 
this enormous wealth Drake applied himself 
to the more useful task of discovery. Cross- 
ing the equator he sailed northward, as far 
as the southern part of Oregon, in the hope 
of finding a northern passage between the 
oceans. The cold seemed very great to voy- 
agers just from the tropics, and he abandoned 
his attempt and returned southward to a 
harbor on the coast of Mexico. Here he 
refitted his ship, and then returned to Eng- 
land through the seas of Asia, having 



04 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



circumnavigated the globe, a feat which had 
been accomplished only by the ship of 
Magellan. 

It was not the splendid but demoralizing 
achievements of Drake which led the way to 



lieved that a lucrative trade might be opened 
with the new world by the planting of a col- 
ony within its limits. He obtained authority 
from Queen Elizabeth to establish such a 
colony in the vicinity of the fisheries. 




THE RENOWNED EXPLORER, SIR MARTIN FROBISHER. 



the establishment of the English power in 
America. That was the work of the hum- 
ble fishermen who sailed on their yearly 
voyages to the banks of Newfoundland. The 
progress of this valuable industry was closely 
watched by Sir Humphrey Gilbert, who be- 



In 1578 he sailed to America on a voy- 
age of discovery, and in August of that year 
landed at St. Johns, Newfoundland, and took 
formal possession of the country for England. 
He then sailed to the southward, exploring 
the coast, but lost his largest ship with all 



THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY. 



65 



on board. This made it necessary for him 
to return home, as the two vessels which re- 
mained to him were too small to attempt a 
protracted voyage. One of them, called the 
"Squirrel," was a mere boat of ten tons. 
Unwilling to expose his men to a danger 
which he would not face, Sir Humphrey took 
passage in the " Squirrel " instead of in the 
larger and safer vessel. 

Terrific Storm. 

On the homeward voyage the ships en- 
countered a terrific storm. In the midst of 
the gale the people on the " Hind," the larger 
ship, saw Sir Humphrey sitting at the stern 
of his little vessel, which was laboring pain- 
fully in the heavy seas. He was calmly 
reading a book, perhaps that sublimest of 
books, from which he had drawn the pure 
principles that guided his whole life. As 
the "Hind" passed him he called out to 
those on board of her, " We are as near to 
heaven by sea as by land." That night the 
lights of the " Squirrel " suddenly disap- 
peared, and the good Sir Humphrey was 
seen no more. The " Hind " continued her 
voyage, and reached Falmouth in safety. 

Sir Walter Raleigh, Gilbert's half brother, 
had been interested in this expedition, but 
its ill success did not dishearten him. He 
was one of the noblest spirits of his age, and 
has laid the world under heavy obligations 
to him by his many noble services in the 
cause of humanity. He had served in the 
army of the Huguenots of France under 
Coligni, and had heard from the voyagers 
sent out by that leader of the richness and 
beauty of Carolina. 

Undaunted by the sad fate of Sir Hum- 
phrey Gilbert, Raleigh determined to plant 
a colony in the region from which the 
Huguenots had been driven. He had no 
difficulty in obtaining from the queen a pat- 
ent as liberal as that which had been granted 
5 



Sir Humphrey Gilbert. He was given ample 
powers over the region he proposed to col- 
onize, as its feudal lord, and was bound to 
maintain the authority of the queen and 
church of England in his possessions. 

An Inviting Country. 
He fitted out two vessels, commanded re- 
spectively by Philip Amidas and Arthur Bar- 
low, and sent them to explore the region 
granted to him, and to obtain accurate infor- 
mation concerning it. They reached the 
coast of North Carolina at Ocracock Inlet, 
and took formal possession of the country. 
They partially explored Albemarle and Pam- 
lico Sounds, together with the neighboring 




SIR WALTER RALEIGH. 

coast and islands. It was the month of July, 
and the climate was delightful, the sea was 
calm, the atmosphere clear, and the heat was 
tempered by the delicious sea-breeze. The 
woods abounded with birds and echoed with 
their carols, and wild grapes were found in 
the greatest profusion. 



66 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



The explorers were enchanted with this 
dehghtful region, and returning to England 
published glowing accounts of it. They 
took with them two Indians, named Wan- 
chese and Manteo, the latter of whom after- 
wards did good service to the colonists as an 
interpreter. Queen Elizabeth deemed her 
reign honored by the discoveries of Amidas 



mand of the fleet, and Ralph Lane, who was 
also a man of considerable distinction, was 
made governor of the colony. 

The fleet sailed from Plymouth on the 
ninth of April, 1585, and after a long and 
trying voyage reached Ocracock Inlet in 
June. Passing through the inlet, a settle- 
ment was established on Roanoke Island, 




FROBISHER AND HIS SHIPS PASSING GREENWICH. 



and Barlow, and gave to the new region the 
name of Virginia in honor of England's vir- 
gin queen. 

Raleigh at once set to work to organize a 
colony. Emigrants volunteered readily, and 
in a short time a fleet of seven vessels, con- 
taining one hundred and eight persons, apart 
from the crews, was in readiness. Sir Rich- 
ard Grenville, a friend of Raleigh, and a man 
of tried skill and bravery, was given the com- 



lyingbetweenAlbemarleand Pamlico Sounds. 
Expeditions were sent out to explore the 
surrounding country, and in one of these a 
silver cup was stolen by an Indian, and its 
restoration was delayed. With thoughtless 
cruelty Grenville punished this fault by the 
destruction of the village to which the culprit 
belonged, and also of all the standing corn. 
This inconsiderate revenge made the Indians 
the enemies of the whites, and brought great 



THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY. 



67 



future suffering upon the colony. A little 
later, having seen the colonists successfully- 
established on Roanoke Island, Grenville 
returned to England with the fleet, captur- 



the inhabitants. Many of the plants were 
strange to them. Among these were the 
Indian corn, tobacco and the sweet potato. 
Hariot, "the inventor of the system of nota- 




OUEEN ELIZABETH. 



ing a rich Spanish prize on the voyage 
home. 

Left to themselves the colonists began to 
explore the country, and to observe the 
productions of the soil, and the character of 



tion in modern algebra, the historian of the 
expedition," observed these plants and their 
culture with great minuteness, and became a 
firm believer in the healing virtues of 
tobacco. He has left an interesting- account 



68 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



of the natives of the country and their man- 
ners and customs. 

The Indians, alarmed by the superiority of 
the whites, began to plot their destruction, 
as they believed their entire country would 
be overrun by the new comers. Lane on 
his part became suspicious of the savages, 
and this feeling of mutual distrust had the 
most unhappy consequences. Being informed 
by the savages that there was a splendid city, 
whose walls glittered with gold and pearls, 
on the upper waters of the Roanoke, Gov- 
ernor Lane made a boat voyage up that 
stream, but failed to find anything. He 
returned to the colony just in time to discon- 
cert the plan of the savages for attacking the 
whites during the absence of the exploring 
party. 

Inhuman Butchery. 

Lane now determined to outrival the 
savages in perfidy. He visited Wingina, one 
of the most active of the neighboring chiefs, 
and professing to come as a friend, was 
received with confidence by the Indians. At 
a given signal from the governor the whites 
fell upon the chief and his warriors, and put 
them to death. Lane proved himself utterly 
unfit to govern such a colony, and his people 
soon lost confidence in him. Their discon- 
tent was increased by the failure of their 
provisions, and they began to entertain the 
idea of abandoning the colony and returning 
home. 

On the eighth of June, 1586, Sir Francis 
Drake, with a fleet of twenty-three ships, 
anchored in the roadstead off Roanoke 
Island. He had been cruising in the West 
Indies, and had called on his homeward 
voyage to visit the plantation of his friend 
Raleigh. He at once set to work to remedy 
the wants of the colony, and supplied the 
settlers with such things as they needed. 
They were thoroughly disheartened, how- 
ever, with their year's experience, and 



begged Drake so earnestly to take them 
back to England that he received them on 
board his ships and put to sea. 

Thus the first effort of the English to 
settle America resulted in failure. Drake's 
fleet had scarcely disappeared when a ship 
loaded with supplies, which had been des- 
patched by Raleigh, reached the island. 
Finding the place deserted, the commander 
returned to England. A fortnight later, 
Grenville arrived with three ships. Finding 
the colonists had gone, he too returned to 
England, leaving fifteen men to hold the 
island. 

Another Colony and Its Fate. 

Raleigh was greatly disappointed by the 
failure of his colony, but he did not despair 
of success ; for notwithstanding the gloomy 
stories of Lane and his followers, the con- 
clusive testimony of Hariot convinced him 
that the country could be made to yield a 
rich return for the trouble and expense of 
its settlement ; and he set to work to form 
another colony. With the hope of giving 
the settlers a permanent interest in the plan- 
tation, he selected emigrants with wives and 
families, who should regard the new world 
as their future home, and endeavor to found 
a permanent State in that region. Every- 
thing was provided which could contribute 
to the success of the colony, and agricult- 
ural implements were furnished for the 
proper cultivation of the soil. All the 
expense of the undertaking was borne by 
Raleigh, for though Queen Elizabeth greatly 
favored the venture, she declined to con- 
tribute anything toward it. John White 
was appointed governor of the colony. A 
fleet of transport vessels was equipped, also 
at Raleigh's expense, and on the twenty- 
sixth of April, 1587, the expedition sailed 
from England. The coast of North Caro- 
lina was reached in July. 



THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY. 



69 



The approach to Roanoke Island was both 
difficult and dangerous, and Raleigh ordered 
the new settlers to select a site for their col- 
ony on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. 
The expedition proceeded first, however, to 
Roanoke Island to search for the men left 
there by Grenville. They could not be 
found. The island was deserted, the fort 
was in ruins, and the human bones which lay 
scattered over the field told plainly that the 
unfortunate garrison left by Grenville had 
been murdered by the Indians. Governor 
White was now anxious to sail to the Chesa- 
peake, but Fernando, the commander of the 
fleet, refused to proceed any farther, as he 
wished to go to the West Indies for purposes 
of trade. The instructions of Raleigh were 
thus disregarded, and the colonists were com- 
pelled to go ashore on Roanoke Island. 

Dangers of the First Settlers. 

The old settlement of Governor Lane was 
rebuilt, and another effort was made to estab- 
lish the " City of Raleigh.'* The Indians 
were bitterly hostile to the settlers, and a 
friendly tribe was offended by an unfortunate 
attack upon them, made upon the supposi- 
tion that they were hostile Indians. The 
settlers becoming alarmed, implored the gov- 
ernor to return to England and exert him- 
self to hasten the sending out of reinforce- 
ments and supplies to them. He was un- 
willing to do this, as he deemed it his duty 
to remain among them, but at length yielded 
to their unanimous appeal. Just before his 
departure his daughter, Mrs. Dare, the wife 
of one of his lieutenants, gave birth to a 
daughter, the first child born of English 
parents within the limits of the United States, 
and the little one was named Virginia from 
the place of its birth. 

White sailed for England in August, 1587. 
He found the mother country greatly excited 
over the threatened invasion of the Spaniards. 



Raleigh, who was energetically engaged in 
the efforts for the defence of the country, did 
not neglect his colony. He fitted out two 
ships with the needed supplies, and dis- 
patched them under White's orders in April, 
1 5 88. The commanders, instead of proceed- 
ing direct to the colony, undertook to make 
prizes. 

No Traces of the Colony. 

At last one of them fell in with a man-of- 
war from Rochelle, and after a sharp fight 
was plundered of her stores. Both ships 
were obliged to return to England, to the 
anger and disgust of Raleigh. The approach 
of the Invincible Armada and the exertions 
demanded of the nation for its defeat, made 
it impossible for anything more to be done 
for the colonists at Roanoke until after the 
Spanish fleet had been destroyed. Even 
then Raleigh, who had spent over forty thou- 
sand pounds without return, was unable to 
send aid at once to the colony, and a year 
elapsed before a vessel could be sent out un- 
der White. In 1590, the governor reached 
Roanoke, but no trace of the colony could 
be found. The settlers had either died, been 
massacred, or taken prisoners. 

" The conjecture has been hazarded," savs 
Bancroft, " that the deserted colony, neglected 
by their own countrymen, were hospitably 
adopted into the tribe of Hatteras Indians, 
and became amalgamated with the sons of 
the forest. This was the tradition of the 
natives at a later day, and was thought to be 
confirmed by the physical character of the 
tribe, in which the English and the Indian 
race seemed to have been blended." The 
generous heart of Raleigh could not bear to 
leave his countrymen unaided while a single 
hope of finding them remained, and he is 
said to have sent to America as many as five 
expeditions at his own cost to search for 
them. 




70 



MURDER OF WHITE'S ASSISTANT. 



THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY. 



71 



With the failure of the settlement at 
Roanoke Raleigh relinquished his hope of 
colonizing Virginia. He had expended 
nearly his entire fortune in the undertaking, 
and the remainder of his life was passed un- 
der the cloud of undeserved misfortune. His 
career as a statesman was honorable to him- 
self and to his country, and he proved him- 
self in all his acts a loyal subject and a de- 
voted patriot. His zeal in behalf of knowl- 
edge made him a generous friend of the 
learned, and he merits the gratitude of the 
American people, not only for his efforts to 
colonize our shores with his countrymen, 
but for the liberality with which he spread 
a knowledge of America throughout Eng- 
land by his publication of the reports of 
Hariot and Hakluyt. He opened the way 
for the dominion of the English in the new 
world, and his memory is preserved in the 
name of the capital city of the great State 
which he sought to make the seat of an Eng- 
lish empire. 

Accused of High Treason. 

Upon the accession of James I., Raleigh, 
broken in health and fortune, but still the 
most illustrious Englishman of his day, was 
arraigned on a charge of high treason, of 
which not even his enemies believed him 
guilty, and was sentenced to the Tower, as 
the king did not yet dare to order his execu- 
tion. During this period Sir Walter beguiled 
the weariness of his imprisonment by com- 
posing his " History of the World." He re- 
mained a prisoner for thirteen years, and was 
then released on condition of making a voy- 
age to Guiana in search of gold. His failure 
to accomplish the object of the voyage sealed 
his doom, and on his return to England he 
was beheaded, not upon any fresh charge, 
but on his old sentence. His real fault was 
that he was too true an Englishman to sus- 
tain the sacrifice of the national honor by 



King James to the demands of Spain, and he 
was generally regarded by the nation as the 
victim of the king's cowardice. He met his 
fate with the calm bravery which had marked 
his whole life. 

Kidnapping Indians. 

Until now the voyage from England to 
America had been made by way of the 
Canary Islands and the West Indies. In 
1602, Bartholomew Gosnold conceived the 
idea of proceeding direct from England to 
Virginia, as the whole region north of Flor- 
ida was called by the English. Sailing 
directly across the Atlantic he reached Cape 
Elizabeth, on the coast of Maine, after a voy- 
age of seven weeks. Proceeding southward 
along the coast he reached Cape Cod, to 
which he gave the name on the fifteenth of 
May, and went ashore there. He was thus 
the first Englishman to set foot in New Eng- 
land. He continued his voyage along the 
coast and entered Buzzard's Bay. 

To the westernmost of the islands of this 
stately sound he gave the name of Eliza- 
beth — a name which has since been applied 
to the entire group. Loading his ship with 
sassafras root, which was then highly 
esteemed for its medicinal virtues, Gosnold 
sailed for England, and arrived home safely 
after a voyage of less than four weeks. He 
gave the most favorable accounts of the 
region he had visited, and other adventurers 
were induced by his reports to undertake 
voyages for the purpose of trading with the 
natives. Among these was George Way- 
mouth, who reached and explored the coast 
of Maine in 1605. On his return voyage 
Waymouth kidnapped five Indians and car- 
ried them to England, "to be instructed in 
English, and to serve as guides in some 
future expedition." 

The voyages of Gosnold and Waymouth 
to the coast of New England were followed 



72 



DISCOVERY OF THE WESTERN CONTINENT. 



by those of numerous other English adven- 
turers. In 1614, Captain John Smith, who 
had already distinguished himself by his 
services in Virginia, made a voyage to Amer- 
ica with two ships, furnished at the expense 
of himself and four merchants of London. 
The voyage was for the purpose of trading 
with the natives, and was very successful. 
Smith took advantage of the opportunity to 
explore the coast from Penobscot to Cape 
Cod. He prepared a map of the coast, and 
named the country New England — a title 
which was confirmed by the Prince of Wales, 
afterwards Charles I. 



After Smith's return to England, Hunt, 
the commander of the other vessel, suc- 
ceeded in inducing twenty of the natives, 
with their chief, Squanto, to visit his ship, 
and as soon as they were on board put to 
sea. He sold the savages as slaves in Spain. 
A few of them, Squanto among the number, 
were purchased by some kind-hearted monks, 
who instructed them in the Christian faith in 
order to send them back to their own people 
as missionaries of the cross. Squanto escaped 
to England in 1619, and there learned the 
language, and was afterward an interpreter 
between the English settlers and his people. 




JAMES I. 



BOOK II 



Settlement of America 

CHAPTER VI 

Captain John Smith and Pocahontas 

Formation of the London Company — Conditions of its Charter — Departure of the First Colony — Quarrels During the 
Voyage — Arrival in the Chesapeake — Settlement of Jamestown — Formation of the Government — Character of Cap- 
tain John Smith — Exploration of the James River — Newport and Smith Visit Powhatan — Smith Admitted to the 
Government — Explores the Chickahominy — Is Captured and Sentenced to Death — Is Saved by Pocahontas — Gains the 
Friendship of Powhatan for the Colony — Returns to Jamestown — His Decisive Measures — Return of Newport — Smith 
Explores the Chesapeake Bay — The New Emigrants — Smith Compels Them to Labor — Smith is Wounded and Com- 
pelled to Return to England — Disasters to the Colony — Arrival of Sir Thomas Gates — Jamestown Abandoned — Ar- 
rival of Lord Delaware — The Return to Jamestown — A Change for the Better — New Settlements — Sir T Iiomas Gates 
Arrives With Reinforcements — Capture of Pocahontas by Captain Argall — She is Baptized — Marries John Rolfe — Sir 
Thomas Dale's Administration — Yeardley Governor — The First Legislative Assembly — Representative Government 
Established in America — The Colonists Obtain Wives — Changes in the Government. 



THE favorable reports which had been 
brought back to England by the 
voyagers to the new world had pre- 
vented the interest of Englishmen 
in America from entirely dying out, and 
some ardent spirits still believed it possible 
to make that continent the seat of a pros- 
perous dominion dependent upon England. 
The former assistants of Raleigh, in particu- 
lar, held to the convictions which their chief 
had entertained to the day of his death. The 
selfish and timid policy of King James hav- 
ing made it impossible for men to acquire 
distinction by naval exploits, as in the days 
of Elizabeth, the more adventurous classes 
lent a willing ear to the plans for colonizing 
America, which were discussed in various 
parts of the kingdom, Bartholomew Gos- 
nold, who had explored the New England 
coast, was especially active in seeking to 
induce capitalists to send out a colony 
to it. His glowing accounts of the New 
World awakened a good deal of enthu- 



siasm, and men who had money to invest, 
and were somewhat inclined to indulge in 
speculation, were ready to aid any scheme 
that promised to be lucrative and advan- 
tageous to themselves. 

Sir Ferdinand Gorges, a wealthy gentle- 
man and Governor of Plymouth, had been 
greatly interested in America by the accounts 
of Waymouth, who had given him two of 
the Indians he had brought to England. 
These succeeded in interesting others in their 
plans, and the result was that early in the 
reign of King James two companies were 
formed in England for the colonization of 
America, One of these was the " London 
Company," composed chiefly of noblemen 
and merchants residing in London. The 
other was the " Plymouth Company," com- 
posed of " knights, gentlemen and mer- 
chants," residing in the west of England. 
King James divided Virginia into two parts. 
To the London Company he granted " South 
Virginia," extending from Cape Fear, in 

71 



74 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



North Carolina, to the Potomac. To the 
Plymouth Company he gave " North Vir- 
ginia," stretching from the Hudson to New- 
foundland. The region between the Potomac 
and the Hudson he left as a broad belt of 
neutral land to keep the companies from en- 
croaching upon each other's domains. Either 
was at liberty to form settlements in this 
region within fifty miles of its own border. 

The London Company was the first to 
settle the country assigned it. A liberal 
charter was granted the company : the lands 
in the new world were to be held by it on the 
simple conditions of homage and the pay- 
ment to the crown of one-fifth of the gold 
and silver and one-fifteenth of the copper 
that should be discovered. A general coun- 
cil, residing in England, was to have author- 
ity over the whole province, and the mem- 
bers of this council were to be appointed and 
removed by the king at his good pleasure. 
Each separate colony was to be under the 
control of a colonial council residing within 
its own limits, and the king retained the right 
to direct the appointment or removal of the 
members of these councils at his pleasure. 

Laws of the London Company. 

The king also reserved the supreme legis- 
lative authority over the colonies, and framed 
for their government a code of laws — " an 
exercise of royal legislation which has been 
pronounced in itself illegal." The colonists 
were placed by this code under the rule of 
the superior and local councils we have 
named, in the choice of which they had no 
voice. The religion of the Church of Eng- 
land was established as that of the colony, 
and conformity to it was secured by severe 
penalties. Death was the punishment for 
murder, manslaughter, adultery, dangerous 
seditions and tumults. In all cases not 
affecting life and' limb offenders might be 
tried by a magistrate, but for capital offences 



trial by jury was secured. In the former 
cases the punishment of the offender was at 
the discretion of the president and council. 
The Indians were to be treated with kind- 
ness, and efforts were to be made for their 
conversion to Christianity. For five years 
at least the affairs of the colonists Vv'ere to be 
conducted in a joint stock. The right to 
impose future legislation upon the province 
was reserved by the king. 

The Settlers Oppressed. 

Such was the form of government first pre- 
scribed for Virginia by England, in which, as 
Bancroft truly says, there was " not an ele- 
ment of popular liberty." " To the emi- 
grants themselves it conceded not one elect- 
ive franchise, not one of the rights of self- 
government. They were to be subjected to 
the ordinances of a commercial corporation, 
of which they could not be members; to 
the dominion of a domestic council, in ap- 
pointing which they had no voice ; to the 
control of a superior council in England, 
which had no sympathy with their rights ; 
and finally, to the arbitrary legislation of 
the sovereign." 

Under this charter the London Company 
prepared to send out a colony to Virginia. 
It was to be a commercial settlement, and 
the emigrants were composed altogether of 
men. One hundred and five persons, exclu- 
sive of the crews of the vessels, joined the 
expedition. Of these not twenty were farm- 
ers or mechanics. The remainder were 
" gentlemen," or men who had ruined them- 
selves at home by idleness and dissipation. 
A fleet of three small ships, under command 
of Captain Newport, was assembled, and on 
the nineteenth of December, 1606, sailed for 
America. 

The emigrants sailed without having per- 
fected any organization. The king had fool- 
ishly placed the names of those who were to 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 



75 



constitute the government in a sealed box, 
which the adventurers were ordered not to 
open until they had selected a site for their 
settlement and were ready to form a govern- 
ment. This was most unfortunate, for during 
the long voyage dissensions arose, and there 
was no one in the expedition who could 
control the unruly spirits. 

These quarrels grew more intense with 
the lapse of time, and when the shores of 
Virginia were reached the seeds of many of 
the evils from which the colony afterwards 
suffered severely had been thoroughly sown. 
There were among the number several who 
were well qualified to direct the affairs of the 
expedition, but they were without the proper 
authority to do so, and there was no such 
thing as voluntary submission to be seen 
among the adventurers. The merits of the 
deserving merely excited the jealousy of 
their companions, and the great master 
spirit of the enterprise found from the first 
his disinterested efforts for the good of the 
expedition met by a jealous opposition. 

Point Comfort Named. 

Newport was not acquainted with the 
direct route, and made the old passage by 
way of the Canaries and the West Indies. 
He thus consumed the whole of the winter, 
and while searching for the island of 
Roanoke, the scene of Raleigh's colony, his 
fleet was driven northward by a severe storm, 
and forced to take refuge in the Chesapeake 
Bay on the twenty-sixth of April, 1607. He 
named the headlands of this bay Cape Henry 
and Cape Charles, in honor of the two sons 
of James I., and because of the comfortable 
anchorage which he obtained in the splendid 
roadstead which enters the bay opposite its 
mouth, he gave to the northern point the 
name of Point Comfort, which it has since 
borne. Passing this, a noble river was dis- 
covered comine from the westward, and was 



named the James, in honor of the English 
king. The country was explored with energy, 
and though one small tribe of Indians was 
found to be hostile, a treaty of peace and 
friendship was made with another at Hamp- 
ton. The fleet ascended the river and ex- 
plored it for fifty miles. A pleasant penin- 
sula, on the left bank of the stream was 
selected as the site of the colony, and on the 
thirteenth of May, 1607, the settlement was 
definitely begun, and was named Jamestown, 
in honor of the king. 

Smith's Daring Deeds. 

The leading spirit of the enterprise was 
John Smith, one of the truest heroes of his- 
tory, who has been deservedly called " the 
father of Virginia." He was still a young 
man, being but thirty years of age, but he 
was old in experience and knightly deeds. 
While yet a youth he had served in Holland 
in the ranks of the army of freedom, and had 
travelled through France, Egypt and Italy. 
Burning to distinguish himself, he had re- 
paired to Hungary, and had won a brilliant 
reputation by his exploits in the ranks of the 
Christian army engaged in the defence of 
that country against the Mohammedans. 
He repeatedly defeated the chosen champions 
of the Turks in single combat, but being at 
length captured was sent to Constantinople 
and sold as a slave. The wife of his master, 
pitying his misfortunes, sent him to a rela- 
tive in the Crimea, with a request to treat 
him with kindness, but contrary to her 
wishes he was subjected to the greatest 
harshness. 

Rendered desperate by this experience, he 
rose against his task-master, slew him, 
and seizing his horse escaped to the border 
of the Russian territory, where he was kindly 
received. He wandered across the country 
to Transylvania, and rejoined his old com- 
panions in arms. Then, filled with a longing 



76 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



to see his "own sweet country" once 
more, he returned to England. He arrived 
just as the plans for the colonization of 
Virginia were being matured. He readily 
engaged in the expedition organized by the 
London Company, and exerted himself in a 
marked degree to make it a success. He 
was in all respects the most capable man in 
the whole colony, for his natural abilities 
were fully equal to his experience. He had 
studied human nature under many forms in 




CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH. 

many lands, and in adversity and danger had 
learned patience and fortitude. His calm, cool 
courage, his resolute will, and his intuitive per- 
ception of the necessities of a new settlement, 
were destined to make him the main stay of the 
colony of Virginia, but as yet these high quali- 
ties had only excited the malicious envy of his 
associates, and the efforts he had made to heal 
the dissensions which had broken out during 
the voyage had made him many enemies. 



When the box containing the names of 
those who were to constitute the colonial 
government was opened, it was found that 
the king had appointed John Smith one of 
the council. Smith was at this time in con- 
finement, having been arrested on the voy- 
age upon the frivolous charges of sedition and 
treason against the crown, and his enemies, 
notwithstanding the royal appointment, ex- 
cluded him from the council. Edward 
Wingfield, " a grovelling merchant of the 
west of England," was chosen president 
of the council and governor of the 
colony. The services of Smith could not 
be dispensed with, however, and he was 
released from his confinement, and sent 
with Newport and twenty others to 
explore the river. They ascended the 
James to the falls, where the city of 
Richmond now stands, and visited 
Powhatan, the principal chief of the 
Indian nation holding the country into 
which they had come. He was then 
dwelling at his favorite seat on the left 
bank of the river, a few miles below 
the falls. Powhatan received them 
kindly, and silenced the remonstrances 
of his people by saying: "They hurt 
you not; they only want a little land." 
The chief was a man of powerful sta- 
ture, " tall, sour and athletic." He 
was sixty years of age, and had under 
him a population of six or eight 
thousand souls, two thousand being 
warriors. Having carefully observed the 
river, Smith and Newport returned to 
Jamestown. 

Their presence there was needed, for 
Wingfield had proved himself utterly unfit 
to govern the colony. He would not allow 
the colonists to build either houses for them- 
selves or a fortification for the common de- 
fence against the savages. While they were 
in this helpless condition, they were suddenly 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 



77 



attacked by a force of four hundred Indians, 
and were saved from destruction only by the 
fire of the shipping, which filled the savages 
with terror and put them to flight. It is 
believed that the cause of Wingfield's 
singular conduct was his jealousy of Smith 
whose talents he feared would attract the 
support of the settlers. 

Tried and Acquitted. 

The fort was now built without delay, 
cannon were mounted, and the men trained 
in the exercise of arms. When the ships 
were in readiness to sail to England, it was 
intimated to Smith that he would consult his 
own interests by returning in them, but he 
refused to do so, and boldly demanded a 
trial upon the charges which had been pre- 
ferred against him. The council did not 
dare to refuse him this trial, and the result 
was his triumphant acquittal. More than 
this, he succeeded so well in exposing the 
malice of his enemies that the president, as 
the originator of the charges against him, 
was compelled to pay him two hundred 
pounds damages, which sum Smith gener- 
ously applied to the needs of the colony. 
His seat in the council could no longer be 
denied him, and he took his place at the 
board to the great gain of the colony. 

Newport sailed for England about the 
middle of June, leaving the settlement in a 
most pitiable condition. The provisions 
sent out from England had been spoiled on 
the voyage, and the colonists were too indo- 
lent to cultivate the land, or to seek to obtain 
supplies from the Indians. Sickness broke 
out among them, owing to the malarious 
character of their location, and by the begin- 
ning of the winter more than half their num- 
ber had died. Among these was Bartholo- 
mew Gosnold, the originator of the London 
Company, who had come out to Virginia to 
risk his life in the effort to settle the country. 



He was a man of rare merits, and, togethef 
with Mr. 'Hunt, "the preacher," who was 
also one of the projectors of the company, 
had contributed successfully to the preserva- 
tion of harmony in the colony. In the 
midst of these sufferings it was found that 
Wingfield was preparing to load the pinnace 
with the remainder of the stores and escape 
to the West Indies. He was deposed by the 
council, who appointed John Ratcliffe in his 
place. 

The newpresident was not much better than 
his predecessor. He was incapable of discharg- 
ing the duties of his office, and was perfectly 
satisfied that Smith should direct the affairs 
of the settlement for him. From this time 
Smith was the actual head of the govern- 
ment. Food was the prime necessity of the 
colony, and as it was now too late to raise it. 
Smith exerted himself to obtain it from the 
Indians. He purchased a supply, and towards 
the close of the autumn the wild fowl which 
frequent the region furnished an additional 
means of subsistence. 

Danger of Famine. 

The danger of a famine thus removed, 
Smith proceeded to explore the country. In 
one of these expeditions he ascended the 
Chickahominy as far as he could penetrate 
in his boat, and then leaving it in charg-e of 
two men, struck into the interior with an 
Indian guide. His men disobeyed his in- 
structions, and were surprised and put to 
death by the Indians. Smith himself was 
taken prisoner, and deeply impressed his 
captors by his cool courage and self-posses- 
sion. Instead of begging for his life, he set 
to work to convince them of his superiority 
over them, and succeeded so well that they 
regarded him with a sort of awe. He aston- 
ished them by showing them his pocket com- 
pass and explaining to them its uses, and 
excited their admiration by writing a letter 



^i^^'^^Z'^^ilfi^i^'Sff^ -^y Aiii^i 




78 



POCAHONTAS INTERCEDING FOR THE LIFE OF CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH. 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 



79 



to his friends at Jamestown informing them 
of his situation, and of the danger to which 
they were exposed from a contemplated 
attack of the Indians. One of the savages 
bore the letter to its destination. 

A Grand Reception. 

Smith had been captured by Opechan- 
canough, a powerful chieftain of the Pamun- 
key Indians : but as the curiosity of the 
neighboring tribes was greatly aroused by 
his presence, he was led in triumph from the 
Chickahominy to the villages on the Rappa- 
hannock and the Potomac, and then taken 
through other towns to the residence of 
Opechancanough, on the Pamunkey. Here 
the medicine men of the tribe held a three 
days' incantation over him to ascertain his 
character and design. All this while his de- 
meanor was calm and fearless, as if he enter- 
tained no apprehension for his safety. He 
was regarded by the savages as a superior 
being, and was treated with kindness, though 
kept a close prisoner. 

His fate was referred to Powhatan for de- 
cision, as the other tribes feared to bring the 
blood of such an extraordinary being upon 
their heads. Powhatan was then residing at 
Werowocomoco, which lay on the north 
side of Fork River, in what is now Gloucester 
County, Virginia. He received the captive 
in great state, surrounded by his warriors. 
" Hfe wore," says Smith, " such a grave and 
majestical countenance as drove me into 
admiration to see." Brought into the 
presence of Powhatan, Smith was received 
with a shout from the assembled warriors. 
A handsome young squaw brought him 
water to wash his hands, and another gave 
him a bunch of feathers to dry them. Food 
was then set before him, and while he applied 
himself to the repast a consultation was held 
by the savages as to his fate. Smith watched 
the proceedings closely, and was aware from 



the gestures of the council that his death 
had been determined upon. Two great 
stones were then brought into the assembly 
and laid before the king. 

The captive was seized and dragged to the 
stones, forced down, and his head laid upon 
them. Two brawny savages stood by to 
beat out his brains with their clubs. During 
these proceedings Pocahontas, a child often 
or twelve years, " dearly loved daughter " of 
Powhatan, touched with pity for the unfortu- 
nate stranger, had been earnestly pleading 
with her father to spare his life. Failing in 
this, she sprang forward at the moment the 
executioners were about to despatch their 
victim, and throwing herself by his side, 
clasped her arms about his neck and laid her 
head upon his to protect him from the im- 
pending stroke. This remarkable action in 
a child so young moved the savages with 
profound astonishment. They regarded it 
as a manifestation of the will of Heaven in 
favor of the captive, and it was determined 
to spare his life and seek his friendship. 

The Captive Released. 

Smith was released from his bonds, and 
was given to Pocahontas to make beads and 
bells for her, and to weave for her ornaments 
of copper. The friendship which the inno- 
cent child of the forest conceived for him 
grew stronger every day, and ceased only 
with her life. Powhatan took him into his 
favor, and endeavored to induce him to 
abandon the English and cast his lot with 
him. He even sought to obtain his aid in 
an attack upon the colony. Smith declined 
these offers, and by his decision of character 
succeeded in averting the hostility of the 
savages from his friends at Jamestown, and 
in winning their good-will for the English. 
In a short while the Indians allowed him to 
return to Jamestown, upon his promise to 
send to King Powhatan two cannon and a 



8o 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



grindstone. Upon arriving at Jamestown he 
showed the Indians who had accompanied 
him two of the largest cannon, and asked 
them to lift them. This was impossible ; 
nor could they succeed any better with the 
grindstone. Smith then discharged the 
cannon in their presence, which so frightened 
them that they refused to have anything to 
do with them. Having evaded his promise 
in this manner, Smith bestowed more suit- 
able presents upon his guides, and sent them 




POCAHONTAS. 

home with gifts for Powhatan and Poca- 
hontas, The savage king was doubtless 
well satisfied to let the " great guns " alone 
after hearing the report of his messengers 
concerning them, and was greatly pleased 
with the gifts sent him. 

Pocahontas Brings Food. 

Smith found the colony at Jamestown re- 
duced to forty men and affairs in great con- 
fusion. His companions had believed that 
he had fallen a victim to the hostility of the 
Indians, and he was greeted with delight, as 



the need of his firm hand had been sadly 
felt. He found that a party of malcontents 
were preparing to run away from the colony 
with the pinnace, and he at once rallied his 
supporters and trained the guns of the fort 
upon the little vessel, and avowed his de- 
termination to fire upon the mutineers if 
they sought to depart. 

His firmness put an end to this danger, 
and the friendly relations which he had 
managed to establish with the Indians now 
enabled him to buy from the savages the food- 
necessary to sustain the colonists through 
the winter. In many ways his captivity 
proved a great blessing to the settlement. 
He had not only explored the country 
between the James and Potomac, and gained 
considerable knowledge of the language and 
customs of the natives, but had disposed the 
Indian tribes subject to Powhatan to regard 
the colony with friendship at the most criti- 
cal period of its existence. Had the savages 
been hostile during this winter the James- 
town colony must have perished of starva- 
tion ; but now, every few days throughout 
this season, Pocahontas came to the fort ac- 
companied by a number of her countrymen 
bearing baskets of corn for the whites. 

Exploring Chesapeake Bay. 

In the spring of 1608, Newport arrived 
from England, bringing with him a reinforce- 
ment of one hundred and twenty emigrants. 
The newcomers were joyfully welcomed by 
the colonists but they proved of no real ad- 
vantage to the settlement. They were either 
idlers or goldsmiths who had come out to 
America in the hope of finding gold. The 
refiners of the party believed they had found 
the precious metal in a heap of glittering 
earth, of which there was an abundance near 
Jamestown, and in spite of the remonstrances 
of Smith, would do nothing but dig gold. 
Newport, who shared the delusion, loaded 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 



his ships with the worthless earth and sailed 
for England after a sojourn in the colony of 
fourteen weeks. 

While these fruitless labors were in pro- 
gress, Smith, thoroughly disgusted with the 
folly of the emigrants, undertook the explora- 
tion of the Chesapeake Bay. He spent the 
summer of 1608 in visiting the shores of the 
bay and ascending its tributaries in an open 
boat, accompanied by a few men. He ex- 
plored the Chesapeake to the Susquehanna, 
ascended the Potomac to the falls, and 
explored the Patapsco. This voyage em- 
braced a total distance of nearly three thou- 
sand miles, and resulted not only in the gain- 
ing of accurate information respecting the 
country bordering the Chesapeake, but also 
in establishing friendly relations with the 
tribes along its shores, and preparing the 
way for future friendly intercourse with them. 
The energetic explorer prepared a map of 
the Chesapeake and its tributaries, and sent 
it to his employers in England, by whom it 
was published. It is yet in existence, and 
its accuracy and minuteness have often elic- 
ited the praise of subsequent topographers. 

Idlers Must Not Eat. 

Smith returned to Jamestown on the 
seventh of September, and three days later 
was made president of the council. The 
good effects of his administration were soon 
felt. In the autumn, however, another rein- 
forcement of idle and useless men arrived. 
Smith, indignant at the continual arrival of 
such worthless persons, wrote to the com- 
pany : " When you send again, I entreat you 
rather send but thirty carpenters, husband- 
men, gardeners, fishermen, blacksmiths, ma- 
sons, and diggers up of trees' roots, well pro- 
vided, than a thousand cf such as we have." 

Upon the return of the fleet to England 
the governor exerted his authority to compel 
the idlers to go to work. It was ordered 



that six hours in each day should be spent 
in useful labor by each person, and that " he 
who would not work might not eat." In a 
short while the settlement began to assume 
the appearance of a regular habitation ; but 
still so little land had been cultivated — only 
about thirty or forty acres in all — that during 
the winter of 1608-9, the settlers were com- 
pelled to depend upon the Indians for food. 
Yet the prudent management of Smith kept 
the colony in good health. 

Infamous La^vs. 

In the spring of 1609, great changes were 
made in the London Company, and a more 
earnest interest was manifested in the colony 
by all classes of the English people. Sub- 
scriptions were made to the stock of the 
company by many noblemen as well as mer- 
chants, and a new charter was obtained. By 
this charter the stockholders had the power 
to appoint the supreme council in England, 
and to this council were confided the powers 
of legislation and government, which were 
relinquished by the king. The council ap- 
pointed the governor of the cofony, who 
was to rule the settlement with absolute au- 
thority according to the instructions of the 
council. He was made master of the lives 
and liberties of the settlers by being author- 
ized to declare martial law whenever in his 
judgment the necessity for that measure 
should arise, and was made the sole execu- 
tive officer in its administration. 

Thus the emigrants were deprived of 
every civil right, and were placed at the 
mercy of a governor appointed by a corpo- 
ration whose only object was to make 
money. The company, however, defeated 
this object by the manner in which it se- 
lected emigrants. Instead of sending out 
honest and industrious laborers who were 
capable of building up a state, they sent 
only idlers and vagabonds, men who were 



82 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



neither willing nor fit to work. The com- 
mon stock feature Avas maintained, and thus 
the greatest obstacle to industry that could 
be devised was placed in the way of the 
success of the colony. Still there were 
many who were willing to seek the new 




BUILDING THE FIRST HOUSE IN JAMESTOWN 

world even under these conditions, and 
many others whose friends desired to get 
them out of the country. 

The company was soon able to equip a 
fleet of nine vessels containing more than 
five hundred emigrants, and a stock of do- 
mestic animals and fowls was included in 
the outfit of the expedition. Lord Delaware, 



a nobleman, whose character commanded 
the confidence of his countrymen, was made 
governor of the colony for life. As he was 
not able to sail with the expedition, he dele- 
gated his authority during his absence to 
Newport, who was admiral of the fleet, Sir 
Thomas Gates, and Sir 
George Somers, who 
were to govern the col- 
ony until his arrival. 
The fleet sailed in the 
spring of 1609, but when 
off the American coast 
was overtaken by a se- 
vere storm, and two ves- 
sels — on one of which 
the admiral and the 
commissioners had sailed 
— were wrecked on one 
of the Bermuda islands. 
Seven ships reached 
Virginia, and brought 
the worst lot of emi- 
grants that had yet been 
sent out to the colony. 
Smith was still acting 
president, and as the 
commissioners had not 
arrived, was determined 
to hold his position until 
relieved by his lawful 
successors. The new 
emigrants at first refused 
to recognize his author- 
ity, but he compelled 
them to submit, and in 
order to lessen the evil of their presence, 
divided them into bodies sufficiently numer- 
ous for safety, and sent them to make settle- 
ments in other parts of Virginia. These 
settlements proved so many failures, and, 
unfortunately for the colony, Smith was so 
severely wounded by an accidental explosion 
of gunpowder, in the autumn of 1609, that 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 



83 



he was obliged to relinquish the government 
and return to England for surgical treatment. 
He delegated his authority to George Percy, 
and sailed for England, never to return to 
Virginia again. It was to him alone that the 
success of the colony was due, but he 
received in return nothing but ingratitude. 

Pocahontas Saves the Colony. 

The departure of Smith was followed by 
the most disastrous, consequences. There 
was no longer an acknowledged government 
in Virginia, and the settlers gave themselves 
up to the most reckless idleness. Their pro- 
visions were quickly consumed, and the In- 
dians refused to furnish them with anymore. 
The friendship of the savages had been due 
to their personal regard for Smith, who had 
compelled the colonists to respect their 
rights and to refrain from maltreating them. 
Now that Smith was no longer at the head of 
affairs, the Indians regarded the settlers with 
the contempt they fully merited, and hostili- 
ties soon began. Stragglers from the town 
were cut off, and parties who went out to 
seek food among the savages were deliber- 
ately murdered. 

On one occasion a plan was laid to surprise 
the town and massacre the colonists. The 
danger was averted by Pocahontas, who stole 
from her father's camp, through night and 
storm, to give warning to the settlers. Fail- 
ing in this effort the Indians resolved to 
starve the colony, and soon the whites began 
to experience the sufferings of a famine. 
Thirty of them seized one of the ships, 
escaped to sea, and began a course of piracy. 
In six months the four hundred and ninety 
persons left by Smith in the colony at his 
departure had dwindled down to sixty ; and 
this wretched remnant would have perished 
speedily had not aid reached them. 

On the twenty-fourth of May, 16 10, Sir 
Thomas Gates and the members of the expe- 



dition who had been wrecked on the Ber- 
mudas reached Jamestown after a stay of 
nine months on those islands, during which 
time they had built two vessels from the 
wreck of their ship and the wood found on 
the island. In these they managed to reach 
Virginia, expecting to find the colony in a 
prosperous condition. They found instead 
the sixty men already mentioned, so feeble 
and full of despair as to be helpless. In the 
general despondency it was determined to 
abandon the colony, sail to Newfoundland, 
and join the fishing vessels which came an- 
nually from England to that island. 

A "Welcome Arrival. 

Some of the emigrants wished to burn the 
town, but this was prevented by the resolute 
conduct of Sir Thomas Gates. On the 
seventh of June the settlers embarked, and 
that night dropped down the James with the 
tide. The next morning they were aston- 
ished to meet a fleet of vessels entering the 
river. It was Lord Delaware, who had 
arrived with fresh emigrants and supplies. 
The fugitives hailed the arrival of the gover- 
nor with delight, and put about and ascended 
the stream with him. A fair wind enabled 
them to reach Jamestown the same night. 

On the tenth of June, 1610, the founda- 
tions of the colony were solemnly relaid 
with prayer and supplication to Almighty 
God for success in the effort to establish a 
state. The authority of Lord Delaware 
silenced all dissensions, and his equitable but 
firm administration soon placed the settle- 
ment on a more successful basis than it had 
yet occupied. The labors of each day were 
opened with prayer in the little church, after 
which, from six in the morning till ten, and 
from two in the afternoon until four, all 
en""a""ed in the tasks demanded of them. 
The good effects of the new system were soon 
manifest in the increased comfort and 



H 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



prosperity of the colony. In about a year the 
health of Lord Delaware gave way, and he 
delegated his authority to G^jorge Percy, 
whom Smith had chosen as his successor, 
and returned to England. 

Fortunately for the colony, the company, 
before the arrival of Lord Delaware in Eng- 
land, had sent out Sir Thomas Dale with 
supplies. He reached Jamestown in May, 
i6ii, and finding Lord Delaware gone, 
assumed the government. He brought with 
him a code of laws, prepared and sent out by 
Sir Thomas Smith, the treasurer of the com- 
pany, without the order or sanction of the 
council, and which established martial law 
as the rule of the colony. Though he ruled 
with such a stern hand, Dale rendered good 
service to Virginia by recommending to the 
company to maintain the settlement at all 
hazards as certain of yielding them a rich 
reward in the end. 

The New Settlers. 

This energetic appeal so greatly encour- 
aged the council, which had been consider- 
ably disheartened by Lord Delaware's return, 
that in the summer of 1611 Sir Thomas 
Gates was sent out to Virginia with six ships 
and three hundred emigrants. He carried 
also a stock of cattle and abundant supplies. 
The emigrants sent out with him were of a 
better character and more industrious than 
any that had yet left England for Virginia. 
Gates assumed the government, and matters 
began to prosper again. The colony now 
numbered seven hundred persons, and was 
deemed so prosperous that Dale, with the 
approval of the governor, led a number of 
the men to the vicinity of the falls of the 
James, and there established another settle- 
ment, which was called Henrico, in honor of 
the, Prince of Wales. 

Among the changes for the better was the 
assignment to each settler of a few acres of 



land for his own cultivation. This " incipient 
establishment of private property" produced 
the happiest results, and from this time there 
was no scarcity of provisions in the colony, 
which became so powerful and prosperous 
as to be no longer exposed to the mercy of 
the savages. The Indians themselves were 
quick to notice this change, and some of the 
neighboring tribes by formal treaty acknowl- 
edged themselves subjects of King James. 

The whites, however, did not always 
respect the rights of the Indians. Late in 
161 3, Pocahontas was betrayed into the 
hands of a foraging party under Captain 
Argall. Argall kept her a prisoner, and 
demanded of Powhatan a ransom. For 
three months Powhatan did not deign to re- 
ply to this demand, but prepared for war. 
In the meantime Pocahontas was instructed 
in the faith of the Christians, and at length 
openly embraced it, and was baptized. Her 
conversion was hastened by a powerful senti- 
ment, which had taken possession of her 
heart. She had always regarded the English 
as superior to her own race, and now her 
affections were won by a young Englishman 
of good character, named John Rolfe. 

Marriage of Pocahontas. 

Rolfe, with the approval of the governor, 
asked her hand of her father in marriage. 
Powhatan consented to the union, but re- 
fused to be present at the marriage, as he 
was too shrewd to place his person in the 
hands of the English. He sent his brother 
Opachisco and two of his sons to witness the 
marriage, which was solemnized in the little 
church at Jamestown, in the presence of Sir 
Thomas Dale, the acting governor. The 
marriage conciliated Powhatan and his tribe, 
who continued their peaceful relations with 
the colony. King James, however, was 
greatly displeased at what he deemed the 
presumption of a subject in wedding a 




TYPES OF NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 



S6 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



princess. Pocahontas was soon after taken 
to England by her husband, and was re- 
ceived there with great attention and i<ind- 
ness. She remained in Eni^land for a little 
more than a year, and then prepared to re- 
turn to her own country. As she was about 
to sail, she died, at the age of twenty-two, 
A. D. 1616. She left a son, who subse- 
quently became a man of distinction in 
Virginia, and the ancestor of some of the 
proudest families of the Old Dominion. 

Earliest Land Laws of Virginia. 

In the meantime the settlements of the 
French on the coast of Maine had attracted 
the attention and excited the jealousy of the 
English. In 1613, Captain Samuel Argall, 
who was cruising on the banks of Newfound- 
land to protect the English fishermen, dis- 
covered the French settlement of Saint 
Sauveur on the island of Mount Desert, and 
captured it. He treated the colonists with 
inexcusable harshness, and compelled them 
to leave the country. In the same year he 
destroyed the fortifications which Des Monts 
had erected on the isle of St. Croix and 
burned the deserted settlement of Port 
Royal. 

At Jamestown and the other settlements 
that had been formed in Virginia private in- 
dustry was fast placing the colony on an 
assured basis of success. " The condition of 
private property in lands, among the colon- 
ists, depended, in spme measure, on the cir- 
cumstances under which they had emigrated. 
Some had been sent and maintained at the 
exclusive cost of the company, and were its 
servants. One month of their time and 
three acres of land were set apart for them, 
besides a small allowance of two bushels of 
corn from the public store ; the rest of their 
labor belonged to their employers. This 
number had gradually decreased ; and in 
16 1 7 there were of them all, men, women 



and children, but fifty-four. Others, especi- 
ally the favorite settlement near the mouth 
of the Appomattox, were tenants, paying two 
and a half bushels of corn as a yearly tribute 
to the store, and giving to the public service 
one month's labor, which was to be required 
neither at seed time nor harvest. 

He who came himself, or had sent others 
at his own expense, had been entitled to a 
hundred acres of land for each person : now 
that the colony was Avell established, the 
bounty on emigration was fixed at fifty acres, 
of which the actual occupation and culture 
gave a further right to as many more, to be 
assigned at leisure. Besides this, lands were 
granted as rewards of merit ; yet not more 
than two thousand acres could be so appro- 
priated to one person. A payment to the 
company's treasury of twelve pounds and 
ten shillings likewise obtained a title to any 
hundred acres of land not yet granted or 
possessed, with a reserved claim to as much 
more. Such were the earliest land laws of 
Virginia : though imperfect and unequal, 
they gave the cultivator the means of becom- 
ing a proprietor of the soil. These valuable 
changes were established by Sir Thomas 
Dale."* 

Tobacco Becomes the Currency. 

The survivors of Raleigh's colony at 
Roanoke had introduced into England the 
use of tobacco which they had 'earned from 
the Indians, and there was now a steady de- 
mand for that article from the mother 
country. Encouraged by this demand, and 
stimulated by the acquisition of property of 
their own, the Virginia colonists devoted 
themselves with ardor to the culture of 
tobacco, and soon all the available land 
about the settlements, and even the streets 
and public squares of Jamestowrt, were 



* History of the United States. By Geo. Bancroft, vol. i., p. 
150. 



CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS. 



87 



planted with it. Tobacco soon became the 
currency of the colony, and great attention 
was given to it, even to the exclusion of 
other agricultural interests, 

A New Governor. 

In 1616, Sir Thomas Dale, who had been 
governor of the colony for two years, dele- 
gated his authority to George Yeardley, and 
sailed for England. Under Yeardley's ad- 
mirable administration the colony continued 
to. increase in prosperity. A faction of the 
settlers, however, succeeded in removing 
him from his position, and replaced him with 
Argall, who was a selfish and brutal tyrant. 
He held office for two years, and governed 
according to the most rigid forms of martial 
law. He swindled the company, and ex- 
torted their hard earnings from the settlers, 
who were driven to desperation by his brutal- 
ities. In their distress they appealed to the 
company for redress, and, as Argall had 
robbed the corporation also, their prayer was 
heard. Argall was removed from office, 
and the bloody code of Sir Thomas Smith 
Avas abolished. Sir George Yeardley was 
appointed governor, Lord Delaware having 
died, and reached Jamestown in April, 1619. 
He was greatly beloved by the Virginians, 
and his arrival was looked upon as the be- 
ginning of new life for the province, as indeed 
it was. 

Among the changes which Yeardley was 
empowered by the company to inaugurate 
was one which exercised the greatest influ- 
ence upon the subsequent history of Vir- 
ginia. After years of blundering and arbi- 
trary rule, the London Company had become 
convinced that the best way to promote the 
welfare of Virginia was to give the settlers a 
share in the management of their own affairs. 
"That the planters might have a hande in 
the governing of themselves, yt was graunted 
that a generall assemblie shoulde be helde 



yearly once, whereat were to be present the 
governor and consell with two burgesses 
from each plantation, freely to be elected by 
the inhabitantes thereof, this assemblie to 
have power to make and ordaine whatsoever 
lawes and orders shoulde by them be thought 
good and profitable for their subsistence." 

First Representative Assembly. 

In accordance with this authorization, 
Governor Yeardley issued his writs for the 
election of representatives from the various 
colonies, and on the tenth day of July, 1619, 
two delegates from each of the eleven settle- 
ments of the colony met at Jamestown, and 
organized the House of Burgesses of the 
Colony of Virginia, the first representative 
assembly ever convened in America. In 
this assembly the governor and council sat 
with the burgesses, and engaged in the de- 
bates and motions. John Pory, a member 
of the council and secretary of the colony, 
was chosen speaker, although he was not a 
member of the house. Sensible of their de- 
pendence upon the Supreme Ruler of the 
world, the burgesses opened their delibera- 
tions with prayer, and thus established the 
practice, " The assembly exercised fully 
the right of judging of the proper election 
of its members ; and they would not suffer 
any patent, conceding manorial jurisdiction, 
to bar the obligation of obedience to their 
decisions." Laws were enacted against idle- 
ness and vice, and for the encouragement of 
industry and order. He who refused to labor 
was to be " sold to a master for wages till he 
shewe apparent signs of amendment." 

The playing of dice and cards, and 
drunkenness and profane swearing were pro- 
hibited under severe penalties. Inducements 
were held out to increase the planting of 
corn, mulberry trees, hemp and the vine. 
The price of tobacco was fixed by law at 
three shillings a pound for the best grade 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



and half that price for the inferior grade. 
Provision was also made for " the erecting of 
a university and college" for the proper edu- 
cation of the children who should be born 
to the planters. It was designed to extend 
to the Indians the benefit of these institutions, 
and it was ordered that the " most towardly 
(Indian) boys in wit and graces of nature 
should be brought up in the first elements 
of literature, and sent from college to the 
work of converting the natives to Christian- 
ity." 

The measures of the assembly were put 
in force without waiting the approval of the 
London Company, and the good effects of 
them were quickly visible in the colony. 
The principles of free government having 
been planted in the community, the settlers, 
who had been thereby transformed from the 
mere creatures of the governor into free- 
born Englishmen once more, began to regard 
Virginia as their permanent home, and set to 
work with a will to build houses and plant 
fields. One thing only was lacking to give 
the settlers homes in the truest sense of the 
word ; and to supply that need Sir Edwin 
Sandys induced ninety young and vir- 
tuous women to emigrate to America, that 
the colonists might be able to marry and 
form domestic ties which alone could perma- 
nently attach them to America. 

Wives Imported. 

The young women were sent over to the 
colony in 1619, at the expense of the com- 
pany, and were married to the tenants of the 
corporation or to men who were well enough 
to do to support them. The next year sixty 
more were sent over, and quickly found 
husbands. In all cases the husbands were 
required to repay to the company the cost of 
the passage of their wives from England. 
This was paid in tobacco, and was regarded 
as a debt of honor, to be discharged at any 



sacrifice. In order to aid the husbands in 
these payments, as well as in their general 
matters, the company, in employing labor, 
gave the preference to the married men. 
The colony now increased in a marked 
degree, emigrants coming out so rapidly from 
England that by 162 1 there were four thou- 
sand persons in Virginia. It having become 
understood that the colony had passed the 
stage at which failure was possible, and had 
become a permanent state, the new emigrants 
were largely men of family, who brought 
their households with them. 

Virginia's AA^ritten Constitution. 

In July, 1 62 1, the London Company, which 
was now controlled by the patriot party in 
England, granted to Virginia a written consti- 
tution, which gave to the colony a form of 
government similar to that of England her- 
self. A governor and permanent council 
were to be appointed by the company. The 
house of burgesses was to have the power of 
enacting such laws as should be needed for 
the general good, but no law so enacted was 
to be valid unless approved by the company, 
On the other hand, no orders of the court in 
London were to be binding in Virginia unless 
ratified by the house of burgesses. Courts 
of justice were established and ordered to be 
administered according to the law and forms 
of trial in use in England. Thus the common 
law of England was firmly established in 
Virginia, and under its beneficent protection 
the colony advanced steadily in prosperity. 

The colonists were to be no longer merely 
the subjects of a commercial corporation, and 
as such to hold their liberties and property at 
the pleasure of their masters ; but were 
definitely accorded the right to govern them- 
selves, and to take such measures for their 
safety and prosperity as in their judgment 
should seem best. Such were the provisions 
of the constitution. 



CHAPTER VII 
Progress of the Virginia Colony 

•Introduction of Negro Slavery Into Virginia — Efforts of the Assembly to Restrict Slavery — The Indians Attempt the 
Destruction of the Colony — Terrible Sufferings of the Whites — Aid from England — The Indian War Begun — King 
James Revokes the Charter of the London Company — Charles I. Desires a Monopoly of the Tobacco Trade — Action of 
the Assembly — Sir William Berkeley's First Administration — Severe Measures Against Dissenters — Close of the Indian 
War — Death of Opecbancanough — Emigration of Royalists to Virginia — Virginia and the Commonwealth — Treaty 
with England — The Assembly Asserts Its Independence of the Governor — The Restoration — Berkeley Chosen Gov- 
ernor by the Assembly — His Hypocrisy. 



IN August, 1619, a few months after the 
meeting of the first colonial legislature, 
there occurred an event which was des- 
tined to influence the history of Virginia 
and of America for remote generations, per- 
haps forever. A Dutch vessel of war entered 
the James River and offered twenty negroes 
for sale as slaves. These were purchased by 
the planters, and negro slavery was thus estab- 
lished in Virginia. Laborers were in demand, 
and the necessity for them blinded the planters 
to the evil they were fastening upon the colony. 
The first importation was followed by others, 
the infamous business being principally in 
the hands of the Dutch at this period. Still 
the blacks increased very slowly. The legis- 
lature from the first discouraged the traffic 
by a heavy tax upon female slaves. 

Sir Francis Wyatt, the first governor ap- 
pointed under the new constitution, reached 
Virginia in 1621, and the new laws were soon 
in successful operation. Soon after his arrival 
a terrible misfortune befell the colony, and 
almost caused its destruction. For some 
time there had been bad blood between the 
whites and the Indians. Powhatan, the 
friend of the English, was dead, and Opecban- 
canough, the veteran chief, who, since the 
death of Powhatan, had become the leader of 
the nation, was bitterly hostile to the English, 

and not without reason. The savages origi- 
89 



nally held the best lands in the colony, but the 
whites, when these lands were wanted, took 
possession of them without regard to the 
rights of their dusky owners. The Indians, 
unable to contend with the whites in open 
conflict, saw themselves driven steadily away 
from their accustomed homes, and menaced 
with total destruction by the superior race. 
Opecbancanough, though outwardly friendly 
to the colonists, now secretly resolved upon 
their destruction, and sought to accomplish 
this by treachery. 

There were about five thousand Indians, 
of whom fifteen hundred were warriors, 
within sixty miles of Jamestown, and the 
whites in the same region numbered in all 
about four thousand. These were scattered 
in fancied safety along both sides of the 
James and for some distance into the interior. 
A plot was organized by the Indian leader 
for the extermination of every settler in 
the colony. At noon on a designated day 
every settlement was to be surprised and 
all the inhabitants murdered. The savages 
in the meantime kept up their pretence of 
friendship. Opecbancanough declared with 
fervor, " Sooner shall the sky fall than my 
friendship for the English should cease." So 
unsuspicious were the English that to the 
very last moment they received the savages 
amongst them without fear of harm, and in 




90 



[ASSACKE OF SETTLERS BY INDIANS. 



PROGRESS OF THE VIRGINIA COLOxXY. 



91 



many places the latter were then in the houses 
of the people they meant to destroy. 

On the .twenty-second of March, 1622, a 
general attack was made by the savages upon 
all the settlements of the colony. On the 
previous night the plot had been revealed to 
a converted Indian named Chauco, who at 
once hastened to Jamestown and gave warn- 
ing of the danger. The alarm spread rapidly 
to the nearest settlements, but those at a dis- 
tance could not be reached in time to avert 
their fate. Those settlements which had 
been warned were able to offer a successful 
resistance to their assailants, and some of 
those which were surprised beat off the 
Indians ; but the number of victims, men 
women and children, who fell this day 
amounted to three hundred and forty-seven. 
All these were slain, and their fate would 
have been shared by the whole colony but 
for the warning of the friendly Indian. 

. Terrible Destruction. 

The effect upon the colony was appalling. 
The distant plantations had been destroyed 
by the savages, and out of eighty settlements 
eight alone survived. These, and especially 
Jamestown, were crowded beyond their ca- 
pacity with fugitives who had fled to them 
for shelter. Sickness soon began to prevail, 
the public works were discontinued, and pri- 
vate industry was greatly diminished. A 
gloom rested over the entire colony, and the 
population fell off At the end of two years 
after the massacre, the number of inhabitants 
had been reduced to two thousand. Much 
sympathy was manifested for the suffering 
colonists by the people of England. The 
city of London sent them liberal assistance, 
and private individuals subscribed to their 
need. King James was aroused into an 
affectation of generous sympathy, and sent 
over to the colony a supply of muskets which 
had been condemned as worthless in England. 



The whites recovered from their gloorn, 
and on their part began to form plans for 
the extermination of their foes. During the 
next ten years expeditions were sent against 
the Indians at frequent intervals. The object 
kept sternly in view was to either destroy 
the savages altogether, or force them back 
from the seaboard into the interior. As late 
as 1630 it was ordered by the general assem- 
bly that no peace should be made with the 
Indians. 

Virginia's Charter Revoked. 

An important change now occurred in the 
fortunes of the colony. The London Com- 
pany was bankrupt, and its stockholders 
having abandoned all hope of gain from the 
colony, held on to their shares merely as a 
means of exercising political power. The 
company was divided between two parties. 
One of these favored the direct rule of the 
colony by the sovereign, the other maintained 
the independent government of the province 
by its own legislature under the constitution 
granted to it. The debates between these 
factions greatly annoyed the king, who could 
never tolerate the expression of an independ- 
ent opinion by any of his subjects. He 
endeavored in various ways to silence these 
disputes, and to regain the powers he had 
relinquished to the company, but the latter 
firmly refused to surrender their charter, and 
the colonists, who feared that the king might 
seek to impose his own arbitrary will upon 
them in the place of their constitution and 
the laws of England, sustained the company 
in its refusal. 

In spite of this opposition, however, James 
carried his point. The charter of the com- 
pany was revoked, and Virginia was made a 
royal province. The company appealed to 
the courts, but these being under the influ- 
ence of the crown sustained the king. Their 
decision was rendered in June, 1624. James 



92 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



did not interfere with any of the liberties or 
privileges of Virginia, however. Sir Francis 
Wyatt was retained in his office of governor, 




FLinilT OF THE INDIANS AFTER THE MASSACRE. 



and the colony was left under the laws and 
in possession of the privileges secured to it 
in 162 1. James announced his intention to the trade 



prepare a code of laws for the government of 
Virginia, but fortunately for that province he 
died before he could execute his design. 

Charles I. succeeded 
his father on the Eng- 
lish throne on the 
twenty-seventh of 
March, 1625. He was 
favorably disposed 
toward the colony, 
for he did not suppose 
the principles of civil 
liberty had taken so 
deep a root in it, and, 
moreover, he wished 
to secure for the 
crown the monopoly 
of the tobacco trade. 
He carried his con- 
descension to the ex- 
tent of recognizing 
the house of burgesses 
as a legislative body 
and requesting it to 
pass a bill restricting 
the sales of tobacco to 
the crown. The house 
answered him respect- 
fully, but firmly, that 
to grant his majesty's 
request would be to 
injure the trade of the 
colony. Defeated in 
this effort to secure 
this monopoly the 
king continued 
throughout his reign 
to seek to get the 
tobacco trade into his 
hands. He declared 
London to be the sole 
market for the sale of tobacco, and endeav- 
ored in many ways, and in vain, to regulate 



PROGRESS OF THE VIRGINIA COLONY. 



93 



In the meantime Sir Francis Wyatt retired 
from the government of the colony, and Sir 
George Yeardley was appointed his successor 
in 1626. The latter died the next year, and 
Francis West was elected governor by the 
council until the pleasure of the king should 
be known. Upon the receipt in England of 
the news of Yeardley's death, Charles 
appointed Sir John Harvey governor of 
Virginia. At the same time he granted to 
the council in Virginia authority to fill all 
vacancies occurring in their body. Previous 
to the arrival of Harvey, West was succeeded 
by another governor, named Pott, elected by 
the council. 

An Unpopular Governor. 

Harvey reached Virginia late in the 
autumn of 1629, and remained in office until 
1639. He was greatly disliked, and his 
failure to enforce the claims of Virginia 
against the colony of Maryland, which was 
planted in 1634 upon territory embraced 
within the original grant to Virginia, made 
him still more unpopular. In 1635 he was 
removed from office by the council, and an 
appeal was made to the king by both Harvey 
and the council. Harvey returned to 
England to manage his case, and John West 
was appointed governor until the decision of 
the case by the king. Harvey succeeded in 
defeating his opponents, who were not even 
allowed a hearing in England, and returned 
to Virginia in January, 1636, and resumed 
his place as governor. 

The complaints against him were so 
numerous, that in 1639 he was removed by 
the king, who appointed Sir Francis Wyatt 
his successor. In 1641 Wyatt was succeeded 
by Sir William Berkeley, who reached 
Jamestown in 1642. In the spring of this 
year, an effort was made to revive the London 
Company, but Virginia, which was now a 
royal province, opposed the measure, and 



urged the king to allow her to remain in the 
exercise of the self-government which had 
contributed in so marked a degree to her 
prosperity. The king, impressed with the 
force of the arguments by which this appeal 
was sustained, declared his intention to make 
no change in the colonial government. 

The Puritans Banished. 

Berkeley, during his first administration, 
proved in the main a good governor, and 
the colony continued to improve. The 
courts of justice were brought as near as 
possible to the English standard, and' the 
titles to lands were arranged upon a more 
satisfactory basis than had hitherto been 
found possible. Taxes were assessed accord- 
ing to the wealth of the settlers, and a treaty 
was arranged with Maryland by which the 
vexed questions between the two colonies 
were satisfactorily adjusted. The Virginians, 
accustomed to freedom, were in all things, 
save their acknowledgment of the king's 
supremacy, a practically independent nation, 
so little were they interfered with by the 
sovereign. The colony was devoted to the 
established church of England, and even at 
this early day there were severe laws for the 
enforcement of conformity to its rules, and 
for the punishment of dissenters. 

When Puritan ministers came from New 
England into the colony in 1643, they were 
banished by the colonial government, not- 
withstanding they had been invited into 
Virginia by the Puritan settements in that 
province. The majority of the Virginians, 
with the governor at their head, were royal- 
ists and staunch friends of the king. 

The Puritans living in the colony were 
regarded with suspicion, and when they re- 
fused to conform to the established church, 
it was ordered that they should be banished. 
Many of them passed over into Maryland 
' and settled there. With the exception of 



94 

this harmless bigotry, the colony took no 
share in the great quarrel which was rending 
the mother country in twain. It was rather 
a gainer by it, as the troubles which encom- 
passed Charles I. compelled him to cease his 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 




INDIAN WEAPONS. 

efforts to interfere with the trade of the 
planters. 

The chief trouble of this period was with 
the Indians. There had been no peace with 
them since the massacre of 1622, but fre- 



quent expeditions had been sent against 
them. In 1644, the savages, led by their 
veteran chieftain Opechancanough, resolved 
to make one more effort to exterminate the 
whites, forgetting that in the twenty years 
that elapsed their 
enemies had grown 
stronger, while they 
had grown weaker. 
On the eighteenth of 
April the frontier set- 
tlements were at- 
tacked, and three hun- 
dred of the settlers 
were put to death. 
The whites at once 
inaugurated vigorous 
measures for their 
defence, and a sharp 
warfare was waged 
upon the savages until 
October, 1646. 

It was brought to a 
close by the capture 
(if Opechancanough, 
who was so decrepit 
that he was unable to 
walk, and was carried 
aboutin the arms of his 
people. His flesh was 
emaciated, the sinews 
so relaxed, and his 
eyelids so heavy that 
whenever he desired 
to see they were lifted 
by his attendants. Yet 
still the vigor of his 
intellect remained to 
• him, and he was to the 
last both feared by his enemies and loved by 
his people. Berkeley, having taken him pris- 
oner, exposed him to the rude gaze of the 
colonists, an indignity which stung the proud 
monarch of the forest to the heart. On one 



PROGRESS OF THE VIRGINIA COLONY. 



occasion, hearing that the governor was 
approaching, he caused his eyelids to be 
raised, and fixing upon his captor a look of 
stern rebuke, said to him, " If Sir Wilham 
.Berkeley had become my prisoner, I should 
not thus meanly have exposed him as a show 
to my people." 

A Cowardly Assassination. 

A few days later, Opechancanough was 
basely assassinated by one of the colonists 
charged with the duty of guarding him. Thus 
perished one of the greatest of the native 
chieftains of America. In October, 1646, 
Necotowance, the successor of Opechancan- 
ough, entered into a treaty with the colony, 
by which he and his people relinquished to 
the English the lands that had been the 
heritage of their fathers, and withdrew into 
the interior. Their power was completely 
broken, and submission was all that was left 
to them. 

Virginia was now on the high road to 
prosperity. The population at the close of 
the year 1648 numbered twenty thousand, 
and was increasing rapidly. A fair trade had 
been built up with other countries, and at 
Christmas of this year " there were trading 
in Virginia ten ships from London, two from 
Bristol, twelve Hollanders, and seven from 
New England." The quarrels of the mother 
country had not affected the colony, though 
a thrill of horror and indignation ran through 
all Virginia when the news was received of 
the execution of Charles I. 

Upon the fall of that monarch a large 
number of the royalist party in England, un- 
willing to submit to or make any compromise 
with the Parliament, fled to Virginia, and 
were received there with sympathizing hospi- 
tality by the government and people. Many 
of them make the colony their permanent 
home, and thus began the pleasant relations 
between Virginia and England, which have 



in numerous cases remained unbroken. The 
Virginians regarded Charles II., then an 
exile at Breda, as their rightful sovereign, and 
it was seriously proposed to him to come 
over to America and be king of Virginia. 
Charles' interests obliged him to remain in 
Europe, but he continued to regard himself 
as king of Virginia. From this circum- 
stance Virginia came to be called " The Old 
Dominion." 

Arrival of a Fleet. 

The Parliament, however, did not long 
suffer the colony to maintain this attitutde.^ 
Having triumphed over all its enemies in 
Europe it prepared to enforce its authority 
in America. In 1650 an ordinance was 
passed forbidding all intercourse with the 
colonies that had adhered to the Stuarts, 
except by the especial permission of Parlia- 
ment or the Council of State. In the spring 
of 1652 more energetic measures were put in 
force, and a fleet was dispatched to America 
to compel the submission of the colonies. 
The fleet arrived off Jamestown. No resist- 
ance was attempted, for the commissioners 
appointed by the commonwealth were in- 
structed to grant terms honorable to both 
parties. The Virginians were prepared to 
resist any attempt to force them into submis- 
sion, but they were disarmed by the liberal 
spirit with which the commonwealth met 
them, and a treaty was concluded between 
England and Virginia, as equal treating with 
equal. It was stipulated : 

" First. — That this should be considered a 
voluntary act, not forced or constrained by a 
conquest upon the country ; and that the 
colony should have and enjoy such freedoms 
and privileges as belong to the freeborn 
people of England. 

" Secondly. — That the grand assembly, as 
formerly, should convene and transact the 
affairs of Virginia, doing nothing contrary to 



96 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



the government of the commonwealth or laws 
of England. 

" Thirdly. — That there should be a full 
and total remission of all acts, words, or writ- 
ings against the Parliament. 

Demand for a New Charter. 

'* Fourthly. — That Virginia should have 
her ancient bounds and limits, granted by the 
charters of the former kings, and that a new 
charter was to be sought from Parliament to 
that effect, against such as had trespassed 
against their ancient rights. 

" Fifthly. — That all patents of land under 
the seal of the colony, granted by the gover- 
nor, should remain in full force. 

" Sixthly. — That the privilege of fifty acres 
of land for every person emigrating to the 
colony should remain in full force. 

" Seventhly. — That the people of Virginia 
have free trade, as the people of England 
enjoy, with all places and nations, according 
to the laws of the commonwealth ; and that 
Virginiashould enjoyequal privileges, inevery 
respect, with any other colony in America. 

" Eighthly. — That Virginia should be free 
from all taxes, customs, and impositions what- 
soever ; and that none should be imposed 
upon them without the consent of their grand 
assembly ; and no forts or castles be erected, 
or garrison maintained, without their consent. 

" Ninthly. — That no charge should be re- 
quired from the country on account of the 
expense incurred in the present fleet. 

" Tenthly. — That this agreement should 
be tendered to all persons, and that such as 
should refuse to subscribe to it should have 
a year's time to remove themselves and 
effects from Virginia, and in the meantime 
enjoy equal justice." 

" These terms," says Bancroft, " so favor- 
able to liberty, and almost conceding inde- 
pendence, were faithfully observed until the 
restoration. Historians have, indeed, drawn 



gloomy pictures of the discontent which per- 
vaded the colony, and have represented the 
discontent as heightened by commercial op- 
pression. The statement is a fiction. The 
colony of Virginia enjoyed liberties as 
large as the favored New England ; dis- 
played an equal degree of fondness for pop- 
ular sovereignty, and fearlessly exercised 
political independence." 

" Old Ironsides." 

Richard Bennett, one of the commission- 
ers, was chosen governor in the place of 
Berkeley. Until now it had been customary 
for the governor and council to sit in the 
assembly, and take part in the debates. Ob- 
jection was now made to their presence, and 
the matter was compromised by obliging 
them to take the oath required of the bur- 
gesses. During the protectorate Cromwell 
wisely let the colony alone. He appointed 
none of the governors, and never interfered 
with the management of its affairs. In 1658, 
Samuel Mathews being governor, the assem- 
bly, on the first of April, passed a law exclud- 
ing the governor and council from their 
sessions, and thus secured to themselves a 
free and uninterrupted discussion of their 
measures. The governor and council in re- 
turn declared the assembly dissolved, but 
that body vindicated its authority and inde- 
pendence by removing the governor and 
council and compelled them to submit. 
They were then re-elected to their respective 
positions. Thus did the spirit of popular 
liberty establish all its claims. 

Upon the death of Oliver Cromwell, the 
burgesses met in secret session and decided 
to recognize Richard Cromwell as protector. 
" It was a more interesting question whether 
the change of protector in England w^ould 
endanger liberty in Virginia. The letter 
from the council had left the government to 
be adininistered according to former usage. 



PROGRESS OF THE VIRGINIA COLONY. 



97 



The assembly declared itself satisfied with 
the language. But that there might be no 
reason to question the existing usage, the 
governor was summoned to come to the 
house, where he appeared in person, deliber- 
ately acknowledged the supreme power of 
electing officers to be, by the present laws, 
resident in the assembly, and pledged himself 
to join in addressing the new protector for 
special confirmation of all existing privileges. 
The reason for this extraordinary proceeding 
is assigned, * that what was their privilege 
now, might be the privilege of their pos- 
terity.' The frame of the Virginia govern- 
ment was deemed worthy of being transmit- 
ted to remote generations." * 

Governor Mathews died in March, 1660, 
about the time of the resignation of Richard 
Cromwell in England. Both the mother 
country and the colony were thus left without 
a government. In this emergency the gen- 
eral assembly of Virginia resolved " that the 

7 



supreme government of this country shall 
be resident in the assembly, and all writs 
shall issue in its name, until there shall arrive 
from England a commission, which the assem- 
bly itself shall adjudge to be lawful." 

The assembly had no thought of asserting 
its independence of England, but as it cher- 
ished the earnest hope that the king would 
be restored to his rights, it proceeded to fill 
the vacancy occasioned by the death of 
Governor Mathews by electing Sir William 
Berkeley, the devoted partisan of the Stuarts^ 
governor of Virginia. Berkeley accepted 
the office, acknowledged the validity of the 
acts of the assembly, and expressed his con- 
viction that he could in no event dissolve 
that body. " I am," said he, " but the ser- 
vant of the assembly." We shall see in the 
course of this narrative how he regarded this, 
promise in the light of subsequent events. 



* History of the United States. By Geo. Bancroft, vol.. 
i., p. 228. 




CHAPTER VIII 
Virginia After the Restoration 



Characteristics of the Virginians — Causes of the Success of the Royalists — Growth of the Aristocratic Class — Berkeley De- 
cides Against the People — The Aristocratic Assembly Claims the Right to Sit Perpetually — Deprives the Common People 
of Their Liberties — Revival of the Navigation Act by Charles II. — The King Bestows Virginia as a Gift Upon His 

Favorites Protests of the Assembly — Growing Hostility of the Virginians to the Colonial Government — The Indian 

War The Governor Refuses to Allow the Colonists to Defend Themselves — Nathaniel Bacon — He Marches Against 

the Indians — Rebellion of the People Against Berkeley and the Assembly — The Convention — Repeal of the Obnoxious 

Laws Berkeley's Duplicity — The People Take Up Arms — Flight of Berkeley — Destruction of Jamestown — Death of 

Bacon Causes of the Failure of the Rebellion — Berkeley's Triumph — Execution of the Patriot Leaders — Berkeley's 

Course Condemned by the King — Death of Berkeley — The Unjust Laws Re-enacted — Lord Culpepper Governor — His 

Extortions James II. and Virginia — Effects Upon Virginia of the Revolution of 1688 — William and Mary College 

Founded. 



ON the eighth of May, 1660, Charles 
II. was proclaimed king in Eng- 
land, and on the twenty-ninth 
made his entry into London. The 
rebellion and the commonwealth had pro- 
duced but little effect upon Virginia. The 
restoration was productive of the most mo- 
mentous consequences in the colony. During 
the long period of the commonwealth Vir- 
ginia had been practically independent. The 
people had acquired political rights, and had 
exercised them with prudence. 

The colony had prospered in a marked 
degree under the blessings of popular gov- 
ernment, and the rights of the people were 
jealously guarded by their legislators. " No 
trace of established privilege appeared in its 
code or its government : in its forms and in 
its legislation Virginia was a representative 
democracy ; so jealous of a landed aris- 
tocracy that it insisted on universality of suf- 
fracre ; so hostile to the influence of com- 
mercial wealth, that it would not tolerate the 
' mercenary ' ministers of the law ; so con- 
siderate for religious freedom, that each 
parish was left to take care of itself Every 
officer was, directly or indirectly, chosen by 

98 



the people."* The restoration was to change 
all this. 

The society of Virginia was oecuHar. The 
colony had been settled by adventurers un- 
der circumstances which compelled equality 
among all classes of its people. Thus there 
had grown up a strong population born to 
the enjoyment of this equality, and devoted 
to its maintenance. They constituted the 
bulk of the inhabitants. By degrees there 
had sprung up a colonial aristocracy com- 
posed of the large landholders. These were 
persons of culture, many of whom had been 
men of position and education in England. 
The laws favored the accumulation of large 
estates, and the possession of them awakened 
feelings of family pride. 

The large emigration of men of rank and 
culture at the overthrow of Charles I. greatly 
increased this class. The existence of an 
established church gave it another element 
of strength, since the interests of the state 
church and the aristocracy are always identi- 
cal. Education was almost entirely confined 
to the landholding class, and with this never- 



* Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. ii., p. l{ 



VIRGINIA AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



99 



failing weapon in their grasp they soon ob- 
tained the direction of the affairs of the 
colony, and retained it. Unfortunately for 
Virginia, the mass of the people had no 
means of acquiring knowledge. There were 
no common schools in the colony. In 167 1, 
Sir William Berkeley wrote : " Every man 
instructs his children according to his 
ability." He added: "I thank God there 
are no free schools nor printing, and I hope 
we shall not have these hundred years ; for 
learning has brought disobedience and heresy 
and sects into the world, and printing has 
divulged them and libels against the best 
government. God keep us from both ! " 
Thus were the common people doomed to 
hopeless ignorance, and left helpless and at 
the mercy of the smaller but educated class. 
There was no printing press in Virginia, and 
the colony remained without one until nearly 
a century after New England had enjoyed 
its benefits. 

An Element of Weakness. 

Bitterly did the people of Virginia atone 
for their neglect of their best interests. They 
had shown at the first the power of creating 
free institutions ; but these institutions cannot 
be preserved among an ignorant people. 
Freedom and intelligence go hand in hand. 
The institution of negro slavery was another 
element of weakness and degradation. Labor 
was debased in the eyes of the whites by 
being made the task of a slave, when it should 
have been the glory of a freeman. The in- 
stitution served to confirm the power of the 
landed aristocracy, while it sank the common 
people deeper into ignorance. 

Thus when Sir William Berkeley entered 
upon his second term of office, at the period 
of the restoratioji, there were two elements, 
by nature hostile to each other, contending 
for the control of the colony — a people eager 
for the enjoyment of popular liberty, but 



sinking deeper into ignorance and helpless- 
ness, and a rising aristocracy, composed of 
men of wealth and education, and united by 
a common interest. Unhappily for the 
people, the governor was a natural aristocrat. 
In spite of his professions of loyalty to the 
assembly, he regarded the people with con- 
tempt, and could never tolerate the exercise 
of the least of their rights. 

In the midst of the rejoicings in Virginia 
which hailed the return of Charles II. to the 




KING CHARLES II. 

throne of his fathers, Berkeley took a decisive 
stand, and boldly declared that he was 
governor of Virginia, not by the election of 
the assembly, but by virtue of his commission 
from the king. At the same time he issued 
writs for the election of a new assembly in 
the name of King Charles. Popular sover- 
eignty was struck dead in Virginia. The 
new assembly met in March, 1661, It was 



lOO 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



composed exclusively of landholders. Until 
now the assembly had been elected for but a 
single year, and its members were chosen by 
the people. This first aristocratic assembly, 
true to its instincts, at a blow deprived the 
people of the right of choosing their repre- 
sentatives, by assuming to itself the power to 
sit perpetually. 

Sustained by the governor, the burgesses 
were enabled to continue their usurpation 
for fourteen years, and only yielded to an in- 
surrection. The salaries of the members 
were paid by their respectiv^e counties, and 
the house, in 1662, passed a law regulating 
the pay and allowances of its members. The 
compensation was fixed at two hundred and 
fifty pounds of tobacco per day, or about 
nine dollars — a rate deemed enormous in 
these days of abundant wealth, and utterly 
unsuited to the period of poverty and struggle 
we are considering. In order to perpetuate 
its power, the assembly repealed the laws 
giving the right of suffrage to every citizen, 
and confined it to freeholders and house- 
keepers. 

Laws Against the Quakers. 

Nor did the assembly neglect to provide 
for the church. Conformity was required 
by severe laws. Every inhabitant of the 
colony was compelled to attend its services 
and to contribute a fixed sum to its support. 
The assessment of parish taxes was intrusted 
to twelve vestrymen in each parish, who had 
power to fill all vacancies in their number. 
They thus became practically a close corpo- 
ration, responsible to no one for their acts. 
Rigorous laws were directed against the 
Quakers. They were forbidden to hold their 
own religious assemblies, and their absence 
from church was punished by a heavy fine. 
In September, 1663, the house expelled one 
of its members " because he was well 
affected to the Quakers." 



" The organization of the judiciary placed 
that department of the government almost 
beyond the control of the people. The gov- 
ernor and council were the highest ordinary 
tribunal, and these were all appointed, directly 
or indirectly, by the crown. Besides this, 
there were in each county eight unpaid 
justices of the peace, commissioned by the 
governor during his pleasure. These justices 
held monthly courts in their respective coun- 
ties. Thus the administration of justice in 
the counties was in the hands of persons 
holding their offices at the good will of the 
governor; while the governor himself and 
his executive council constituted the general 
court, and had cognizance of all sorts of causes* 

Religious Liberty Destroyed. 

" Was an appeal made to chancery it was 
but for another hearing before the same men ; 
and it was only for a few years longer that 
appeals were permitted from the general 
court to the assembly. The place of sheriff 
in each county was conferred on one of the 
justices for that county, and so devolved to 
every commissioner in course. * * * But 
the county courts, thus independent of the 
people, possessed and exercised the arbitrary 
power of levying county taxes, which, in 
their amount, usually exceeded the public 
levy. This system proceeded so far that the 
commissioners, of themselves, levied taxes to 
meet their own expenses. In like manner, 
the self-perpetuating vestries made out their 
lists of tithables, and assessed taxes without 
regard to the consent of the parish. These 
private levies were unequal and oppressive, 
were seldom — it is said, never — brought to 
audit, and were, in some cases, managed by 
men who combined to defraud the public." * 

These were the effects uppn Virginia of 
the restoration of Charles II. to the throne 



*History the United States. By George Bancroft, 
vcl. ii., pp., 204- 



VIRGINIA AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



lOI 



of England. The guarantee which a frequent 
renewal of the assembly secured to the rights 
of the people was removed by the perpetu- 
ation of that body. The right of suffrage — 
the sole protection of the liberties of a free 
people — was taken from a majority of the 
inhabitants of the province. Religious lib- 
erty, which it was fondly believed had been 
established, was struck down at a single 
blow. A system of arbitrary taxation by 
irresponsible magistrates was set up in the 
place of the carefully scrutinized levies of 
the representatives of the people. Education 
was discouraged and the press regarded with 
hostility. Ignorance, with all its accompany- 
ing evils, was fastened upon the colony. Ten 
years sufficed to accomplish these changes; 
but it took more than a century for the people 
of Virginia to recover their lost rights. 

All Infamous Law. 

Charles II. remembered the loyalty of 
Virginia only in his adversity. One of his 
first acts was to revive in a more odious form 
the navigation act, which had originated in the 
Long Parliament as a measure for compelling 
the submission of the colonies to the authority 
of the commonwealth. In 1660, a new and 
enlarged navigation act was passed by Parlia- 
ment. It forbade foreign vessels to trade with 
the colonies, and required colonists to ship 
certain " enumerated articles, such as sugar, 
tobacco, cotton, wool, ginger or dyewoods " 
produced in the colony, to England alone. 

This act bore very hard upon Virginia, as 
it gave to the English merchants the monop- 
oly of her tobacco trade. The merchants 
were thus enabled to regulate the price of 
the commodity, and to supply the wants of 
the colonists in return upon their own terms. 
Efforts were made to evade this iniquitous 
law, but it remained fastened upon the colo- 
nies, and was the first of a long series of out- 
rages. 



Charles was not satisfied with crippling 
the industry of the colony that had remained 
faithful to him in his adversity. In order 
to please his worthless favorites at home he 
consented to plunder the Virginians of their 
property. In 1649, a patent was granted to a 
company of cavaliers for this region lying be- 
tween the Rappahannock and the Potomac, 
and known in Virginia as the Northern Neck. 
It was intended to make this region a refuge 
for their partisans, but the design was never 
carried out. Other settlers located them- 
selves there, and in 1669 it contained a num- 
ber of thriving plantations. In the latter year 
Lord Culpepper, one of the most avaricious 
men in England, obtained from the king a pat- 
ent for the Northern Neck, having previously 
acquired all the shares of the company to 
whom the grant of 1649 had been made. 
This patent was in direct violation of the 
rights of the actual settlers, and bor.e very 
hard upon them. But it was as nothing com- 
pared with the next gift of the king. In 
1673, he bestowed, as a free gift, upon Lord 
Culpepper and the Earl of Arlington, " all the 
dominion of land and water called Virginia," 
for a term of thirty-one years. 

Firm Remonstrance. 

Even the aristocratic assembly was startled 
by this summary disposal of the colony and 
commissioners were sent to England to re- 
monstrate with the king. " We are unwill- 
ing," the assembly declared, " and conceive 
that we ought not to submit to those to whom 
his majesty, upon misinformation, hath 
granted the dominion over us, who do most 
contentedly pay to his majesty more than we 
have ourselves for our labor. Whilst we 
labor for the advantage of the crown, and do 
wish we could be more advantageous to the 
king and nation, we humbly request not to 
be subjected tc our fellow-subjects, but, for 
the future, to be secured from our fears of 



102 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



being enslaved." The commissioners were 
granted no satisfaction in England, and the 
efforts of the colony to obtain justice at the 
hands of the king failed. 

General Discontent. 

Virginia at this time was a sparsely settled 
province. Jamestown was the only town 
deserving the name within the limits of the 
colony. The inhabitants were scattered over 
the country, separated from each other. 
They dwelt on their farms and plantations, 
coming together rarely except on Sundays, 
on court-days, and at elections. This soli- 
tary life taught them independence and self- 
reliance. They were proud of their personal 
liberty, and so long as this was not taken 
from them they were willing to submit to 
almost any form of government that might 
be imposed upon them. The truth is that 
until the restoration the Virginians were not 
accustomed to being governed much. The 
measures of the royalist governor and assem- 
bly greatly curtailed the freedom which the 
people had enjoyed under their former 
governments, and the imposition of new bur- 
dens upon them aroused a general discon- 
tent. 

Men began to come together to discuss 
their wrongs, and the hostility to the aristo- 
cratic party and the governor increased 
rapidly, so rapidly, indeed, that the people 
were ripe for insurrection in 1674, and would 
have risen in revolt had not some of the 
cooler heads induced them to try more 
peaceful measures of redress. Still the taxes 
were continued at such a rate that the col- 
onists were driven to desperation. They 
complained, with justice, that they were de- 
prived of all the fruits of their labors by the 
iniquitous levies made upon them, and their 
complaints, instead of producing a change 
for the better, merely brought an increase of 
their burdens. At length their patience was 



exhausted, and they only lacked an excuse 
for taking up arms. The opportunity soon 
came. In the meantime the governor and 
the assembly, with characteristic contempt 
for the commons, went on extorting money 
from the people by unjust taxes principally 
for their own benefit, and put in successive 
operation the measures we have already 
described for strengthening their own power, 
and reducing the people to subjection to 
them. 

Six Chiefs Murdered. 

The people of Maryland had become in- 
volved in a war with the Susquehannah 
Indians and their confederates, and the 
struggle was so serious that the savages ex- 
tended their depredations to the Potomac, 
and even to the limits of Virginia. To guard 
against this danger the border militia were 
set to watch the line of the river, and in 1675 
a body of them, under Colonel John Wash- 
ington, crossed over into Maryland to help 
the people of that colony. This John 
Washington had emigrated from the north 
of England about eighteen years before, and 
had settled in Westmoreland County. He 
became the great-grandfather of George 
Washington. The war was conducted with 
great fury on both sides. Six of the chiefs 
of the Susquehannah tribe at length came 
into the camp of the Virginians to treat for 
peace, and were treacherously murdered. 

This barbarous act aroused the indignation 
of Governor Berkeley. " If they had killed 
my father and my mother, and all my 
friends," said he, "yet if they had come to 
treat of peace, they ought to have gone in 
peace." The massacre was bloodily avenged 
by the Indians. The Susquehannahs im- 
mediately crossed the Potomac and waged a 
relentless warfare along the borders of Vir- 
ginia until they had slain ten whites for each 
one of their chiefs, a sacrifice required of 




I03 



104 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



them by the customs of their tribe, in order 
that the spirits of their braves might rest in 
peace. The people appealed to the governor 
for protection, but Berkeley refused to grant 
them aid. It is said that he was too deeply 
interested in the fur trade to be willing to 
offend the Indians by aiding his people. 
The colonists then demanded permission to 
defend themselves, to invade the Indian 
country, and drive the savages farther into 
the interior. This was also refused, and 
during all this time the frontier was suffering 
fearfully from the outrages of Berkeley's In- 
dian friends. 

A Patriotic Leader. 

At last the patience of the people was ex- 
hausted. A leader was at hand in the person 
of Nathaniel Bacon. He was a young 
planter of the county of Henrico, a native of 
England, and a lawyer by profession. He 
was ardent in temper, eloquent and per- 
suasive in speech, winning in manner, a true 
patriot, and possessed of the firmness and 
decision necessary in a leader of a popular 
movement. He had been reared in England 
amid the struggles which ushered in the es- 
tablishment of the commonwealth, and had 
learned the lesson of freedom too well to 
forget it in a home where every incident of 
his daily life required the exercise of the best 
qualities of his nature. His love of repub- 
licanism had gained him the dislike of 
Governor Berkeley, who hated any man that 
dared to criticise his tyranny. The same 
principles which made him obnoxious to the 
governor won him the affectionate confidence 
of the people of Virginia, who were quick to 
recognize their true friend. 

When volunteers began to offer them- 
selves for the war against the Indians they 
petitioned the governor to commission Bacon 
their commander-in-chief This Berkeley 
refused, declaring that he would not counte- 



nance such presumption on the part of the 
" common people." In the meantime the 
murders continued, and Bacon, who shared 
the indignation of' the people, determined 
that if another man was slain he would 
march the militia against the Indians without 
a commission. Almost immediately several 
of his own men were murdered on his own 
plantation near the falls of the James. He 
at once gave the signal. Five hundred men 
were soon under arms, and Bacon was made 
their leader. About the twentieth of April, 
1676, he set out on his march against the 
savages, whom he chastised and drove back 
into the interior. 

The people were in arms, and they were 
not disposed to lay down their weapons until 
their grievances were redressed. The quarrel 
was not with the Indians, but with the 
government. As soon as Bacon had begun 
his march into the Indian country, Berkeley 
denounced him as a traitor, and his followers 
as rebels, and ordered them to disperse. He 
was obeyed by some who feared the loss of 
their property, but the populous counties 
bordering the bay answered him by joining 
the insurrection. 

The Assembly Dissolved. 

The people of the colony with one voice 
demanded the dissolution of the assembly, 
which had unlawfully maintained its exist- 
ence for fourteen years. Opposed by the 
entire people the governor was compelled to 
yield. The assembly had fairly earned the 
universal hatred with which it was regarded 
by its selfishness and its hostility to popular 
liberty. It was dissolved, and writs were 
issued for a new election. Among the new 
members elected was Bacon, who was re- 
turned from the county of Henrico. 

The new assembly was naturally favorable 
to the rights of the people, and it at once 
proceeded to rectify many of the abuses 



VIRGINIA AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



105 



which had produced the insurrection. Taxes 
were adjusted more equitably; the right of 
suffrage was restored to the people; the 
monopoly of the Indian trade, in which it 



vestries was broken by limiting their term of 
office to three years, and giving the election 
of these officials to the freemen of the parish ; 
a general amnesty was proclaimed for all past 




BACON DERUpg ^^^g COMMISSIOX OF BERKELEY. 



was believed the governor was de\iy inter- 
ested, was suspended ; many of the i^^g (^q^. 
nected with the expenditure of thep^jjij^, 
funds were corrected ; the power of th^,-j[g}^ 



offences ; and Bacon, amid the rejoicings 
of the people, was elected commander of 
the army destined to act against the 
Indians. 



io6 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



These measures were utterly distasteful to 
the haughty old governor. He refused to 
give them his sanction, or to sign the com- 
mission ordered for Bacon by the assembly. 
Fearful of treachery Bacon withdrew from 
the capital. The people quickly rallied to 
his support, and in a few days he entered 
Jamestown at the head of five hundred men. 
Berkeley, who was as courageous as he was 
obstinate, met him, and baring his breast 
said, haughtily, " A fair mark ; shoot ! " 
Bacon answered him calmly, " I will not 
hurt a hair of your head, or of any man's ; 
we are come for the commission to save our 
lives from the Indians." The governor was 
at length obliged to yield. The commission 
was issued, the acts of the assembly were 
ratified, and Berkeley joined the assembly 
and council in sending to England an in- 
dorsement of the loyalty, patriotism, and 
energy of Bacon. This consent was given 
on the twenty-fourth of June, or, according 
to the new style of calculation, on the fourth 
of July, 1676, just one hundred years before 
the Declaration of Independence. 

Hunted Like a V/oU. 

Bacon at once marched against the In- 
dians, and in a briUiant and successful cam- 
paign broke their power, and gave peace and 
security to the frontier. In the midst of these 
honorable labors he was again assailed by 
Berkeley, who had only consented to the 
reconciliation to gain time. The governor 
withdrew from Jamestown to Gloucester, 
which was the most populous and the most 
loyal county of Virginia, He summoned a 
convention of the inhabitants, and renewed 
his efforts against Bacon. The people of 
Gloucester, justly regarding Bacon as the 
defender of the colony, opposed the gov- 
ernor's proposals, but he persisted in spite of 
their advice, and again proclaimed Bacon a 
traitor. 



This inexcusable pursuit of a man who 
had rendered nothing but good service to 
the colony aroused the indignation of the 
troops. " It vexes me to the heart," said 
Bacon, " that while I am hunting the wolves 
and tigers that destroy our lambs I shoulJ 
myself be pursued as a savage. Shall per- 
sons wholly devoted to their king and 
country — men hazarding their lives agahst 
the public enemy — deserve the appellation 
of rebels and traitors? The whole cotntry 
is witness to our peaceable behavior But 
those in authority, how have they oJtained 
their estates ? Have they not devotred the 
common treasury ? What arts, whatsciences, 
what schools of learning, have they pro- 
moted ? I appeal to the king ;nd Parlia- 
ment, where the cause of the people will be 
heard impartially." 

Bacon appealed to the peope of Virginia 
to unite for the defence of their liberties 
against the tyranny of the p>vernor. They 
responded to this call withenthusiasm, and 
a convention of the mos- eminent men in 
the colony assembled at "fiddle Plantations, 
now Williamsburg, on t'S third of August, 
1676. It was resolvedly the convention to 
sustain Bacon with th whole power of the 
colony in the campaipi against the Indians. If 
the governor persist'J in his attempt to hunt 
him as a traitor, the^embers of the convention 
pledged themseK'S to defend Bacon with 
arms, even again*^ the royal troops, until an 
appeal could bf'^acle to the king in person. 
The people o^V'irginia were fully resolved 
to protect th'"selves against the tyranny of 
Berkeley, a^ Bacon, strengthened by their 
indorseme*- of his course, finished his cam- 
paign agp'^t the Indians. Governor Berke- 
ley with-^w across the bay to the eastern 
shore, r^^ there collected a force of sailors 
belonp^g *o some English vessels and a band 
of ^jrthless Indians. With this force, 
«< ipi of a base and cowardly disposition, 



VIRGINIA AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



107 



allured by the passion for plunder," he pre- 
pared to return to Jamestown. 

The people decided to regard the retreat 
of the governor as an abdication on his part 
of his office. The ten years for which he 
had been appointed had expired, and the 
colonial records afforded a precedent for his 
removal. Bacon and four others, who had 
been members of the council, issued writs 
for the election of a representative conven- 
tion to which the management of the 
affairs of the colony was to be committed. 
With the exception of a few royalists the 
whole people of Virginia indorsed the move- 
ment ; the women were enthusiastic, and 
urged their husbands to risk everything, even 
life, in defence of their liberties. 

Early in September Sir William Berkeley 
reached Jamestown with the rabble which he 
called his army. He took possession of the 
town without resistance, and was joined by a 
number of royalists. He offered freedom to 
the slaves of the Virginians who were opposed 
to him on the condition of their joining his 
ranks. Bacon and his party were again pro- 
claimed traitors and rebels. 

The People Fly to Arms. 

The people at once flew to arms, and 
Bacon soon found himself at the head of the 
little army that had been so successful against 
the Indians. Without delay they marched 
to Jamestown. The resistance attempted by 
Berkeley's cowardly followers was feeble, 
and the whole force, including their leader, 
retreated to their ships, and dropped down 
the river by night. The next morning the 
army of the people entered Jamestown. It 
was rumored that a party of royalists was 
marching from the northern counties to the 
support of Berkeley, and a council was held 
to decide upon the fate of the capital. It 
was agreed that it should be burned to pre- 
vent it from being used as a stronghold for 



their enemies. The torch was applied ; 
Drummond and Lawrence, leaders of the 
popular party, set fire to their dwellings with 
their own hands ; and in a few hours only a 
heap of smouldering ruins marked the site of 
the first capital of Virginia. Its destruction 
left the colony without a single town within 
its limits. 

From the ruins of Jamestown Bacon 
marched promptly to meet the royalist force 
advancing from the Rappahannock region. 
The latter in a body joined the army of the 
people, and even the county of Gloucester, 
the stronghold of royalty, gave its adhesion 
to the patriotic movement. With the excep- 
tion of the eastern shore the entire colony 
was united in support of the cause of popular 
liberty. 

Untimely Death of Bacon. 

Unhappily, at this critical juncture. Bacon 
was seized with a fatal fever, of which 
he died on the first of October, 1676. His 
followers grieved for him with passionate 
sorrow, and with good cause. It has been 
the good fortune of Virginia to give many 
great names to the cause of liberty, but in 
all the immortal roll there are none who sur- 
passed Nathaniel Bacon in pure and disin- 
terested patriotism. Others were permitted 
to accomplish more, but none cherished 
loftier aims or desired more earnestly the 
good of their fellow-citizens. 

The death of Bacon left the popular party 
without a head ; and now began to be seen 
for the first time in Virginia the evils which 
the neglect of education must produce in a 
community. The Virginians were not lack- 
ing in courage, determination, or devotion to 
their liberties, and their cause was one cal- 
culated to succeed without leaders. In an 
educated community there would have been 
no lack of union or perseverance because of 
the death of one man, and the people would 



io8 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



have found the means to continue their 
struggle until successful. In the uneducated 
Virginian community of 1676 the presence 
of a bold, capable, and resolute leader was a 
necessity, and his sudden removal left the 
popular party helpless. The grand struggle 
degenerated into a series of petty insurrec- 
tions ; the royalists took heart, and Robert 
Beverley, their most competent leader, was 
able to destroy in detail the resistance of the 
patriots and to restore the supremacy of 
Berkeley. 

A Woman's Self-Sacrifice. 

The governor now proceeded to take a 
summary vengeance upon the patriots, and 
more than twenty of the best men of the 
colony gave their lives on the scaffold for 
the liberties of their country. The first of 
these martyrs for freedom — the first Ameri- 
can to die for the right of the people to govern 
themselves — was Thomas Hansford, a Vir- 
ginian born, and a noble specimen of the 
chivalrous sons of the Old Dominion. 

The wife of Edmund Cheesman, upon the 
capture of her husband, flung herself at the 
governor's feet, and declaring that her ex- 
hortations had induced her husband to join 
Bacon, begged to be allowed to die in his 
place. The brutal Berkeley repelled the 
heroic woman with a gross insult. When 
Urummond was taken and brought before 
him the governor received him with mock 
courtesy. " I am more glad to see you," he 
said, "than any man in Virginia; you shall 
be hanged in half an hour." The royalist 
assembly, horrified at the cruelty of the gov- 
ernor, appealed to him to " spill no more 
blood." The property of the victims was 
confiscated, and their helpless families were 
turned out upon the charities of the people 
for whom the martyrs had died. Not con- 
tent with these cruelties Berkeley attempted 
to silence the people, and prevent them from 



either censuring him or vindicating the 
memory of their dead heroes. Whoever 
should speak ill of Berkeley or his friends 
was to be whipped. 

At last the end came, and Berkeley re- 
turned to England. His departure was 
celebrated with rejoicings throughout the 
colony; bells were rung, guns were fired, 
and bonfires blazed. Berkeley hoped to be 
able to justify his conduct in England, but 
upon his arrival in that country he found his 
course sternly condemned by the voice of 
public opinion. Even Charles II. censured 
him with all the energy that soulless monarch 
was master of " The old fool," said the 
king, " has taken away more lives in that 
naked land than I for the murder of my 
father." His disappointment and mortifica- 
tion were too much for the proud man, and 
he died soon after his arrival in England. 

Revival of Abuses. 

The failure of Bacon's rebellion brought 
many serious misfortunes to Virginia. The 
insurrection was made the excuse by the 
king for refusing a liberal charter, and the 
colony was made dependent for its rights 
and privileges entirely upon the royal will. 
The assembly was composed almost ex- 
clusively of royalists, and at once proceeded 
to undo the work of the popular party. All 
the laws of Bacon's assembly were repealed; 
the right of suffrage was restricted to free- 
holders, and the iniquitous taxes were re- 
imposed. All the abuses that had led to the 
rebellion were revived. 

In 1677 Lord Culpepper, one of the favor- 
ites to whom Charles II. had granted Vir- 
ginia, was appointed governor of the colony 
for life. The new governor regarded his 
office as a sinecure, and while receiving its 
emoluments desired to remain in England to 
enjoy them. In 1680, however, the king 
compelled him to repair to his government 



VIRGINIA AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



109 



in person. He brought with him authority 
from the sovereign to settle all past griev- 
ances, but he used this power for his own 
profit. He extorted money from all parties, 
and when he had acquired a considerable 
sum returned to England, having spent less 
than a year in Virginia. He left the colony 
in the greatest distress. The Virginians, 
robbed of the profits of their labors for the 
enrichment of their rulers, were reduced to 
despair. Riots took place in various places, 
and the whole colony was on the verge of 
insurrection. 

A Plunderer. 

Rumors of these disturbances having 
reached England the king ordered Culpepper 
to return and reduce the colony to obedience. 
He did so, and caused several influential men 
to be hanged as traitors, and used the power 
intrusted to him to wrest from the council 
the last remnant of its authority to control 
his outrages upon the people. This accom- 
plished, he proceeded to force the settlers of 
the Northern Neck to surrender their planta- 
tions to him, or pay him the sums he de- 
manded for the privilege of retaining them. 

He found his residence among a people he 
had come to plunder very disagreeable, and 
in the course of a few months returned to 
England amid the bitter curses of the Vir- 
ginians. The council reported the distress 
of the province to the king, and appealed to 
him to recall the grant to Culpepper and 
Arlington. Arlington surrendered his rights 
to Culpepper, whose patent was rendered 
void by a process of law, and in July, 1684, 
Virginia became once more a royal province. 
Lord Howard, of Effingham, was appointed 
to succeed Culpepper, but he was a poorer 
and more grasping man than his predecessor, 
and the change afforded no relief to Virginia. 

In 1685 James II. came to the throne of 
England, and in the same year occurred the 
insurrection in England known as Mon- 



mouth's rebellion. A number of prisoners 
were taken in this struggle by the royal 
forces, and many of these were sent out to 
the colonies of Virginia and Maryland to be 
sold as servants for a term of ten years. 
Many of them were men of education and 
family. The general assembly of Virginia 
refused to sanction this infamous measure, 
and, in spite of the prohibition of King 
James, passed a law declaring all such per- 
sons free. Indeed at this time the practice 
of selling white servants in America had be- 
come so profitable that quite a thriving 
business was carried on between the west of 
England and Virginia and Maryland. 

Not only persons condemned for crime, 
but innocent people were kidnapped and 
sold in the colonies for a term of years for 
money. " At Bristol," says Bancroft, " the 
mayor and justices would intimidate small 
rogues and pilferers, who, under the terror 
of being hanged, prayed for transportation 
as the only avenue to safety, and were then 
divided among the members of the court. 
The trade was exceedingly profitable — far 
more so than the slave trade — and had been 
conducted for years." 

Uprising for Freedom. 

One of the last acts of Charles II. with 
reference to Virginia was to forbid the set- 
ting up of a printing press within the limits 
of the colony ; James II. continued this pro- 
hibition. Effingham endeavored to take 
from the colony the few privileges left to it. 
The result was that the party of freedom 
increased rapidly. Many of the aristocratic 
party seeing that the king and the governor 
menaced every right and privilege they pos- 
sessed went over to the popular side. The 
assembly began to assert the popular demand 
for self-government, and became so unman- 
ageable that in November, 1686, it was dis- 
solved by royal proclamation. 



no 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



A new assembly was convened, which 
met in April, 1688, a few months before the 
British revolution. The governor and coun- 
cil found this body more indisposed to submit 
to the aggressions of the crown than its pre- 
decessor had been. The people sustained 
their delegates, and a new insurrection was 
threatened. Effingham was in the midst of 
a hostile population, without troops to 
enforce his will, and was obliged to conduct 
himself with moderation. The royal authority 
was never stronger in Virginia than during 
this reign, but it was found impossible to 
establish it upon the ruins of the liberties of 
the colony. The result of all the long years 
of oppression we have been considering was 
simply to confirm the Virginians in their 
attachment to their liberties, and in their 
determination to maintain them at any cost. 
Virginia remained to the end an aristocratic 
colony, but it was none the less " a land of 
liberty." 

Founding a College, 

The revolution of 1688 in England did 
not change affairs in Virginia materially as 
regarded the forms of the colonial govern- 
ment. The liberties of the colony were 
established by law too securely to be any 
longer at the mercy of an individual, but the 
power of the governor was still very great. 
Every department of the colonial administra- 
tion, the finances, and even the management 
of the church, was made subject to his con- 
trol. He had the power to dissolve the 
assembly at pleasure, and was sure to exer- 
cise it if that body manifested too great a 
spirit of independence. He also appointed 
the clerk of the assembly, who was for this 



reason a check upon its freedom of debate. 
The only means of resistance to the meas- 
ures of the government which the assembly 
retained was to refuse to vote supplies in 
excess of the permanent revenue. This right 
was sometimes exercised, and the governor 
was prevented from carrying out unpopular 
measures by the lack of the necessary 
funds. 

Soon after the accession of William and 
Mary to the throne an effort was made to 
establish a college in Virginia, although the 
printing press was still forbidden. Donations 
were made by a number of persons in 
England, and the king bestowed several 
liberal grants upon the proposed institution. 
The measure was carried through to success 
by the energy of the Rev. James Blair, who 
was sent out by the Bishop of London as 
commissary, " to supply the office and juris- 
diction of the bishop in the outplaces of the 
diocese." The college was established in 
1691, and was named WiUiam and Mary, in 
honor of the king and queen. Mr. Blair 
was its first president, and held that office for 
fifty years. 

The ministry did not approve the action 
of the king in granting even the very moderate 
endowments which he bestowed upon the 
college. They regarded Virginia merely as 
a place in which to raise tobacco for the 
English market, and cared nothing for the 
interests of the people. They treated the 
colony with injustice and neglect in every- 
thing. The planters could sell their tobacco 
only to an English purchaser, who regulated 
the price to suit himself, and supplied the 
planters in return with the wares they needed 
at his own prices. 



CHAPTER IX 
The Colonization of Maryland 

Extent of the Territory of Virginia — Clayborne's Trading Posts Established — Sir George Calvert, Lord Baltimore — Be- 
comes Interested in American Colonization — Obtains a Grant of Maryland — Terms of the Charter — A Colony Sent 
Out — Arrival in the Chesapeake — St. Mary's Founded — Character of the Colony — Friendly Relations Established with 
the Indians — First Legislature of Maryland — Trouble with Clayborne — Rapid Growth of the Colony — Progress of 
Popular Liberty — Policy Respecting the Treatment of the Indians — Clayborne's Rebellion — Law Granting Religious 
Toleration Enacted — Condition of Maryland Under the Commonwealth — The People Declared Supreme— Lord Baltimore 
Recovers His Proprietary Rights — Characteristics of the Colony — Rapid Increase in Population — Charles Calvert, 
Governor — Death of the Second Lord Baltimore — Roman Catholics Disfranchised — Maryland Becomes a Royal 
Province — Triumph of the Protestants — Annapolis Made the Seat of Government — Restoration of the Proprietary 
Government — Continued Prosperity of Maryland. 



THE second charter of Virginia 
granted to that province the country- 
north of the Potomac as far as the 
headwaters of the Chesapeake Bay. 
This grant included the territory of the 
present State of Maryland. The discoveries 
of Captain John Smith had brought the 
region along the head of the bay into notice, 
and other explorers had confirmed his state- 
ments as to its value. 

A very profitable trade was established 
with the Indians of this section, and, in order 
to develop its advantages, William Clayborne, 
a man of great resolution and of no fnean 
abilities, a surveyor by profession, was 
employed by the Governor of Virginia to 
explore the region of the upper Chesapeake. 
His report was so favorable that a company 
was formed in England for the purpose of 
trading with the Indians. Under authority 
from this company, Clayborne obtained a 
license from the colonial government of 
Virginia, and established two trading stations 
on the bay ; one on Kent Island, opposite the 
present city of Annapolis, and one at the 
mouth of the Susquehanna. These posts 
were established in the spring of 163 1. 

In the meantime efforts were being made 
in England to secure the settlement of the 



same region. Sir George Calvert, a man of 
noble character, liberal education and great 
political experience, had become at an early 
day deeply interested in the question of 
colonizing America. Having embraced the 
Roman Catholic faith, he relinquished his 
ofifice of Secretary of State, and made a pub- 
lic acknowledgment of his conversion. His 
noble character commanded the confidence of 
King James, and he was retained as a mem- 
ber of the Privy Council, and was made Lord 
Baltimore in the Irish peerage. He was 
anxious to found a colony in America, which 
might serve as a place of refuge for persons 
of the Catholic faith, and obtained a patent 
for the southern part of Newfoundland. 
That region was too bleak and rugged to 
admit of the success of the enterprise, and 
the attempt to settle it was soon abandoned. 
Lord Baltimore next contemplated a set- 
tlement in some portion of Virginia, and in 
October, 1629, visited that colony with a 
view to making arrangements for his planta- 
tion. The laws of Virginia against Roman 
Catholics were very severe, and immediately 
upon the arrival of so distinguished a Cath- 
olic the assembly ordered the oaths of 
allegiance and supremacy to be tendered 
him. Lord Baltimore proposed a form 

III 



112 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



which he was willing to subscribe, but the 
colonial government insisted upon that 
which had been ordered by the English Par- 
liament, and which was of such a character 
that no Catholic could accept it. There 
was nothing left for Calvert but to withdraw 
from Virginia, and his reception there con- 
vinced him that that province was not the 
place for the plantation he wished to estab- 
lish. 

Large Grant to Lord Baltimore. 

The region north of the Potomac was still 
uninhabited, and seemed to promise advan- 
tages equal to Virginia. Calvert applied to 
Charles I. for a patent for this region, and 
was given a territory corresponding very 
nearly to the present State of Maryland in 
extent. The king granted him a liberal 
charter, which, while it provided for his 
interests as proprietor, secured the liberties 
of the colonists. In this it was simply the 
expression of the wishes of 'Lord Baltimore, 
who desired to establish a settlement of 
freemen. The country embraced in the 
grant was given to Lord Baltimore, his 
heirs and assigns, in absolute possession. 
They were required to pay an annual tribute 
to the crown of two Indian arrows and one- 
fifth of all the gold and silver which might 
be found. 

The colonists were to have a voice in 
making their own laws, and they were to be 
entitled to all the rights and privileges of 
Englishmen. No taxes were to be imposed 
upon them without their consent, nor was 
the authority of the proprietor to extend to 
their lives or property. It was enjoined that 
the exercise of the faith and worship of the 
established Church of England should be 
protected in the colony, but no uniform 
standard of faith or worship was imposed by 
the charter. The new province was carefully 
separated from Virginia and made independ- 



ent of it. The colony was left free from the 
supervision of the crown, and the propri- 
etor was not obliged to obtain the royal 
assent to the appointments or legislation of 
his province. The king also renounced for 
himself, his heirs and his successors, the 
right to tax the colony, thus leaving it 
entirely free from English taxation. 

These were vast powers to intrust to one 
man ; but they were placed in safe hands. 
The first Lord Baltimore was- a man who 
hated tyranny of all kinds, and who had 
carefully observed the effects of intolerance 
and arbitrary rule upon the efforts that had 
already been made to establish successful 
colonies in America. He designed his col- 
ony as an asylum in which men of all creeds 
could meet upon a common basis of a faith 
in Jesus Christ, and his conviction that relig- 
icus freedom is necessary to the success of a 
state confirmed in him his attachment to the 
principles of civil liberty. 

Practical Charity. 

He invited both Protestants and Catholics 
to join him in his enterprise, and adopted a 
form of government, based upon popular 
representation, well calculated to secure them 
in the possession of all their privileges. In 
honor of the queen of Charles L, he named 
the region granted to him Maryland. Before 
the patent was issued, Lord Baltimore died, 
on the fifteenth of April, 1632, leaving his 
son, Cecil, heir to his designs as well as to 
his title. The charter granted to his father 
was issued to him, and he proceeded at once 
to collect a colony for the settlement of 
Maryland. 

Lord Baltimore delegated the task of con- 
ducting the emigrants to Maryland to his 
brother, Leonard Calvert. On Friday, No- 
vember 22, 1632, a company of two hun- 
dred, chiefly Roman Catholics of good birth, 
with their families and servants, sailed from. 



THE COLONIZATION OF MARYLAND. 



113 



England in the " Ark " and the " Dove," the 
former a ship of large burthen, the latter a 
small pinnace. The voyage was made by- 
way of the West Indies, and the Chesapeake 
was not reached until the twenty-fourth of 
February, 1634. The ships anchored off 
Old Point Comfort, and were visited by Sir 
John Harvey, Governor of Vir- 
ginia, who had been commanded 
by the king to welcome the new 
colony with kfndness. 

Resting in Hampton roads 
for a few days the emigrants 
ascended the bay and entered 
the stately Potomac. Deeming 
it unsafe to plant his first settle- 
ment high up the river, Calvert 
chose a site on a small tributaiy 
of the Potomac, not far from its 
mouth. This stream, now known 
as the St. Mary's, he named the 
St. George's. An Indian village, 
called Yoacomoco, was selected 
as the site of the colony. The 
place was being deserted by 
the natives, who had suffered 
severely from the superior power 
of the Susequehannahs, and were 
removing farther into the interior 
for greater security. They readily 
sold their town and the surround- 
ing lands to the English.andmade 
with them a treaty of peace and 
friendship ; and on the twenty- 
seventh of March, 1634, the col- 
onists landed and laid the founda- 
tions of the town of St. Mary's. 

A few days later. Sir John Harvey arrived 
from Virginia on a friendly visit. His orders 
from the king were to treat the settlers with 
friendship, and to aid them as far as lay in 
his power. About the same time the native 
chiefs came in to visit the colony, and were 
so well received that they established friendly 



relations with the settlers. The Indian 
women taught their English sisters how to 
make bread from the meal of the Indian 
corn, and the warriors instructed the Eng- 
lishmen in the simple arts of the chase. The 
colonists obtained provisions and cattle for a 
while from Virginia ; but, as they went to 




CECIL, SECOND LORD BALTIMORE. 

work at once and with energy to cultivate 
their land, the first year's harvest gave them 
an abundance of supplies. 

The proprietor sent out from England 
such things as were necessary to the success 
and comfort of the colony, treating the new 
settlement with a wise liberality. Thus were 



114 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



the foundations of Maryland laid amid peace 
and prosperity. The colony was successful 
from the first. Roman Catholic settlers fol- 
lowed the first emigrants in considerable 
numbers, and even Protestants sought the 
shores of Maryland, which the liberality of 
Lord Baltimore had made a refuge to them 
from the persecutions of their own brethren. 
New settlements were formed, and within six 
months the colony " had advanced more 
than Virginia had done in as many years." 

Piracy and Murder. 

In February, 1635, the first legislative 
assembly of Maryland met. Legislation 
had become necessary by this time. Clay- 
borne, who had established trading posts in 
the upper Chesapeake, had met the first set- 
tlers under Leonard Calvert at their anchor- 
age at Old Point Comfort, and had endeav- 
ored to dissuade them from settling along 
the bay by exaggerating the dangers to be 
apprehended from the hostility of the In- 
dians. Failing in this effort, he became the 
evil genius of Maryland, as the grant to Lord 
Baltimore made void his license to trade 
with the Indians along the bay. He re- 
fused to acknowledge the authority of 
the proprietor of Maryland, and attempted 
to retain his trading post by force of arms. 

Within a year or two after the settlement 
of the colony, a bloody skirmish occurred 
in one of the rivers of the eastern shore, in 
which Clayborne's men were defeated. In 
1638, Leonard Calvert took forcible posses- 
sion of Kent Island, and hanged one or two 
of Clayborne's people on a charge of piracy 
and murder. Clayborne was in England at 
the time prosecuting his claims before the 
king. Governor Harvey of Virginia had 
given the weight of his influence in this 
contest to the cause of Lord Baltimore, but 
the people of Virginia, who resented the 
grant of Maryland as an invasion of their 



rights, sympathized with Clayborne, and 
caused Harvey to be impeached and sent to 
England for trial. The English courts de- 
cided that Clayborne's license was not valid 
against the charter granted to Lord Balti- 
more, and Harvey was sent back to Virginia 
as governor in April, 1639. 

In the meantime the colony continued to 
grow and prosper. The assembly, while 
acknowledging the allegiance of the people 
of Maryland to the king, and making 
ample provisions for the rights of Lord 
Baltimore as proprietor, took care to secure 
the liberties of the people, and claimed for 
itself the exercise in the province of all the 
powers belonging to the British House of 
Commons. Representative government was 
definitely established, and the colonists were 
secured in all the liberties granted to the 
people of England by the common law of 
that country. Tobacco became, as in Vir- 
ginia, the staple of the colony. 

Maryland Contented. 

In 1642, in gratitude for the great ex- 
pense which Lord Baltimore had volun- 
tarily incurred for them, the people of 
Maryland granted him " such a subsidy as 
the young and poor estate of the colony 
could bear." As far as the people themselves 
were concerned, the condition of Maryland 
was one of marked happiness and content- 
ment. Harmony prevailed between all 
classes of the people and the government ; 
the settlers were blessed with complete toler- 
ation in religion ; emigration was rapidly 
increasing, and the commerce of the colony 
was growing in extent and value. 

Maryland had its troubles, however. The 
Indians, alarmed by its rapid growth, began 
in 1642 a series of aggressions which led to 
a frontier war. This struggle continued for 
some time, but was productive of no decisive 
results, and in 1644 peace was restored. The 



THE COLONIZATION OF MARYLAND. 



115 



Indians promised submission, and the whites, 
on their part, agreed to treat them with 
friendship and justice. Laws were enacted 
compelling the settlers to refrain from in- 
justice toward the savages, and humanity 
to the red man was made the policy of 
the colony. 

The kidnapping of an Indian was punish- 
able with death, and the sale of arms to the 
savages was constituted a felony. Efforts 
were also made to convert the natives to 
Christianity. Four missions were established 
among them by the priests of the Catholic 
church, and the effects of their devoted la- 
bors were soon manifest. A chief, named 
Tayac, and his wife were baptized, he tak- 
ing the name of Charles and she that of 
Mary. About one hundred and thirty other 
converts were afterwards added to the Chris- 
tian fold among the Indians, and many of 
these sent their children to receive instruction 
at the hands of the priests. Though the ef- 
fort to Christianize the savages failed, as it 
has ever done, the good effects of these en- 
deavors were not lost, as the friendship for 
the whites aroused by them continued to 
influence these tribes in their policy toward 
the colony, 

Clayborne's Rebellion. 

Clayborne, who had certainly cause for 
thinking himself wronged in being deprived 
of his property without just compensation, 
returned to Maryland to revenge himself 
upon the colonists. The civil war in Eng- 
land furnished him with an admirable oppor- 
tunity for his attempt. He was able to se- 
cure a number of followers in Maryland, and 
in 1644 began an insurrection. The next 
year the governor was drjven out of the col- 
ony and obliged to take refuge in Virginia, 
and Clayborne was triumphant. For more 
than a year the rebels held possession of the 
government, and this whole time was a 
period of disorder and misrule, during which 



the greater part of the colonial records were 
lost or stolen. At the end of this time, the 
better classes of the people of Maryland 
drove out the rebels, and recalled the pro- 
prietary government. A general amnesty 
was proclaimed to all offenders, and peace 
was restored to the colony. 

The year 1649 was marked in England by 
the execution of Charles I., and the complete; 








A CIVILIZED INDIAN. 

establishment of the authority of the Parlia- 
ment. It seemed to the people of Maryland 
that this triumph of the popular party was to 
usher in a new war upon the Roman Catholic 
faith, which was professed by a large major- 
ity of the colonists. Dreading a war of 
religion as the greatest of evils, they deter- 
mined to secure the colony from it, by pla- 
cing the freedom of conscience within their 
limits upon as secure a basis as possible. In 
doing this they gave expression to the popular 
will, and aimed to secure their future welfare. 
On the twenty-first of April, 1649, the 
assembly of Maryland adopted the following 



il6 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



act: "And, whereas, the enforcing of con- 
science in matters of religion hath frequently 
fallen out to be of dangerous consequence in 
those commonwealths where it has been 
practiced, and for the more quiet and peace- 



Christ, shall be anyways troubled, molested, 
or discountenanced for his or her religion, or 
in the free exercise thereof, or be compelled 
to the belief or practice of any other religion 
acrainst their consent." 




OLIVER CROMWELL. 



able government of this province, and the 
better to preserve mutual love and amity 
among the inhabitants, no person within this 
province, professing to believe in Jesus 



This statute, noble as it was, applied only 
to Christians. It was provided that" What- 
soever person shall blaspheme God, or shall 
deny or reproach the Holy Trinity, or any 



THE COLONIZATION OF MARYLAND. 



117 



of the three persons thereof, shall be pun- 
ished with death." Maryland had taken a 
great stride in advance in making her soil a 
sanctuary for Christians of all beliefs, but she 
had not yet accorded to her people a tolera- 
tion equal to that of Rhode Island, which 
colony, in 1647, granted liberty to all 
opinions, infidel as well as Christian. 

CromweH's Blunt Order. 

During the existence of the common- 
wealth, the colony was troubled with an 
unsettled government. It submitted to the 
authority of Cromwell, and the Puritans, 
regardless of the example of their brethren 
of the Catholic faith, attempted by an act of 
assembly, in 1654, to disfranchise the whole 
Roman Catholic population on the ground 
of their religious belief Cromwell disap- 
proved this action, and bluntly ordered his 
commissioners " not to busy themselves 
about religion, but to settle the civil govern- 
ment." In 1660, without waiting to hear 
the issue of matters in England, the assembly 
repudiated the authority of both the com- 
monwealth and the proprietor, and asserted 
the sovereignty of the people as the supreme 
authority in Maryland. 

Upon the restoration of Charles 11. , Lord 
Baltimore made his peace with the king for 
having yielded to the power of Cromwell, 
and received back all the rights he had 
enjoyed in Maryland. He at once proceeded 
to re-establish his authority in the province, 
but being a man of humanity and of liberal 
views, he made a generous use of his power. 
A general pardon was granted to all 
offenders against him, Jiis rule was once 
more submitted to, and fur thirty years the 
colony was at peace. 

" Like Virginia, Maryland was a colony 
of planters ; its staple was tobacco, and its 
prosperity was equally checked by the 
pressure of the navigation acts. Like 



Virginia, it possessed no considerable village ; 
its inhabitants were scattered among the 
woods and along the rivers ; each plantation 
was a little world within itself, and legislation 
vainly attempted the creation of towns by 
statute. Like Virginia, its laborers were in 
part indentured servants, whose term of 
service was limited by persevering legislation; 
in part negro slaves, who were employed in 
the colony from an early period, and whose 
importation was favored both by English 
cupidity and provincial statutes." 

" As in Virginia, the appointing power to 
nearly every office in the counties as well as 
in the province was not with the people ; and 
the judiciary was placed beyond their 
control. As in Virginia, the party of the 
proprietary, which possessed the government, 
was animated by a jealous regard for preroga- 
tive, and by the royalist principles, which 
derive the sanction of authority from the will 
of Heaven. As in Virginia, the taxes levied 
by the county officers were not conceded by 
the direct vote of the people, and were, 
therefore, burdensome alike from their 
excessive amount and the manner of their 
levy. But though the administration of 
Maryland did not favor the increasing spirit 
of popular liberty, it was marked by con- 
ciliation and humanity. To foster industry, 
to promote union, to cherish religious peace, 
****** these were the honest pur- 
poses of Lord Baltimore during his long 
supremacy." * 

Arrival of Immigrants. 

Yet the colony continued to prosper. 
Emigrants came to it from almost every 
country of western Europe, and even from 
Sweden and Finland. The only persons 
who had cause for complaint in Maryland 
were the Quakers, who were treated with 



*H:sto7y of the United States. By George Bancroft, vol, 
ii., p. 235. 



ii8 



SETTLEMENT 6F AMERICA. 



considerable harshness for their refusal to 
perform military duty ; but no effort was 
made to interfere with the exercise of their 
religion. 

In 1662, Charles Calvert, the son and heir 
of Lord Baltimore, came to reside in the 



thousand dollars. By numerous acts of 
compromise between Lord Baltimore and the 
assembly the question of taxation was ad- 
justed upon a satisfactory basis. The people 
assumed the expense of the provincial gov- 
ernment, and agreed to the imposition of an 




WILLIAM III. 



colony. Money was coined at a colonial 
mint, a tonnage duty was imposed upon all 
vessels trading with the colony, and a state 
house was built in 1674, at a cost of forty 
thousand pounds of tobacco, or about five 



export duty of two shillings per hogshead 
upon all the tobacco sent out of the colony. 
One-half of this duty was appropriated to 
the support of the government, and the re- 
mainder was assigned unconditionally to the 



THE COLONIZATION OF MARYLAND. 



119 



uses of Lord Baltimore, as " an act of grati- 
tude " for his care of the colony. 

On the thirtieth of November, 1675, Cecil 
Calvert, second Lord Baltimore, died. He 
had been for fourteen years the earnest and 
devoted friend, as well as the generous lord 
of the province, and had lived long enough 
to enjoy the gratitude with which the colony 
sought to repay his judicious care. His 
memory is perpetuated by the chief city of 
Maryland, which bears his name, and which 
is already the largest city on the Atlantic 
coast, south of the Susequehanna, and the 
seventh in population in the United States. 
Charles Calvert, who had been for fourteen 
years governor of Maryland, succeeded to 
his father's titles and possessions, and in 1676 
returned to England. Previous to his de- 
parture from Maryland he gave his sanction 
to the colonial code of laws, which had been 
thoroughly revised. One of these laws pro- 
hibited the "importation of convicted per- 
sons" into the colony without regard to the 
will of the king or Parliament of England. 

Roman Catholics Disfranchised. 

Notwithstanding the mild and equitable 
government of the third Lord Baltimore, 
the spirit of popular liberty was becoming 
too strong in the colony for the rule of the 
proprietor to be cheerfully acquiesced in 
much longer. The rebellion of Bacon in 
Virginia affected the Maryland colony pro- 
foundly, and when Lord Baltimore returned 
to the province in 1681, he found a large 
part of the people hostile to him. An at- 
tempt at insurrection was suppressed, but 
the seeds of trouble were too deeply sown 
not to spring up again. 

The increase of the population had left 
the Roman Catholics in a small minority, so 
that Maryland was now to all intents and 
purposes a Protestant colony. During the 
latter part of the reign of Charles II. the 



Protestants, regardless of the wise policy of 
toleration which had hitherto marked the 
history of the province, endeavored to secure 
the establishment by law of the Church of 
England in Maryland. Lord Baltimore 
steadfastly resisted this unwise course, and 
maintained the freedom of conscience as the 
right of the people. He thus added to the 
existing opposition to his proprietary rule 
the hostility of the Protestant bigots. A 
little later, the English ministry struck the 
first blow at his proprietary rights and at the 
religious freedom of Maryland by ordering 
that all the offices of the colonial govern- 
ment should be bestowed upon Protestants 
alone. " Roman Catholics were disfranchised 
in the province which they had planted." 

An Insurrection. 

Lord Baltimore hoped that the succession 
of James II., a Catholic sovereign, would 
restore him the rights of which he had been 
deprived in his province ; but he was soon 
undeceived, for the king, who intended to 
bring all the American colonies directly 
under the control of the crown, would make 
no exception in favor of Maryland, and 
measures were put in force for the abolition 
of the proprietary government. The revolu- 
tion which placed William and Mary on 
the throne prevented the execution of these 
plans. 

The troubles of Lord Baltimore were in- 
creased by the failure of the deputy-governor, 
whom he had left in Maryland, to acknowl- 
edge William and Mary promptly. In 
August, 1689, occurred an insurrection led 
by " The association in arms for the defence 
of the Protestant religion." The deputy- 
governor was driven from office, the pro- 
prietary government was overturned, and 
William and Mary were proclaimed sov- 
ereigns of Maryland. The party in power 
appealed to the king to annul the proprietary 



I20 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



charter, and governed the colony by means 
of a convention until the royal pleasure 
should be known. Lord Baltimore endeav- 
ored to defend his rights in spite of his 
struggles, William III., in June, 1691, 
annulled the charter of Maryland, and by the 
exercise of his own power constituted that 
colony a royal province. 

In 1692, the king appointed Sir Lionel 
Copley Governor of Maryland. Upon his 
arrival in the colony he dissolved the con- 
vention and assumed the government. He 
at once summoned an assembly, which, 
recognizing William and Mary as the lawful 
sovereigns of Maryland, established the 
•Church of England as the religion of the 
•colony, and imposed taxes for its support. 
The capital was removed from St. Mary's to 
Annapolis, both because the old seat of gov- 
ernment had become inconvenient and 
because it was desired to remove the govern- 
ment to the centre of Protestant influence. 
The disfranchisement of the Catholics ad- 
vanced step by step. At first the dissenters 
from the established church were granted 
toleration and protection, but in 1704 the 
triumph of bigotry was complete. All the 
dissenting bodies were tolerated, but Roman 
Catholics were forbidden the exercise of their 
faith. Mass was not allowed to be said in 
public, nor was any bishop or clergyman of 
the Roman Catholic church to be permitted 
to seek to make converts for his faith. 
Other severe measures were enacted, and in 
the land which Catholics had settled, the 
members of that communion alone were de- 
nied the rights which in the day of their 



power they had offered to others. Nor did 
the royalist assembly manifest any care for 
the true interests of the province. Education 
was neglected ; the establishment of printing 
was prohibited : and the domestic manufac- 
tures which the necessities of the colony had 
brought into existence were discouraged. 
In 17 10 the population numbered over 
30,000, free and slave. 

In 171$ Benedict Charles Calvert, the 
fourth Lord Baltimore, succeeded in obtain- 
ing the restoration of his rights in Maryland, 
and the province passed into his hands. The 
people had been so disgusted with the rule 
of the royal governors that no opposition 
was made to this change. The new Lord 
Baltimore, unlike the rest of his family, was 
a Protestant, which was the cause of his 
restoration to his hereditary rights. After 
his restoration the colony increased with 
still greater rapidity. The establishment of 
a post route in 1695, between the Potomac 
and Philadelphia, had brought it into com- 
munication with the Northern colonies. In 
1729 the town of Baltimore was founded. 
Frederick City was settled in 1745, and in 
175 1 was followed by Georgetown, now in 
the District of Columbia. In 1756 the pop- 
ulation of the colony had increased to 
154,188 souls, of whom over 40.000 were 
negroes. The increase in material prosperity 
was equally marked. By the last-mentioned 
year the annual export of tobacco was 
30,000 hogsheads, and, in spite of the efforts 
of the home government to prevent it, there 
were eight furnaces and nine forges for 
smelting copper in operation in the province. 



CHAPTER X 

The Pilgrim Fathers 



Rise of the Puritans — Their Increase in England — Tliey Are Persecuted by the English Church and Government — 
Conduct of James I. — His Hatred of Puritanism — Puritans Take Refuge in Holland — The Congregation of John 
Robinson — They Escape to Holland — The Pilgrims — Their Sojourn at Leyden — They Wish to Emigrate to Virginia 
— Failure of Their Negotiations with the London Company — They Form a Partnership in England — A Hard Bargain 
— Departure of the Pilgrims from Holland — Voyage of the " Mayflower" — Arrival in New England — The Agreement 
on Board the " Mayflower" — Carver Chosen Governor — Settlement of Plymouth — The First Winter in New England 
— Suff^erings of the Pilgrims — Arrival of New Emigrants — Continued Suffering — Assignment of Lands — Friendly In- 
tercourse with Indians — Samoset and Squanto — Visit of Massasoit — A Threat of War — Bradford's Defiance — West- 
on's Men — A Narrow Escape — The Colonists Purchase the Interests of Their English Partners — Lands Assigned in 
Fee Simple — The Colony Benefited by the Change — Government of Plymouth — Steady Growth of the Colony. 



THE persecutions with which Queen 
Mary afflicted the reformers of 
Ens^land in her bloody effort to re- 
store the Roman Catholic faith in 
that country caused many of the most emi- 
nent men of the English church to seek 
safety on the continent of Europe. Upon 
the accession of Elizabeth the Church of 
England became once more the religion of 
the state, and the reformers were free to re- 
turn to their own country. They came back 
with broader and more liberal views than 
they had carried away with them, and there 
sprang up in the English church a party 
which demanded a purer and more spiritual 
form of worship than that of the church. 
These persons were called in derision Puri- 
tans. They adopted the name without hesi- 
tation, and soon made it an honorable dis- 
tinction. 

The queen, however, was determined to 
compel her subjects to conform to the estab- 
lished church, and was especially resolved to 
make them acknowledge her supremacy over 
the church. To the Puritan the worship of 
the Church of England was only less sinful 
than that of Rome, and to acknowledge the 
queen as the head of the church was to com- 
mit blasphemy. He claimed that the queen 



had no control over him in matters of relig- 
ion, and that it was his right to worship God 
in his own way, without interference. The 
Puritans gradually came to embrace in their 
number some of the best men in the Eng- 
lish church. These sincerely deprecated a 
separation from the church, and earnestly 
desired to carry the reformation to the extent 
of remedying the abuses of which they 
complained, and to remain in communion 
with the church. One of the reforms which 
they wished to inaugurate was the abolition 
of Episcopacy. Failing in their efforts, they 
desired to be let alone to form their own or- 
ganizations and to worship God according to 
their own ideas, without the pale of the 
Church of England. 

The queen and the bishops were not con- 
tent to allow them this freedom. England 
had not yet learned the lesson of toleration, 
and severe measures were inaugurated to 
compel the dissenters to conform to the 
established church. All persons in the 
kingdom were required to conform to the 
ceremonies of the church. A refusal to do 
so was punished with banishment. Should 
any person so banished return to the king- 
dom without permission he was to be put to 
death. Accused persons were obliged to 

121 



122 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



answer upon oath all questions concerning 
themselves and their acquaintance, respect- 
ing their attendance upon public worship. 

Ministers refusing to conform to the estab- 
lished usage were deprived of their parishes; 
and if they persisted in preaching to their 
congregations, or if the congregations were 
detected in listening to their deposed pastors, 
the offenders were fined or subjected to some 
severe punishment. Absence from the ser- 
vices of the church for a certain length of 
time was also punished. The persecution 
thus inaugurated drove many of the noncon- 
formists, as they were termed, into exile from 
England. They fled to Holland and Swit- 




CHAIXED niBLE, TIME OF JAMES I. 

zerland, where alone they found " freedom to 
worship God." In spite of the severe meas- 
ures and determined efforts of Elizabeth, the 
Puritans increased steadily in numbers and 
importance in England. Persecution only 
served to multiply them. 



They were hopeful that James I. would 
prove a more lenient sovereign to them than 
Elizabeth had been, and they had good 
ground for this hope. The real character of 
James was unknown in England, and while 
King of Scotland he had shown great favor 
to the Presbyterians of that kingdom, whom 
it was his interest to conciliate. He had 
once publicly thanked God " that he was 
king of such a kirk — the purest kirk in all 
the world. As for the Kirk of England," 
he added, " its servn'ce is an evil-said mass." 
This most contemptible of monarchs had 
scarcely become King of England when he 
uttered the famous maxim, " No bishop, no 
king ! " Interest had made him the foe of 
Episcopacy in Scotland ; the same motive 
made him its champion in England. 

A Royal Demagogue. 

Upon his entrance into his new kingdom, 
the Puritans met him with an humble peti- 
tion for a redress of their grievances. James 
quickly saw that the majority of the E^nglish 
people favored a support of the church as it 
was, and had no sympathy with the Puri- 
tans, and he at once constituted himself the 
enemy of the petitioners. Still, in order to 
cover his desertion of the party to which he 
had belonged in Scotland, he appointed a 
conference at Hampton Court. 

The conference was held in January, 1604, 
and the king, silencing all real debate, made 
the meeting merely the occasion of display- 
ing what he regarded as his talents for theo- 
logical controversy, and for announcing the 
decision he had resolved upon from the first. 
He demanded entire obedience to the church 
in matters of faith and worship. " I will 
have none of that liberty as to ceremonies," 
he declared. " I will have one doctrine, 
one discipline, one religion in substance 
and in ceremony. Never speak more as to 
how far you are bound to obey." 



THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 



123 



The Puritans then demanded permission 
to hold occasional ceremonies of their own, 
with the right of free discussions in them ; 
but James, who could never tolerate the ex- 
pression of any opinion adverse to his own, 
replied : " You are aiming at a Scot's presby- 
tery, which agrees with monarchy as well as 
God and the devil. Then Jack and Tom 
and Will and Dick shall meet, and at their 
pleasure censure me and my council and all 
our proceedings. Then Will shall stand up 
and say. It must be thus. Then Dick shall 
reply and say, Nay, marry, but we will have 
it thus. And, therefore, here I must once 
more reiterate my former speech, and say, 
The king forbids." Then turning to the 
bishops, he added : " I Avill make them con- 
form, or I will harry them out of the land, 
or else worse ; only hang them ; that's all." 

Champions of Popular Liberty. 

The king kept his word. The severe laws 
against the nonconformists were enforced 
that year with such energy that three hun- 
dred Puritan ministers are said to have been 
silenced, imprisoned or exiled. The church 
party proceeded in the next few years to still 
more rigorous measures, and were willing 
even to place the liberties of the nation at 
the mercy of the crown in order to compel 
the submission of the Puritans. The intro- 
duction of foreign publications into the king- 
dom was greatly restricted, and the press 
was placed under a severe censorship. The 
Puritans were thus forced to become the 
champions of popular liberty against the 
tyranny of the crown and the ecclesiastical 
party. 

There was a congregation of Puritans in 
the north of England, composed of people 
of Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, with 
some from Yorkshire. The pastor was John 
Robinson, " a man not easily to be parallel- 
ed," who possessed in an unusual degree the 



love and confidence of his people. They 
were greatly harassed by the agents of the 
king and the bishops, and were subjected to 
such serious annoyances that it was with dif- 
ficulty that they could hold their meetings. 
Finding it impossible to live in peace at 
home without doing violence to their con- 
sciences, they determined to leave England 
and seek refuge from persecution in Holland. 
That country was friendly to the English, 
and the Dutch had learned from their own 
sufferings to respect the rights of conscience 
in others. 

It was not an easy matter to leave Eng- 
land, however, for it was held by the govern- 
ment to be almost a crime to attempt to 
escape from persecution. A vessel was 
hired to convey the refugees to Holland ; 
but the royal ofificers were informed of the 
intended voyage, and seized the whole com- 
pany as they were about to embark. Their 
persons were searched, their small posses- 
sions seized, and the whole church — men, 
women, and children — thrown into prison. 
In a short while all but seven were released. 
These were brought to trial, but it was found 
impossible to prove any crime against them, 
and they also were discharged. 

A Boat Stranded. 

This action of the government, so far from 
intimidating the sufferers, but increased their 
resolve to leave England, and in the spring 
of 1608 the effort was renewed. A Dutch 
captain consented to convey them to Hol- 
land, and it was agreed that the refugees 
should assemble upon a lonely heath in 
Lincolnshire, near the mouth of the H umber, 
and be taken on board by the Dutch skipper. 
The men of the party went to the rendezvous 
by land, and got safely on board the ship ; 
but the boat conveying the women and 
children was stranded and captured by a 
party of horsemen sent in pursuit. 




124 



THE PURITANS IN CONFERENCE WITH JAMES 



THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 



125 



The Dutch skipper, fearful of becoming in- 
volved in trouble with the English author- 
ities, at once put to sea, and the exiles were 
separated from their families, who were left 
helpless in the hands of their oppressors. 
The women and children were treated with 
great harshness by their captors, and were 
taken before the magistrates, who found it 
impossible to punish them for an attempt to 
follow the fortunes of their husbands and 
fathers. They were at loss to know what to 
do with the prisoners, who no longer had 
homes in England, and at last released them 
unconditionally, and permitted them to rejoin 
their natural protectors in Holland. 

The Pilgrims Discontented. 

The exiles reached Amsterdam in the 
spring of 1608. They were well pleased to 
be safe in this peaceful refuge, but they did 
not deceive themselves with the hope that it 
could ever be a home to them. " They 
knew they were Pilgrims, and looked not 
much on those things, but lifted up their 
eyes to Heaven, their dearest country, and 
quieted their spirits." They found it hard 
to earn a support in Amsterdam, and in 1609 
removed to Leyden, where, by their industry 
and frugality, they managed to live in com- 
parative comfort. Their piety and exemplary 
conduct won for them the respect of the 
Dutch, who would have openly shown them 
marked favor but for their fear of offending 
the king of England. The magistrates of 
Leyden bore ready witness to their purity of 
life. " Never," said they, " did we have 
any suit or accusation against any of them.'' 

In the course of time the Pilgrims were 
joined by a number of their brethren from 
England. They were nearly all accustomed 
to agricultural pursuits, and in Holland they 
were obliged to earn their bread by mechan- 
ical labors. It was with difficulty that they 
could do this, and they never formed any 



attachment to the place of their exile. They 
preserved, through all their trials, their affec- 
tion for their native land, and cherished the 
hope that they might continue Englishmen 
to the close of their lives. They viewed with 
alarm the prospect of raising their children 
in Holland, where they would necessarily be 
thrown in constant contact with, and be in- 
fluenced by, the manners and customs of the 
country. 

Above all they dreaded the effect upon 
their children of the dissolute example of the 
disbanded soldiers and sailors who filled the 
country. These and other things made 
them unwilling to look upon Holland as 
their permanent home. But whither should 
the}'' go in case of their departure from Hol- 
land? Their own country was closed 
against them, and the nations of continental 
Europe could offer them no asylum. As 
their conviction, that it was their duty to 
seek some other home, deepened, their 
thoughts became more irresistibly directed 
towards the new world. In the vast soli- 
tudes of the American continent, and there 
alone, they could establish a home in which 
they could worship God without fear or 
molestation, and rear their children in the 
ways that seemed to them good. Thither 
would they go. 

Seeking a New Home. 

They were anxious to make their venture- 
under the protection of England, and de- 
clined the offers made them by the Dutch, 
who wished them to establish their colony 
as a dependency of Holland. They had 
heard of the excellent climate and fertile soil 
of Virginia, and it seemed best to them to 
choose that promising region as the scene of 
their experiment. It was necessary to obtain 
the consent of the London Company to their 
settlement, as Virginia had been granted to 
that body by the king of England ; and in 




126 



THE PILGRIMS AT PLYMOUTH. 



THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 



127 



1617 two of the leading members of the 
congregation — John Carver and Robert 
Cushman — went to England to lay their ap- 
plication before the company. 

They were kindly received by Sir Edwin 
Sandys, the secretary of the company. They 
laid before the directors the request for per- 
mission to form a settlement in Virginia, with 
which they had been charged by their breth- 
ren. The application was signed by the 
greater part of the congregation, and con- 
tained a statement of their principles, and 
their reasons for desiring to emigrate to 
America. " We verily believe that God is 
with "js," said the petitioners,' " and will pros- 
per us in our endeavors; we are weaned 
from our mother country, and have learned 
patience in a hard and strange land. We 
are industrious and frugal ; we are bound 
together by a sacred bond of the Lord, 
whereof we make great conscience, holding 
ourselves to each other's good. We do not 
wish ourselves home again ; we have nothing 
to hope from England or Holland ; we are 
men who will not be easily discouraged." 

Efforts to Reach America. 

The appeal of the Pilgrims was received 
with such favor by the London Company 
that Carver and Cushman ventured to peti- 
tion the king to grant them liberty to exer- 
cise their religion unmolested in the wilds of 
America. The most that James would con- 
sent to grant them, however, was a half 
promise to pay no attention to them in their 
new home. The London Company agreed 
to grant them permission to settle in Vir- 
ginia, but the dissensions of that body pre- 
vented anything from being done in their 
behalf. 

The Pilgrims were too poor to defray the 
cost of their emigration, and they set to work 
to find persons of means willing to assist 
them. At length they were successful, and 



a company was formed consisting of them- 
selves and several merchants of London. 
The latter were to advance the funds neces- 
sary for the enterprise, while the former were 
to contribute their entire services for a period 
of seven years as their share of the stock of 
the company. At the end of seven years 
the profits of the enterprise were to be 
divided according to the amount of each 
one's investment ; and it was agreed that 
a contribution of ten pounds in money 
by a merchant should be entitled to as great 
a share of the profits as seven years of labor 
on the part of the emigrant. 

Departure for the Ne"W World. 

These were hard terms for the Pilgrims, but 
they were the best they could obtain, and 
they were accepted, as the exiles were will- 
ing to suffer any sacrifice in order to be able 
to found a community of their own in which 
they could bring up their children in the fear 
of God. The main thing with them was to 
reach the shores of America. Once there 
these men who had learned the lessons ol' 
self-denial and endurance did not doubt their 
ability to succeed even in the face of the 
heavy disadvantages they were obliged to 
assume. 

With the funds thus obtained the Pilgrims 
began to prepare for their departure. A 
ship of sixty tons, called the " Speedwell," 
was purchased, and another, of one hundred 
and eighty tons, called the " Mayflower," 
was chartered. These, however, could trans- 
port but a part of the congregation, and it 
was resolved to send out at first only " such 
of the youngest and strongest as freely 
offered themselves." The pastor, Robinson, 
and the aged and infirm were to remain at 
Leyden until their brethren could send for 
them, and the colony was placed under the 
guidance of William Brewster, the governing 
elder, who was an able teacher and much 



128 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



respected and beloved for his noble char- 
acter. 

When all was in readiness, a day of fasting 
and prayer was held, in order that at the 
very beginning of their enterprise the Pilgrims 
might invoke the guidance and protection of 
God. " Let us seek of God," they said, " a 




" I charge you before God and his blessed 
angels," he said, in tones of deep emotion, 
"that you follow me no further than you 
have seen me follow the Lord Jesus Christ, If 
God reveal anything to you, be ready to re- 
ceive it ; for I am verily persuaded that the 
Lord has more truth yet to break out of his 
holy word. I beseech 



THE MAYFLOWER IN PLYMOUTH HARBOR 

right way for us, and for our little ones, and 
for all of our substance." The venerable 
pastor made this solemn season the occasion 
of delivering a tender farewell to the mem- 
bers of his charge who were about to depart, 
and of appealing to them to be true to the 
principles of their religion in their new home. 



you, remember that it 
is an article of your 
church covenant, that 
you be ready to re- 
ceive whatever truth 
shall be made known 
to you from the writ- 
ten word of God. Take 
heed what ye receive 
as truth ; examine it, 
consider it, and com- 
pare it with other 
scriptures of truth be- 
fore you receive it ; 
the Christian world 
has not yet come to 
the perfection of 
knowledge." 

From Leyden a 
number of the breth- 
ren accompanied the 
emigrants to Delft 
Haven, from which 
port they were to sail. 
The night before their 
departure, they all as- 
sembled in prayer and 
religious exercises, 
which were continued 
until the dawn, when they prepared to 
go on board the ship. Arrived at the 
shore, they knelt again, and the pastor, 
Robinson, led them in prayer — the emigrants 
listening to his voice for the last time on 
earth. "And so," says Edward Winslow, 
" lifting up our hands to each other, and 



THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 



129 



our hearts to the Lord our God, we de- 
parted." 

Southampton was soon reached, and the 
voyagers were transferred to the " May- 
flower "and the " Speedwell." On the fifth 
of August, 1620, those vessels sailed from 
Southampton for America. Soon after get- 
ting to sea, it was discovered that the 
" Speedwell " was in need of repairs, and that 
they must return to England. They put 
about and reached the port of Dartmouth, 
where the smaller vessel was repaired. 
Eight days were consumed in this undertak- 
ing, and the voyage was resumed. 

One Ship Abandoned. 

They were scarcely out of sight of land 
when the commander of the "Speedwell,'" 
alarmed by the dangers of the voyage, de- 
clared that his ship was not strong enough 
to cross the ocean. The vessels at once put 
back to Plymouth, where the smaller ship 
was discharged. At the same time those 
who had grown faint-hearted were permitted 
to withdraw from the expedition. The re- 
mainder of the company, to the number of 
one hundred and one, sailed from Plymouth 
in the " Mayflower," on the sixth of Septem- 
ber, 1620. Some of these were women well 
advanced in pregnancy, and some were 
children. Their little vessel was but a frail 
barque compared with the ships that now 
navigate the sea ; but a band of braver and 
more resolute souls never trusted themselves 
to the mercies of the stormy Atlantic. 

The leading man in the little band of 
Pilgrims was the ruling elder, William Brew- 
ster, who was to be their preacher until the 
arrival of a regularly chosen pastor. He 
was a man of fine education, refined and 
scholarly tastes, and of pure and lofty Chris- 
tian character. " He laid his hand," says 
Elliott, "to the daily tasks of life, as well as 
spent his soul in trying to benefit his fellows 
9 



— so bringing himself as near as possible 'lo 
the early Christian practices ; he was worthy 
of being the first minister of New England." 
He was well advanced in life, and was 
looked up to with affectionate regard by his 
associates. 

Another was John Carver, also a man of 
years and ripe experience, who had sacrificed^ 
his fortune to the cause, and whose dignified 
and benevolent character won him the honor 
of being chosen the first chief magistrate of 
the colony. 




GOVERNOR BREWSTER S CHAIR. 

Prominent among the leaders was William 
Bradford. He was only thirty-two, but was, 
a man of earnest and resolute character, firm 
and true, "a man of nerve and public spirit." 
He had begun life as a farmer's boy in Eng- 
land, and in Holland had supported himself 
by practising tlie art of dyeing; but, in spite 
of his constant labors, he had educated him 
self and had managed to accumulate books of 
his own. He systematically devoted a large 



I30 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



part of his time to study, and thus carefully 
trained his great natural abilities. 

Edward Winsiow, a man of sweet and 
amiable disposition, was twenty-six years old. 
He was a gentleman by birtli, and had been 
well educated, and had acquired consider- 
able information and experience by travel. 

Miles Standish • had attained the manly 
age of thirty-six, and was a veteran soldier. 
He had seen service in the wars of the con- 
tinent of Europe, and had gained an honor- 
able distinction in them. He was not a 
member of the church, but was strongly at- 
tached to its institutions. 

" With the people of God he had chosen to suffer 
affliction ; 

Jn return for his zeal, they made him Captain of 
Plymouth ; 

He was a man of honor, of noble and generous na- 
ture ; 

Though he was rough, he was kindly .... 

Somewhat hasty and hot .... and headstrong, 

Stern as a soldier might be, but hearty and placable 
always. 

Not to be laughed at and scorned, because he was 
little of stature ; 

For he was great of heart, magnanimous, courtly, 
courageous." 

Tempestuous Voyage, 

The voyage of the " Mayflower " was long 
and stormy. The Pilgrims had selected the 
country near the mouth of the Hudson as the 
best region for their settlement, but a severe 
storm drove them northward to the coast of 
New England. Sixty-three days were con- 
sumed in the passage, during which, one of 
their number had died, and at length land 
was made, and two days later, the " May- 
flower " cast anchor in the harbor of Cape 
Cod. 

The Pilgrims had come to America at 
their own risk and without the sanction of, 
or a charter from, the king or any lawful 
organization in England. They were thrown 
upon their own resources, and could look to 



no quarter for protection or support. Appre- 
ciating the necessity of an organized govern- 
ment, their first acts after anchoring in Cape 
Cod bay were to organize themselves into a 
body politic and to form a government. 

The First Compact. 

The following compact was drawn up m 
the cabin of the " Mayflower," and was 
signed by all the men of the colony, to the 
number of forty-one : " In the name of God, 
amen ; we whose names are underwritten, 
the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign 
King James, having undertaken, for the glory 
of God and advancement of the Christian 
faith, and honor of our king and country, a 
voyage to plant the first colony in the north- 
ern parts of Virginia, do, by these presents, 
solemnly and mutually, in the presence of 
God and of one another, covenant and com- 
bine ourselves together, in a civil body 
politic, for our better ordering and preserva- 
tion, and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; 
and by virtue hereof, to enact, constitute and 
frame such just and equal laws, ordinances, 
acts, constitutions and offices, from time to 
time, as shall be thought most convenient 
for the general good of the colony, unto 
which we promise all due submission and 
obedience." 

This was the first constitution of New 
England, democratic in form, and resting 
upon the consent of the governed. It at 
once established the new commonwealth 
upon the basis of constitutional liberty, and 
secured to the people "just and equal laws " 
for the " general good." In virtue of the 
compact, John Carver was chosen governor 
of the colony for the ensuing year. 

The prospect which presented itself to the 
Pilgrims upon their arrival at Cape Cod 
might well have daunted even their resolute 
souls. It was the opening of the winter, and 
they had come to a barren and rugged coast. 



THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 



i^.i 



The climate was severe, and the land was a 
wilderness. The English colony in Virginia 
was five hundred miles distant, and to the 
north of them the nearest white settlement 
was the French colony at Port Royal. The 
" Mayflower " was only chartered to convey 
them to America, and must return to Eng- 
land as soon as they had chosen a site and 
established a settlement. Yet no one fal- 
tered. The new land was reached, the diffi- 
culties and dangers were such as could be 
overcome by patience and fortitude, and the 
Pilgrims without hesitation addressed them- 
selves to the task before them. 

Planting the Colony. 

The first thing to be done was to explore 
the coast and choose a site for the colony, 
for it was important to begin their settlement 
before the severity of the winter should ren- 
der such an effort impossible. The shallop 
was gotten out, but unfortunately it was 
found to need repairs. The ship's carpenter 
worked so slowly that nearly three weeks 
were spent in this task. This delay was a 
great misfortune at this advanced season of 
the year, and, some of the party becoming 
impatient, it was resolved to go ashore in the 
ship's boat and explore the country by land. 
A party of sixteen men was detailed for this 
purpose, and placed under the command of 
Captain Miles Standish. William Bradford, 
Stephen Hopkins and Edward Tilly were 
included in the party as a council of war. 
The explorers were given numerous instruc- 
tions, and were rather permitted than ordered 
to go upon their journey, which was 
regarded as perilous, and the time of their 
absence was limited to two days. 

Upon reaching the shore they followed it 
for about a mile, when they discovered sev- 
eral Indians watching them from a distance. 
The savages fled as soon as they saw they 
were observed, and the whites followed in 



pursuit. They struck the trail of the retreat- 
ing Indians, and followed it until nightfall, 
but being encumbered by the weight of their 
armor and impeded by the tangled thickets 
through which they had to pass, they were 
unable to overtake the Indians. The 
explorers bivouacked that night by a clear 




LANDING OF THE PILGRIMS. 

spring, whose waters refreshed them after 
their fatiguing march. They made few dis- 
coveries, but the expedition was not entirely 
unprofitable. 

An Indian Graveyard. 

In one place they found a deer-trap, made 
by bending a young tree to the earth, with a 
noose underground covered with acorns. 
Mr. Bradford was caught by the foot in this 
snare, which occasioned much merriment. 



n2 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



An Indian graveyard was discovered in 
another place, and in one of the graves there 
was an earthen pot, a mortar, a bow and 
some arrows, and other rude implements. 
T liese were carefully replaced by the whites, 
\\ho respected the resting-place of the dead. 
The most important discovery was the find- 
ing of a cellar or pit carefully lined with 
bark, and covered over with a heap of sand, 
and containing about four bushels of seed 
corn in ears. As much of this as the men 
could carry was secured, and it was deter- 
mined to pay the owners of the corn for it as 
soon as they could be found. 

Searching the Neighborhood. 

The shallop being finished at length, a 
party, consisting of Carver, Bradford, Wins- 
low, Standish and others, with eight or ten 
seamen, was sent out on a second expedition 
on the sixth of December. The weather 
was very cold, and their clothing, drenched 
with spray, froze as stiff as iron armor. They 
reached the bottom of Cape Cod bay that 
day, and landed, instructing the people in the 
shallop to follow them along the shore. The 
next day they divided, and searched the 
neighborhood. They found a number of 
Indian graves, and some deserted wigwams, 
but saw no signs of the inhabitants of the 
country. That night they encamped near 
Namtasket, or Great Meadow Creek. On the 
morning of the eighth of December, just as 
they had finished their prayers, the explorers 
were startled by a war-whoop and a flight of 
Arrows. The Indians, who were of the tribe 
of the Nausites, were put to flight by the dis- 
charge of a few guns. Some of their people 
had been kidnapped by the English a few 
years before, and hence they regarded the 
new-comers as bent on the same errand. 

The day Avas spent in searching for a safe 
harbor for the siiip, and at nightfall a violent 
storm of rain and snow drove them through 



the breakers into a small cove sheltered 
from the gale by a hill. They were so wet 
and chilled that they landed at once, and, 
regardless of the danger of drawing the sav- 
ages upon them, built a fire with great diffi- 
culty, in order to keep from perishing with 
the cold. When the morning dawned they 
found that they were on an island at the 
entrance to a harbor. The day was spent in 
rest and preparations. 

The next day, December loth, was the 
Sabbath, and, notwithstanding the need of 
prompt action, they s[)cnt it in rest and 
religious exercises. The next day, Decem- 
ber II, 1620, old style, or December 22d, 
according to our present system, the explor- 
ing party of the Pilgrims landed at the head 
of the harbor they had discovered. The rock 
upon which their footsteps were first planted 
is still preserved by their descendants. The 
place was explored and chosen as the site of 
the settlement, and was named Plymouth, in 
memory of the last English town from which 
the Pilgrims had sailed. 

Anchored at Plymouth. 

The adventurers hastened back to the ship, 
which stood across the bay, and four days 
later cast anchor in Plymouth harbor. No 
time was to be lost; the " Mayflower " must 
soon return to England, and the emigrants 
must have some shelter over their heads be- 
fore her departure. To save time each man 
was allowed to build his own house. This 
was a most arduous task. Many of the 
men were almost broken down by their ex- 
posure to the cold, and some had alread}' 
contracted the fatal diseases which were to 
carry them to the grave before the close c f 
the winter. Still they persevered, working 
bravely when the absence of rain and snow 
would permit them to do so. 

As the winter deepened, the sickness and 
mortality of the colony increased. At one 



THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 



133 



time there were but seven well men in the 
company. More than forty of the settlers 
died during the winter. John Carver, the 
good governor of the colony, buried his son, 
and himself soon succumbed to the hardships 
from which he had never shrunk, though 
never able to endure them. He was followed 
by his heart-broken widow. The wives of 
Bradford and Winslow, and Rose Standish, 
the sweet young bride of "the Captain of 
Plymouth" were also among the victims. 
They were all buried on the shore near the 
rock on which they 
had landed, and lest 
their graves should 
tell the Indians of the 
sufferings and weak- 
ness of the settlement, 
their resting-place was 
levelled and sown with 
grass. William Brad- 
ford was chosen gov- 
ernor in the place of 
Carver, and the work 
went on with firm- 
ness and without re- 
pining. 

At last the long win- 
ter drew to a close, and 
the balmy spring came 
to cheer the settlers 
with its bright skies 
and warm breezes. 

The sick began to recover, and the building 
of the settlement was completed. In course 
of time a large shed was erected for the 
public stores, and a small hospital for the 
sick. A church was also built. It was 
made stronger than the other buildings, as it 
was to serve as a fortress as well as a place 
of worship, and four cannon were mounted 
on top of it for defence against the savages. 
Here they assembled on the Sabbath for 
religious worship, and to hear the word of 



God from the lips of their pastor, the good 
Elder Brewster. In the spring the ground 
was prepared for cultivation, but until the 
harvest was grown the colonists lived by 
fishing and hunting. 

No Wish to Leave the Wilderness. 

In March, 1 621, the " Mayflower " sailed 
for England. Not one of the Pilgrims 
wished to return in her. They had their 
trials, and these were sore and heavy, but 
they had also made a home and a govern- 




HE FIRST CHURCH IN NEW ENGLAND. 

ment for themselves, where they could enjoy 
the benefits and protection of their own laws, 
and worship God in safety and in peace. 
They did not doubt that they would some 
day triumph over their difficulties, and that 
God would in His own good time crown their 
labors and their patience with success. 

In the autumn of 1621, a reinforcement of 
new emigrants arrived. They brought no 
provisions, and were dependent upon the 
scanty stock of the colony, and the increased 



134 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



demand upon this soon brought the settlers 
face to face with the danger of famine. For 
six months no one received more than half 
allowance, and this was frequently reduced. 
"'I have seen men," says Winslow, " stagger 
by reason of faintness for want of food." 
On one occasion the whole company 
would have perished but for the kindness 
of some fishermen, who relieved their 
wants. 

Every Man for Himself. 

This .scarcity of provisions continued for 
several years, and it was not until the end of 
the fourth year of the settlement that the 
colonists had anything like a proper supply 
of food. In that year neat cattle were intro- 
duced into Plymouth. None of the colonies 
were called upon to endure such privations 
as were suffered by the Pilgrims. Yet they 
bore them with unshaken fortitude, still 
trusting that God would give them a pleas- 
anter lot in the end. 

The conditions of the contract with the 
English merchants had required the labor of 
the colonists to be thrown into the common 
stock. This was found to be an unprofitable 
arrangement, and in 1623 it was agreed that 
each settler should plant for himself, and each 
family was assigned a parcel of land in pro- 
portion to its numbers, to cultivate, but " not 
for an inheritance." This arrangement gave 
great satisfaction and the colonists went to 
work with such a will that after this season 
there was no scarcity of food. In the spring 
of 1624 each colonist was given a little land in 
fee. The very existence of the colony de- 
manded this departure from the hard bargain 
with the English merchants, and the result 
justified the measure. Abundant harvests 
rewarded the labors of the settlers, and corn 
soon became so plentiful that the colonists 
were able to supply the savages with it. 
These, preferring the chase to the labor of 



the field, brought in game and skins to 
Plymouth and received corn in return. 

In the meantime a friendly intercourse had 
sprung up between the settlers and the 
Indians. In the first year of the settlement 
the red men were seen hovering upon the 
outskirts of the village, but they fled upon the 
approach of the whites. Distant columns of 
smoke, rising beyond the woods, told that the 
savages were close at hand, and it was 
deemed best to organize the settlers into a 
military company, the command of which 
was given to Miles Standish. One day, in 
March, 162 1, the whole village was startled 
by the appearance of an Indian, who boldly 
entered the settlement, and greeted the whites 
with the friendly words, " Welcome, English- 
men ! Welcome, Englishmen ! " 

A Romantic History. 

He was kindly received, and it was found 
that he was Samoset, and had learned a 
little English of the fishermen at Penobscot. 
He belonged to the Wampanoags, a tribe oc- 
cupying the country north of Narragansett 
Bay and between the rivers of Providence and 
Taunton. He told them that they might 
possess the lands they had taken in peace, as 
the tribe to which they had belonged had 
been swept away by a pestilence the year be- 
fore the arrival of the Pilgrims. He re- 
mained one night with the settlers, who gave 
him a knife, a ring, and a bracelet, and then 
went back to his people, promising to return 
soon and bring other Indians to trade with 
them. In a few days he came back, bring- 
ing with him Squanto, the Indian who had 
been kidnapped by Hunt and sold in Spain. 

From that country Squanto had escaped 
to England, where he had learned the lan- 
guage. He had managed to return to his 
own country, and now appeared to act as 
interpreter to the English in their inter- 
course with his people. They announced 



THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 



135 



that Massasoit, the sachem of the Wampa- 
noags, desired to visit the colony. The 
chieftain was received with all the ceremony 
the little settlement could afford. Squanto 
acted as interpreter, and a treaty of friendship 
was arranged between Massasoit on behalf of 
his people and the English. 

Friendly Agreement. 

The parties to the agreement promised to 
treat each other with kindness and justice, to 
deliver up offenders, and to assist each other 
when attacked by their enemies. This treaty 
was faithfully observ- 
ed by both parties for 
fifty years. The Pil- 
grims expressed their 
willingness to pay for 
the baskets of corn 
that had been taken 
by their first explor- 
ing party, and this 
they did six months 
later, when the right- 
ful owners presented 
themselves. A trade 
with the Indians was 
established and furs 
were brought into 
Plymouth by them 
and sold for articles 
of European manu- 
facture. 

Squanto was the faithful friend of the col- 
ony to the end of his life, and was regarded 
by the Pilgrims as " a special instrument sent 
of God for their good beyond their expecta- 
tion." He taught them the Indian method of 
planting corn and putting fish with it to fer- 
tilize the ground, and where to find and how 
to catch fish and game. He showed them 
his friendship in many ways, and was during 
liis lifetime the interpreter of the colony. 
The Pilgrims on their part were not ungrate- 
ful to him. 



On one occasion it was rumored in Ply- 
fnouth that Squanto had been seized by the 
Narragansetts, and had been put to death. 
A party of ten men at once marched into 
the forest, and surprised the hut where the 
chief of the Narragansetts was. Although 
the tribe could bring five thousand war- 
riors into the field, the chief was overawed 
by the determined action of the English, 
whose firearms gave them a great superi- 
ority, and Squanto was released unharmed. 
On his death-bed Squanto, who had been 




THE TREATY BETWEEN PLYMOUTH COLONY AND MASSASOIT. 

carefully nursed by his white friends, asked 
the governor to pray that he might go to 
"the Englishman's God in Heaven." His 
death was regarded as a serious misfortune 
to the colony. 



The Great Chief Massasoit. 

Massasoit, whose tribe had been greatly 
reduced by pestilence, desired the alliance of 
the English as a protection against the Nar- 
ragansetts, who had escaped the scourge, and 
whose chief, Canonicus, was hostile to him. 



136 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



The Narragansetts lived upon the shores of 
the beautiful bay to which they have given 
their name, and were a powerful and warlike 
race. Canonicus regarded the English with 
hostility, and in 1622 sent them as a defiance 
a bundle of arrows wrapped in the skin of a 
rattlesnake. 

Governor Bradford received the challenge 
from the hands of the chieftain's messenger, 
and stuffing the skin with powder and ball re- 
turned it to him, and sternly bade him bear 
it back to his master. The Indians regarded 
the mysterious contents of the skin with ter- 
ror and dread, and passed it from tribe to 
tribe. None dared either keep or destroy it, 
as it was regarded as possessed of some mys- 
terious but powerful influence for harm. It 
was finally returned to the colony, and in a 
short while Canonicus, who had been cowed 
by the spirited answer of Bradford, offered to 
make a treaty of peace and alliance with the 
colony. 

The Pilgrims endeavored to treat the 
Indians with justice. Severe penalties were 
denounced against those who should deprive 
the savages of their property without paying 
for it, or should treat them with violence. 
Yet the colonists were to have trouble with 
the red men, and that through no fault of 
their own. It happened on this wise. 

A Timely \Varning. 

Among the merchants of London who had 
invested money in the planting of the Ply- 
mouth colony was Thomas Weston. Envi- 
ous of the advance made by the colony in 
the fur trade, he desired to secure all the 
profits of that traffic by establishing a trading- 
post of his own. He obtained a patent for a 
small tract on Boston harbor, near Wey- 
mouth, and settled there a colony of sixty 
men, the greater number of whom were in- 
dentured servants. These men, disregarding 
the warnings of the people of Plymouth, gave 



themselves up to a dissolute life, and drew 
upon themselves the wrath of the Indians by 
maltreating them, and stealing their corn. 
The Indians, unable to distinguish between 
the guilty and the innocent, resolved to 
avenge the misconduct of Weston's men by 
a massacre of every white settler in thecoun- 
try. 

Before the plot could be put in execution 
Massasoit fell sick. Winslow visited him, 
and found his lodge full of medicine-men and 
jugglers, who were killing him with the 
noise they made to drive away the disease. 
The kind-hearted Englishman turned the 
Indian doctors out of the lodge, and by giv- 
ing Massasoit rest, and administering such 
remedies as his case required, restored him to 
health. The grateful chief revealed the plot 
of his people for the extermination of the 
English. The Plymouth settlers were greatly 
alarmed, and measures were promptly taken 
to avert the danger. 

Nine White Braves. 

Standish, with eight armed men, was sent 
to the assistance of the settlement at Wey- 
mouth. They arrived in time to prevent the 
attack. The Indians, who had begun to 
collect for the massacre, were surprised and 
defeated in a brief engagement, and the chief, 
who was the leader of the conspiracy, was 
slain, with a number of his men. This 
gallant exploit established the supremacy of 
the English in New England, and many of 
the native tribes sought their friendship and 
alliance. The Weymouth men were unwill- 
ing to continue their colony after their nar- 
row escape. Some went to Plymouth where 
they became a source of trouble, and others 
returned to England. The spring of 1623 
saw the last of this settlement. 

In the autumn of 1623 the best harvest 
was gathered in that had yet blessed the 
labors of the Pilgrims. It was an abundant 



THI': PILGRIM FATHERS. 



137 



yield, and put an end to alf fears of a re- 
newal of the danger of famine. When the 
labors of the harvest were over Governor 
'Bradford sent out men to collect game, in 
order that the people might enjoy a thanks- 
giving feast. On the appointed day the 
people " met together and thanked God with 
all their hearts for the good world and the 
good things in it." Thus was established 
the custom of an annual thanksgiving to 
God for the blessings of the year, which 
though at first a celebration peculiar to New 
England has at length become a national 
festival. 

Each Settler a Land Owner. 

The colonists themselves were satisfied 
with the progress they had made, but their 
merchant partners in England were greatly 
displeased with the smallness of the profits 
they had received from their investments, 
and in many ways made the colony feel their 
dissatisfaction. Robinson and his congrega- 
tion at Leyden were anxious to join their 
friends in America, but the merchant partners 
refused to send them across the Atlantic, and 
not content with this endeavored to force 
upon the Plymouth people a pastor friendly 
to the Church of England. They soon got 
rid of this individual, however, whose con- 
duct quickly enabled them to expel him from 
Plymouth as an evil liver. The merchants 
also sent a vessel to New England to oppose 
the colonists in the fur trade ; and demanded 
exorbitant prices for the goods they sold the 
settlers, charging them the enormous profit 
of seventy per cent. 

It was not possible, however, to destroy 
the results of the industry and self-denial of 
the Pilgrims. Seeing that their association 
with their English partners would continue to 
operate merely as a drag upon the advance 



of the colony, they managed in 1627, at con- 
siderable sacrifice, tc^ purchase the entire 
interest of their partners. The stock and 
the land of the colony were then divided 
equitably among the settlers, and the share 
of each man became his own private prop- 
erty. Each settler was thus made the owner 
of a piece of land which it was to his in- 
terest to improve to the highest degree pos- 
sible. Freed from the burdens under which 
it had labored for so long, the colony began 
to increase in prosperity and in population. 

The government of the Pilgrims was sim- 
ple, but effective. They had no charter, and 
were from the first driven upon their own 
resources. They had a governor who was 
chosen by the votes of all the settlers. In 
1624 a council of five was given him, and in 
1633 this number was increased to seven. 
The council assisted the governor in the ex- 
ercise of his duties, and imposed a check 
upon his authority, as in its meetings he had 
merely a double vote. The whole number of 
male settlers for eighteen years constituted 
the legislative body. They met at stated 
times, and enacted such laws as were neces- 
sary for the welfare of the colony. The 
people were frequently convened by the gov- 
ernor, in the earlier years of the settlement, 
to aid him with their advice upon difficult 
questions brought before them. When the 
colony increased in population, and a number 
of towns were included within its limits, each 
town sent representatives to a general court 
at Plymouth. 

If the colony grew slowly, it grew steadily, 
and at length the Pilgrims had their reward 
in seeing their little settlement expand into a 
flourishing province, in which the principles 
of civil freedom were cherished, religion 
honored, and industry and economy made 
the basis of the Vv'ealth of the little state. 



CHAPTER XI 
Settlement of Massachusetts and Rhode Island 



Settlement of New Hampshire — T le English Puritans Determine to Form a New Colony in America — The Plymouth 
Council — A Colony Sent Out to Salem under Endicott — Colonization of Massachusetts Bay Begun — A Charter Obtained 
— Concessions of the King — Progress of the Salem Colony — The Charter and Government of the Colony Removed to 
New England — Arrival of Governor Winthrop — Settlement of Boston — Sufferings of the Colonists — Roger Williams 
— His Opinions Give Offence to the Authorities — The Success of the Bay Colony Established — Growth of Popular 
Liberty — The Ballot Box — Banishment of Roger Williams — He Goes into the Wilderness — Founds Providence — 
Growth of Williams' Colony — Continued Growth of Massachusetts — Arrival of Sir Henry Vane — Is Elected Governor 
— Mrs. Anne Hutchinson — The Antinomian Controversy — Mrs. Hutchinson Banished — Settlement of Rhode Island — 
Murder of Mrs. Hutchinson. 



THE success of the Pilgrims in es- 
tablishing the Plymouth colony 
aroused a feeling of deep interest 
in England, and some of those who 
had watched the effort were encouraged to 
attempt ventures of their own. Sir Ferdi- 
nand Gorges, who had taken a deep interest 
in the schemes to settle the new world, and 
John Mason, the secretary of the council of 
Plymouth, obtained a patent for the region 
called Laconia, which comprised the whole 
country between the sea, the St. Lawrence, 
the Merrimac and the Kennebec, and now 
embraced partly in Maine and partly in New 
Hampshire. A company of English mer- 
chants was formed, and in 1623 permanent 
colonies were established at Portsmouth, 
Dover and one or two other places near the 
mouth of the Piscataqua. These were small, 
feeble settlements, and were more trading- 
posts than towns. . 

For many years their growth was slow, 
and it was not until other parts of New 
England were well peopled and advanced 
far beyond their early trials that they began 
to show signs of prosperity. In 1653, thirty 
years after its settlement, Portsmouth con- 
tained only "between fifty and sixty families." 
The settlers of these towns were not all 
138 



Puritans, and their colonies had not the re- 
ligious character of those of the rest of New 
England. In 1641, they were annexed at 
their own request to the province of Massa- 
chusetts, the general court having agreed not 
to require the freemen and deputies to be 
church members. 

In the meantime the news of the successful 
planting of Plymouth was producing other 
and more important results in England. 
The persecutions of the Non-conformists,, 
which marked the entire refgn of James I., 
were continued through that of his son and 
successor, Charles I. The Puritans, sorely 
distressed by the tyranny to which they were 
subjected, listened with eagerness to the ac- 
counts of America which were sent over by 
the members of the Plymouth colony, and 
published from time to time in England. 
The descriptions of the Pilgrims were not 
exaggerated. They did not promise either 
fame or sudden wealth to settlers in their 
province, but clearly set forth the cares and 
labors which were to be the price of success 
in America. 

They dwelt with especial emphasis, how- 
ever, upon that which was in their eyes the 
chief reward of all their toil and suffering — 
the ability to exercise their religion without 



SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 



139 



restraint. Their brethren in England heard 
their accounts with a longing to be with 
them to enjoy the freedom with which they 
were blessed, and it was not long before a 
number of English Non-conformists began 
to concert measures for making New Eng- 
land a place of refuge for the persecuted 
members of their faith. The leading spirit 
in these enterprises was the 
Rev. Mr. White, a minister 
of Dorsetshire, a Puritan, 
but not a Separatist. Re- 
garding the vicinity of the 
present town of Salem as 
the most suitable place for 
colonization, he exerted 
himself with energy to se- 
cure it for his brethren. 

In the meantime the 
Plymouth Company had 
ceased to exist, and its 
place had been taken by 
the council of Plymouth. 
That body cared for New 
England only as a source 
of profit, and soJd the ter- 
ritory of that region to 
a number of purchasers, 
assigning the same district 
to different people, and thus 
paving the way for vexa- 
tious litigation. In 1628, 
it sold to a company of 
gentlemen of Dorchester, 
which White's energy had 
succeeded in bringing into 
existence, a district extending from three 
miles south of Massachusetts Bay to three 
miles north of the Merrimac River. As 
was usual in all grants of the day, the 
Pacific was made the western boundary of 
this region. 

This company was at once prepared to 
send out a colony, and in the early summer 



of that year one hundred persons under 
John Endicott, as governor, were despatched 
to New England. Endicott took his family 
with him, and in September, 1628, reached 
New England, and established the settlement 
of Salem, the site of which was already occu- 
pied by a few men whom White had placed 
there to hold 't. Endicott, who was a man 




JOHN ENDICOTT. 

of undaunted courage and acknowledged in- 
tegrity of character, soon established his 
authority over the few settlements that had 
sprung up along the shores of the bay. At 
this time the site of Charlestown was occupied 
by an Englishman named Thomas Walford, 
a blacksmith, who had fortified his cabin 
with a palisade. The only dweller on the 



140 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



tri-mountain peninsula of Shawmi-.t was the 
Rev. William Blackstone, a clergyman of the 
Church of England ; the island now known 
as East Boston was occupied by Samuel 
Maverick. At Nantasket and a few places 
farther south some Englishmen had located 
themselves, and lived by fishing and trading 
in skins : and on the site of Quincy was the 
wreck of a colony which had nearly perished 
in consequence of its evils ways. These, 
with the settlement at Salem, constituted the 
colony of Massachusetts Bay. 

Arrivals at Salem. 

Soon after the departure of Endicott's 
colony from England, the company, acting 
upon the advice of their counsel, obtained 
from the king a confimation of their grant. 
In March, 1629, the king granted to the 
colony of Massachusetts Bay a charter 
under which it conducted its affairs for more 
than fifty years. By the terms of this charter 
the governor was to be elected by the free- 
men for the term of one year, provision was 
made for the assembling at stated times of a 
general court, which was to have the power 
to make all the needed laws for the colony, 
and it was not necessary that these laws should 
receive the royal signature in order to be 
valid. This was conceding practical inde- 
pendence to the colony. 

In the spring of 1629, a second company 
of emigrants sailed from England for Massa- 
chusetts. They were, like the first, all Puri- 
tans, and took with them, as their minister, 
the Rev. Francis Higginson, formerly of 
Jesus College, Cambridge, a man of learn- 
ing and deep piety. The colonists were 
instructed to do no violence to the Indians. 
•" If any of the salvages," so read the com- 
pany's orders, " pretend right of inheritance 
to all or any part of the lands granted in our 
patent, endeavor to purchase their tytle, that 
we may avoid the least scruple of intrusion." 



Six shipwrights were sent over for the use 
of the colony, an experienced engineer to 
lay out a fortified town, and a master gun- 
ner, who was to teach the men of the colony 
the use of arms and military exercises. 
Cattle and horses and goats were sent out 
also. 

The voyage was prosperous, and the new 
settlers reached Salem about the last of June. 
They found the settlement in a feeble con- 
dition, and greatly in need of their assistance. 
The old and the new colonists numbered 
about three hundred. The majority of these 
remained at Salem, and the rest were sent 
by Endicott to establish a colony at Charles- 
town, in order to secure that place from 
occupation by the partisans of Sir Ferdi- 
nand Gorges, who claimed the region. The 
emigrants were scrupulous to acquire from 
the Indians the right to the lands they occu- 
pied. The twelfth of July was observed 
as a day of fasting and prayer " for the 
choice of a pastor and teacher at Salem." 
No one advanced any claim founded on his 
ordination in England ; personal fitness was 
the only qualification recognized by the 
Puritans. Samuel Skelton was chosen pastor, 
and Francis Higginson teacher. 

The Brownes Cast Out. 

Three or four of the gravest members of 
the church laid their hands upon the 
heads of these men, with prayer, and solemn- 
ly appointed them to their respective offices. 
" Thus the church, like that of Plymouth, 
was self-constituted, on the principle of the 
independence of each religious community. 
It did not ask the assent of the king, or 
recognize him as its head; its ofificers were 
set apart and ordained among themselves ; 
it used no liturgy; it rejected unnecessary 
ceremonies, and reduced the simplicity of 
Calvin to a still plainer standard. The 
motives which controlled its decisions were 



SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 



141 



so deeply seated that its practices were 
repeated spontaneously by Puritan New 
England." An opposition to the organiza- 
tion of the church was attempted by a party 
led by John and Samuel Browne, men of 
ability; but this was treated as a mutiny and 
put down, and the Brownes were sent back 
to England. 

The charter of Massachusetts, though it 
made liberal concessions to the colony, 
contained no provision for the rights of the 
people, who were left at the mercy of the 
company. For the proper government 
of the colony, it was necessary to re- 
move the charter to Massachusetts, and 
such a removal was advisable on another 
ground. The charter contained no guar- 
antee for the reglious freedom of the co- 
lony, and the king might at any moment 
seek to interfere with this, the most pre- 
cious right of the Puritans. The only 
way to escape the evils which the com- 
pany had reason to dread was for the 
governing council to change its place 
of meeting from England to Massachu- 
setts, which the provisions of the charter 
gave it authority to do. 

An Independent Colony. 



On the twenty-sixth of August, 1629, 
John Winthrop, Isaac Johnson, Thomas 
Dudley, Richard Saltonstall and eight 
others, men of fortune and education, 
met at Cambridge and bound them- 
selves by a solemn agreement to settle in 
New England if the whole government of 
the colony, together with the patent, should 
be legally transferred to that region before 
the end of September. On the twenty- 
ninth of the month, the court took the de- 
cisive step and ordered that " the govern- 
ment and patent should be settled in New 
England." This was a bold step, but its 
legality was not contested by any one, and it 



made the government of the colony independ- 
ent of control by any power in England. 

The officers of the colony were to be a 
governor and eighteen assistants. On the 
twentieth of October, a meeting of the court 
was held to choose them, and John Winthrop 
was elected governor for one year. It was a 
fortunate selection, for Winthrop proved 
himself for many years the very mainstay of 
the colony, sustaining his companions by his 
calm courage, and setting them a noble ex- 




JOHN WINTHROP. 

ample in his patience, his quiet heroism and 
his devotion to the welfare of others. He 
seemed to find his greatest pleasure in doing 
good, and his liberality acted as a check 
upon the bigotry of his associates and kept 
them in paths of greater moderation. 

Efforts were made to send over new settlers 
to Massachusetts, and about a thousand 
emigrants, with cattle, horses and goats, were 
transported thither in the season of 1630. 



142 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



Early in April, Governor Winthrop and 
about seven hundred emigrants sailed from 
England in a fleet of eleven ships. Many of 
them were " men of high endowments and 
large fortune; scholars, well versed in the 
learning of the times ; clergymen who ranked 
among the best educated and most pious in 
the realm." 

Death Among the Settlers. 

They reached Salem on the twelfth of 
June, after a voyage of sixty-one days, and 
were gladly welcomed by the settlers, whom 
they found in great distress from sickness 
and a scarcity of provisions. About eighty 
had died during the winter, and many were 
sick. There was scarcely a fortnight's sup- 
ply of food in the settlement, and it was nec- 
essary to send one of the ships back to Eng- 
land at once for a supply of provisions. 

Salem did not please the new-comers, and 
settlements were made at Lynn, Charles- 
town, Newtown, Dorchester, Roxbury, Mai- 
den and Watertown. The governor and a 
large part of the emigrants settled first at 
Charlestown,but at length, in order to obtain 
better water, crossed over and occupied the 
little tri-mountain peninsula of Shawmut. 
To this settlement was given the name of 
Boston, in honor of the town in Lincolnshire 
in England, which had been the homeofthe 
Rev. John Wilson, who became the pastor of 
the first church of Boston. The location 
was central to the whole province, and Bos- 
ton became the seat of government. When 
the year for which the first colonial officers 
had been chosen expired a new election was 
held, and Governor Winlhrop and all the old 
officials were re-elected. 

Terrible Sufferings. 
The colonists now began to feel the effects 
of their new life. The change of climate was 
very trying to them, and many of them fell 
victims to its rigors, and to the hardships of 
their position. A large number ofthem had 



been brought up in ease and refinement, and 
were unaccustomed to privation or exposure. 
They sank beneath the severe trials to which 
they were subjected. By December, 1630, 
at least two hundred had died. Among 
these were the Lady Arbella Johnson and 
her husband, among the most liberal and de- 
voted supporters of the colony, and a son of 
Governor Winthrop, who left a widow and 
children in England. Others became dis- 
heartened, and more than a hundred returned 
to England, Avhere they endeavored to ex- 
cuse their desertion of their companions by 
grossly exaggerated accounts of the hard- 
ships of the colony. 

Patient Endurance. 

Yet among the colonists themselves there 
was no repining. They exhibited in their 
deep distress a fortitude and heroism worthy 
of thefr lofty character. " Honor is due," 
says Bancroft, " not less to those who per- 
ished than to those who survived ; to the 
martyrs the hour of death was the hour of 
triumph ; such as is never witnessed in more 
tranquil seasons. ***** Even children 
caught the spirit of the place ; awaited the 
impending change in the tranquil confidence 
of faith, and went to the grave full of immor- 
tality. The survivors bore all things meekly, 
' remembering the end of their coming 
hither.'" Winthrop wrote to his wife, who 
had been detained in England by sickness: 
" We enjoy here God and Jesus Christ, and 
is not this enough? I thank God I like so 
well to be here, as I do not repent my com- 
ing. I would not have altered my course 
though I had foreseen all these afflictions. 
I never had more content of mind." 

Another danger which threatened the 
colony arose from the scarcity of provisions, 
but this was removed on the fifth of February, 
i63i,by the timely arrival of the "Lyon" 
from England, laden with provisions. This 
relief was greeted with public thanksgivings 



SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 143 



in all the settlements. The " Lyon," how- 
ever, brought only twenty passengers, and in 
163 1 only ninety persons came out from 
England. The number of arrivals in 1632 
was only two hundred and fifty. Thus the 
colony grew very slowly. By the close of 
the latter year the total population of Massa- 
chusetts was only a little over one thousand 
souls. 

Sketch of Roger Williams. 

Among the passengers of the "Lyon" 
was a young minister, described in the old 
records as " lovely in his carriage, godly and 
zealous, having precious gifts," Roger 
Williams by name. He had been a favorite 
pupil of the great Sir Edward Coke, and had 
learned from him precious lessons of liberty 
and toleration. He had been carefully edu- 
cated at Pembroke College, in the University 
of Cambridge, and had entered the ministry. 
His opposition to the laws requiring con- 
formity to the established church had 
drawn upon him the wrath of Archbishop 
Laud, and he had been driven out of 
England. 

The great doctrine which he had em- 
braced as the result of his studies and ex- 
perience was the freedom of conscience from 
secular control. " The civil magistrate 
should restrain crime, but never control 
opinion; should punish guilt, but never violate 
inward freedom." He would place all forms 
of religion upon an equality, and would 
refuse to the government the power to com- 
pel conformity to, or attendance upon, any 
of them, leaving such matters to the con- 
science of the individual. He also favored 
the abolition of tithes, and the enforced con- 
tribution to the support of the church. 

Such views were far in advance of the age, 
and when Williams landed in Boston he 
found himself unable to join the church in 
that place, because of its adoption of prin- 



ciples the opposite of his own. Upon his 
arrival the church had intended engaging 
him to fill Mr. Wilson's place, while that 
minister returned to England to bring over 
his wife, but upon learning his views the 
idea was abandoned. A little later the 
church in Salem, which had been deprived 
of its teacher by the death of the Rev. 
Francis Higginson, called Williams to be his 
successor, Williams accepted the call ; but 
Governor Winthrop and the assistants 
warned the people of Salem to beware how 
they placed in so important a position a man 
already at such variance with the established 
order of things. The warning had the de- 
sired effect upon the people of Salem, who 
withdrew their invitation. Williams then 
went to Plymouth, where he lived for two 
years in peace. 

An Oath of Fidelity. 

But though unwilling to accord to Williams 
the liberty he desired, the colonial govern- 
ment was careful to take every precaution 
against the anticipated efforts of the Church 
of England to extend its authority over 
Massachusetts. A general court held in 
May, 163 1, ordered an oath of fidelity to be 
tendered to the freemen of the colony, which 
bound them " to be obedient and conform- 
able to the laws and constitutions of this 
commonwealth, to advance its peace, and 
not to suffer any attempt at making any 
change or alteration of the government con- 
trary to its laws." The same general court 
took a still more decided stand by the 
adoption of a law which limited the citizen- 
ship of the colony to " such as are members 
of some of the churches within the limits of 
the same." This was practically making the 
state a theocracy. 

Yet the people were not prepared to sur- 
render their political rights, even when 
alarmed by the danger which seemed to 



144 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



threaten their religious establishment. Until 
now the assistants could hold office for life 
and they also possessed the power of elect- 
ing the governor. They were thus inde- 
pendent of' the people. The right of the 
freemen to choose their magistrates was now 
distinctly asserted, and in May, 1632, was 
conceded. The governor and assistants were 
to be elected annually, and by the votes of 
the freemen ; none but church members 
being entitled to the privileges of freemen. 
Another important change was brought 
about at the same time by the hostility of 
the people to levying of taxes by the board 
of assistants. Each town was ordered to 
send two of its best men to represent it at a 
general court " to concert a plan for a public 
treasury." 

Friendly Mohegan Chief. 

The colonists had faithfully obeyed their 
instructions to treat the Indians with fair- 
ness, and to seek to cultivate their friend- 
ship. Many of the native tribes sought their 
alliance, and the sachem of the Mohegans 
came from the banks of the Connecticut to 
make a treaty with the colony, and to urge 
the English •to settle in his country, which he 
described as exceedingly fertile and inviting. 
In the autumn of 1632 a pleasant intercourse 
was opened with the Plymouth colony ; and in 
the same year a trade in corn was begun 
with Virginia, and commercial relations 
were established with the Dutch, who had 
settled along the Hudson River. The colony 
of Massachusetts Bay was slowly entering 
upon a more prosperous period. 

Emigrants now began to come over in 
greater numbers, and among them were John 
Haynes, " the acute and subtile Cotton," and 
Thomas Hooker, who have been called the 
" Light of the Western Churches." The 
freemen by the middle of the year 1634 
numbered between three and four hundred. 



and these were bent upon establishing their 
political power in the state. Great advances 
were made in the direction of representative 
government, and the ballot-box was intro- 
duced in elections, which had been formerly 
conducted by an erection of hands. As 
a guard against arbitrary taxation by magis- 
trates it was enacted that none but the 
properly chosen representatives of the people 
might dispose of lands, or raise money. 

A Long Controversy. 

In the spring of 1635 the people went a 
step further, and demanded a written con- 
stitution for the purpose of still more per- 
fectly securing their liberties. This demand 
opened a controversy which continued for 
ten years. The general court was com- 
posed of assistants and deputies. The first 
were elected by the people of the whole 
colony ; the latter by the towns. The two 
bodies acted together in meetings of the 
assembly, but the assistants claimed the 
exclusive privilege of meeting and exercising 
a separate negative upon the proceedings of 
the court. This claim was energetically 
denied by the deputies, who were sustained 
by the body of the people; while the 
magistrates and the ministers upheld the 
pretensions of the assistants. 

In 1644 the matter was compromised by 
the division of the general court into two 
branches, each of which was given a negative 
upon the proceedings of the other. All 
parties were agreed, however, in the work of 
connecting the religion and the government 
of the colony so closely that they should 
mutually sustain each other against the 
attacks of the Church of England. 

While these measures were in course of 
adjustment other matters were engaging the 
attention of the colony. After Roger Will- 
iams had been a little more than two years 
in Plymouth, he was called again to Salem,, 




10 



RCGER WILLIAMS SEEKING REFUGE AMONG THE INDIANS. 



H5 



146 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



and accepted the invitation. This gave 
offence to many persons, and in January, 
1634, complaints were made against Williams 
because of a paper he had written while at 
Plymouth, denying that the king had any 
power to grant lands in America to his sub- 
jects, since the lands were the property of 
the Indians. In this Williams was wrong, as 
the settlers in New England had been care- 
ful to obtain the consent of the natives to 
their occupation of the lands they had pos- 
sessed. He made a proper explanation of 
his paper, when he understood the true 
state of the case, and consented that it 
should be burned. 

Williams will not Retract. 

Still the jealousy and dislike of the Puri- 
tans was aroused by the radical opposition 
of Williams to their system, although he 
conducted himself with a forbearance and 
amiableness that should have won him the 
love of those with whom he was thrown. 
Williams strongly condemned the law enforc- 
ing the attendance of the people upon reli- 
gious services, declaring that a man had a 
right to stay away if he wished to do so. He 
also censured the practice of selecting the 
colonial officials exclusively from the mem- 
bers of the church, and said that a physician 
or a pilot might with equal propriety be 
chosen because of his piety, his skill in 
theology, or his standing in the church. 
These and other similar views were drawn 
from him in a series of controversies, held 
with him by a committee of ministers, for 
the purpose of inducing him to retract his 
radical sentiments. He lemained firm in 
them, however, and his opponents declared 
that his principles were calculated not only 
to destroy religion, but also to subvert all 
forms of civil government. 

It was resolved to banish him from the 
colony, and as the people of Salem warmly 



supported Williams, they were admonished 
by the court, and a tract of land, which was 
rightfully theirs, was withheld from them as 
a punishment. Williams and the church at 
Salem appealed to the people against the in- 
justice of the magistrates, and asked the 
other churches of the colony to " admonish 
the magistrates of their injustice." This was 
regarded as treason by the colonial govern- 
ment, and at the next general court Salem 
was disfranchised until the town should 
make ample apology for its offence. Will- 
iams was summoned before the general 
court in October, 1635, and maintained his 
opinions with firmness, though with mod- 
eration. He was sentenced to banishment 
from the colony, not, as it was declared, 
because of his religious views, but because 
the magistrates averred his principles, if 
carried out, would destroy all civil govern- 
ment. 

A Fugitive in the Wilderness. 

The season was so far advanced that it 
would have been barbarous to drive any one 
out of the colony at that time, and Williams 
obtained leave to remain in the province 
until the spring, when he intended forming 
a settlement on Narragansett Bay. The 
affection of his people at Salem, which had 
seemed to grow cold when the town began 
to feel the weight of the punishment inflicted 
by the general court, now revived, and they 
thronged to his house in great numbers to 
hear him, and his opinions spread rapidly. 
The magistrates were alarmed, and it was 
resolved to send him at once to England 
in a ship that was just about to sail from 
Boston. He was ordered to come to Boston 
and embark there, but refused to obey the 
summons. A boat's crew was then sent to 
arrest him and bring him to Boston by force ; 
but when the officers reached Salem he had 
disappeared. 



SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 



147 



Three days before their arrival Roger 
WiUiams had left Salem, a wanderer for con- 
science sake. It was the depth of winter, 
the snow lay thickly over the country, and 
the weather was cold and inclement. For 
fourteen weeks, he says, he" was sorely tost 
in a bitter season, not knowing what bread 
or bed did mean." Banished from the set- 
tlements of his own race the exile went out 
into the wilderness, and sought the country 
of the Indians, whose friendship he had won 
during his stay in the colony. He had ac- 
quired their language during his residence at 
Plymouth, and could 
speak it fluently. 

He went from lodge 
to lodge, kindly wel- 
comed by the sav- 
ages, and lodging 
sometimes in a hol- 
low tree, until he 
reached Mount Hope, 
the residence of Mas- 
sasoit, who was his 
friend. Canonicus.the 
great chieftain of the 
Narragansetts, loved 
him with a strong af- 
fection, which ceased 
only with his life ; 
and in the country of 
these friendly chiefs 

Williams passed the winter in peace and 
safety. He never ceased to be grateful 
for their aid in his distress, and during his 
whole life he was the especial friend and 
champion of the Indians in New England. 

It was the intention of Williams to settle 
at Seekonk, on the Pawtucket River ; but 
that place was found to be within the limits 
of the Plymouth colony. Governor Winslow 
wrote to Williams advising him to remove 
to the region of Narragansett Bay, which 
was beyond the jurisdiction of the English, 



and would render any misunderstanding be- 
tween the Plymouth and Bay colonies on 
his account impossible " I took his prudent 
motion," says Williams, " as a voice from 
God." 

Providence Founded. 

Being joined by five companions, Williams 
embarked in a canoe in June, 1635, and pass- 
ing over to the west arm of Narragansett 
Bay, landed at an attractive spot, where he 
found a spring of pure water. He chose the 
place as the site of a new settlement, and in 
gratitude for his deliverance from the many 




LANDING OF ROGER WILLIAMS AT PROVIDENCE. 

dangers through which he had passed, named 
it Providence. He sought to purchase 
enough land for a settlement, but Canonicus 
refused to sell the land, and gave it to his 
friend " to enjoy forever." This grant was 
made to Williams alone, and constituted him 
absolute owner of the lands included in it. 
He might have sold them to settlers on terms 
advantageous to himself; but he declined to 
do so. 

In the next two years he was joined by a 
number of his old followers from Massachu- 



148 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



setts, and by others who f.cd to his asylum. 
He gave a share of land to all who came to 
settle, and admitted them to an equality with 
himself in the political administration of the 
colony. The government was administered 
by the whole people. The voice of the 
majority decided all public measures ; but in 
matters of conscience every man was left an- 
swerable to God alone. All forms of relig- 
ious belief were tolerated and protected. 
Even infidelity was safe here from punish- 
ment by the civil or ecclesiastical power. 

Praiseworthy Charity. 

Williams was anxious to establish friendly 
relations with the Massachusetts colony ; for 
though he felt keenly the injustice of his per- 
secutors, he cherished no bitterness or resent- 
ment towards them. He condemned only 
what he considered the delusions of the 
magistrates of Massachusetts, but never at- 
tacked his persecutors. "I did ever from 
my soul," he wrote with simple magnanimity, 
" honor and love them, even when their judg- 
ment led them to afflict me." Winslow, 
touched with his true Christian forbearance, 
came from Plymouth to visit him, and left 
with his wifi; some money for their support; 
and some of the leaders of the Bay colony 
began to bear tardy witness to his virtues. 
The settlement at Providence continued to 
grow slowly, and was blessed with peace and 
an increasing prosperity. 

Massachusetts in the meantime continued 
to receive numerous additions to her popula- 
tion by emigration from England. In the 
autumn of 1635, twelve families left Boston, 
and journeying into the interior, founded the 
town of Concord. They had a hard struggle 
to establish their little settlement, but per- 
severed, and at length their labors were 
crowned with success. Three thousand 
people came over to Massachusetts this year. 
Among them were Hugh Peters, a man of 



great eloquence and ability and a devoted 
republican, who had been pastor to a church 
of exiles at Rotterdam, and Henry Vane the 
younger, "a man of the purest mind; a 
statesman of spotless integrity ; whose name 
the progress of intelligence and liberty will 
erase from the rubic of fanatics and traitors, 
and insert high among the aspirants after 
truth and the martyrs for liberty." * 

In the following spring (1636) Vane was 
elected governor of the colony. The people 
were dazzled by his high birth and pleasing 
qualities, and committed an error in choos- 
ing him, for neither his age nor his experi- 
ence fitted him for the distinguished position 
conferred upon him. The arrival of Vane 
seemed to promise an emigration of a num- 
ber of the English nobility, and an effort was 
made by several of them in England to pro- 
cure the division of the general court into 
two branches, and the establishment of an 
hereditary nobility in the colony which 
should possess a right to scats in the upper 
branch of the court. The magistrates of the 
colony were anxious to conciliate these val- 
uable friends, but they firmly refused to 
establish hereditary nobility in their new 
state. 

Trouble in the Church. 

Religious discussions formed a large part 
of the life of the colony. Meetings were 
held by the men, and passages of Scripture 
were discussed, and the sermons of the min- 
isters made the subject of searching criticism. 
The women might attend these meetings, but 
were not allowed to take part in the discus- 
sions. Mrs. Anne Hutchinson, a woman of 
talent and eloquence, claimed for her sex the 
right to participate equally with the men in 
these meetings ; but as this was not possible, 
she began to hold meetings for the benefit of 
the women at her own house. At these, 



* Bancroft, 



SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND RHODE ISLAND. 



149 



religious doctrines were discussed and advo- 
cated, which were at variance with the prin- 
ciples of the magistrates. 

Mrs. Hutchinson and her followers held 
that the authority of private judgment was 
superior to that of the church, and con- 
demned the efforts of the colony to enforce 
conformity to the established system as viola- 
tive of the inherent rights of Christians. 
She was encouraged by John Wheelwright, 
a silenced minister, who had married her 
sister, and by Gov^ernor Vane, and her 
opinions were adopted by a large number of 
the people, and by members of the general 
court and some of the magistrates. 

The ministers saw their authority menaced 
by the new belief, and made common cause 
against Mrs. Hutchinson and her protector, 
Governor Vane- The colony was divided 
into two parties, and the religious question 
became a matter of great political import- 
ance. Under the established system the 
ministers formed almost a distinct estate 
of the government, and political privileges 
were entirely dependent upon theological 
conformity. 

Feeling sure that they would not receive 
justice at the hands of their opponents, the 
friends of Mrs. Hutchinson declared their 
intention to appeal to the king. This aroused 
a storm of indignation in the colony, and 
" it was accounted perjury and treason to 
speak of appeals to the king." This threat 
changed the whole character of the question, 
and was fatal to the party which made it. 
The Puritans had come to Massachusetts to 
escape the interference of the crown with their 
religious belief, and to appeal to the king in 
this case would be simply to place the liber- 
ties of the colony at his mercy. When the 
elections were held, in the spring of 1637, 
Governor Winthrop and the old magistrates 
we/e chosen by a large majority. Vane soon 
after returned to England. 



The church party being now in power 
resolved to silence Mrs. Hutchinson. She 
was admonished to cease her teachings, and 
upon her refusal to obey this order, she and 
her followers were exiled from the colony. 
Wheelwright and a number of his friends 
went to New Hampshire, and founded the 
town of Exeter, at the head of tide-water on 
the Piscataqua. Mrs. Hutchinson and the 
majority of her followers removed, in the 
spring of 1638, to the southward, intending 
to settle on Long Island or on the Delaware. 
Roger Williams induced them to remain 
near his plantation, and obtained for them 
from Miantonomoh, the chief of the Narra- 
gansett tribe, the gift of the beautiful island 
in the lower part of Narragansett Bay, which 
they called the island of Rhodes, or Rhode 
Island. 

Sad Fate of Mrs. Hutchinson. 

The number of settlers was scarcely more 
than twenty, but they proceeded to form a 
government upon a plan agreeable to the 
principles they professed. It was a pure 
democracy, founded upon the universal 
consent of the people, who signed a social 
compact pledging themselves to obey the - 
laws made by the majority, and to respect 
the rights of conscience. William Codding- 
ton, who had been a magistrate in the Bay 
colony, was elected judge or ruler, and three 
elders were chosen as his assistants. The 
settlement grew rapidly, and by 1641 the 
population had become so numerous as to 
require a written constitution. 

Mrs. Hutchinson remained in Rhode 
Island for several years ; but fearing that 
the hostility of the magistrates of Massa- 
chusetts would reach her even there, removed 
beyond New Haven into the territory of the 
Dutch, where, in 1643, she and all her family 
who were with her, except one child, who 
was taken prisoner, were murdered by the 
Indians. 



CHAPTER XII 

Colonization of Connecticut 



1 he Dutch Claim the Connecticut Valley — They Build a Fort at Hartford — Governor Winslow Makes a Lodgment in 
Connecticut for the English — Withdrawal of the Dutch — The First Efforts of the English to Settle Connecticut — Emi- 
gration of Hooker and His Congregation — They Settle at Hartford — Winthrop Builds a Fort at Saybrooke — Hostility cf 
the Indians — Visit of Roger Williams to Miantonomoh — A Brave Deed — The Pequod War — Capture of the Indian 
Fort — Destraction of the Pequod Tribe — Effect of This War Upon the Other Tribes — Connecticut Adopts a Constitu- 
tion — Its Peculiar Features — Settlement of New Haven. 



THE fertile region of the Connecticut 
had attracted the attention of the 
English at an early day ; but before 
they could make any effort to 
occupy it the Dutch sent an exploring party 
from Manhattan Island, in 1614, and exam- 
ined the river and the country through 
which it flowed. They built and fortified a 
trading-post on the site of the present city of 
Hartford, but soon excited the ill-will of the 
Indians by their cruel treatment of them. 
The Dutch found themselves unable to 
occupy the country, and, being unwilling to 
lose it, endeavored, but without success, to 
induce the Pilgrims to remove from 
Plymouth to the Connecticut, and settle in 
that region under their protection. 

In 1630 the council of Plymouth granted 
the Connecticut region to the Earl of War- 
wick, who, in 1 63 1, assigned his claim to 
Lords Say and Brooke, John Hampden, and 
others. As soon as this grant was known 
to the Dutch they sent a party to the site of 
Hartford and re-established their trading- 
post, and began a profitable trade with the 
Indians. They mounted two cannon on 
their fort for the purpose of preventing the 
English from ascending the river. Towards 
the latter part of the year 1633, Governor 
Winslow, of Plymouth, in order to secure a 
foothold for the English in this valuable 
region, sent Captain William Holmes to the 
150 



Connecticut with a sloop and a number 01 
men to make a settlement. Upon ascending 
the river to the site of Hartford, Holmes 
found his progress barred by the Dutch fort, 
the commander of which threatened to fire 
upon him if he attempted to continue his 
voyage. Undaunted by this threat, Holmes 
passed by the fort without harm, and 
ascended the stream to Windsor, where he 
erected a fortified post. In 1634, the Dutch 
made an unsuccessful attempt to drive him 
away. Failing in this, and seeing that it was 
the deliberate purpose of the English to 
occupy the Connecticut valley, the Dutch 
relinquished all claim to that region, and a 
boundary line was arranged between their 
possessions and those of the English, cor- 
responding very nearly to that between the 
states of Connecticut and New York. 

In 1635, the Pilgrims determined to make 
settlements in this inviting region, and late 
in the fall of that year a company of sixty 
persons, men, women and children, set out 
from Plymouth by land, sending a sloop 
laden with provisions and their household 
goods around by sea, with orders to join 
them upon the Connecticut River. They 
began their journey too late in the season, 
and their sufferings were very great in con- 
sequence. Upon reaching the river they 
found the ground covered with snow, and 
their sloop was delayed by storms and ice. 



COLONIZATION OF CONNECTICUT. 



151 



Their cattle died from cold and exposure, 
and but for a little corn which they obtained 
from the Indians, and such acorns as they 
could gather, the whole company must have 
starved to death. Many of them abandoned 
their new home and returned by land to the 
settlements on the coast. 

The Puritans Avere resolved to continue 
the effort to settle Connecticut, and in the 
spring of 1636 several com- 
panies emigrated to that re- 
gion. The principal party 
set out in June, led by the 
Rev. Thomas Hooker. It 
comprised about one hundred 
persons, and consisted prin- 
cipally of Hooker's congrega- 
tion, who followed their pastor 
with enthusiasm. They drove 
before them a considerable 
number of cattle, which fur- 
nished them with milk on the 
march. 

The emigrants were largely 
made up of persons of refine- 
ment and culture, and com- 
prised many of the oldest and 
most valued citizens of the 
Bay colony. They were at- 
tracted to the valley of the 
Connecticut by the superior 
advantages which it offered 
for the prosecution of the fur 
trade, and by the great fertil- 
ity of its soil. They had 
no guide but a compass, 
and their route lay through 
an unbroken wilderness. The journey was 
long and fatiguing. The emigrants accom- 
plished scarcely more than ten miles a day, 
carrying their sick on litters, and making 
the forests ring with their holy hymns. At 
length the site of Hartford, whei e it was pro- 
posed to establish the settlement, was 



reached by the first of July. The greater 
number remained there; some went higher 
up the river and founded Springfield, and 
the rest went to Wethersfield, where there 
was already a small settlement. 

In the same year the younger John Win- 
throp arrived from England, with orders fro 'i 
Lords Say and Brooke to establish a fort a: 
the mouth of the Connecticut River. This 




JOHN HAMPDEN. 

he accomplished, naming the new settlement 
Saybrooke, in honor of the proprietors. 
The settlements in Connecticut grew rapidly,, 
the excellent soil and pleasant climate attract^, 
ing many emigrants to them. 

The existence of these settlements was 
precarious, however. The region in which 



152 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



they had been planted was the country of the 
Pequods, who inhabited it in large numbers. 
They were the most powerful and warlike 
tribe in New England, and could bring nearly 
two thousand warriors into the field. They 
occupied the southwestern part of Connect- 
icut, and their territory extended almost to 
the Hudson on the west, where it joined that 
of the Mohegans. On the east their territory 
bordered that of the Narragansetts. Both of 
these tribes were the enemies of the Pequods 
and the friends of the English. This friend- 
ship was resented by the Pequods, who were 
already jealous of the English because of their 
occupation of the lands along the Connecticut. 
The tribe bore a bad name, and had already 
manifested their hostility by murdering, a few 
years before, a Virginia trader named Stone, 
together with the crew of his vessel, who 
were engaged in a trading expedition on the 
Connecticut River. 

Blood Shed on Both Sides. 

Somewhat later Captain Oldham and his 
crew, while exploring the river, were also 
murdered by Indians living on Block Island. 
The Pequods justified the murder of Stone 
by alleging that he had attacked them. 
Wishing to make a treaty with the English, 
they sent their chiefs to Boston for that pur- 
pose, and promised — as the magistrates 
understood them — to deliver up the two men 
who had killed Stone. Captain John Endicott 
was sent with a vessel, in 1636, to punish the 
Block Island Indians for the murder of Old- 
ham, and was ordered to call on his return at 
the Pequod town, and demand the surrender 
of the murderers of Stone. The Pequods 
declined to surrender these men, but offered 
to ransom them. This was in accordance 
with their customs. But Endicott refused to 
accept any compensation for the crime that 
had been committed, and to punish the 
Indians destroyed their corn and burned two 



of their villages. This made open hostilities 
inevitable. The Pequods began to hang 
around the Connecticut settlements and cut 
off stragglers from them. By the close of 
the winter more than thirty persons had 
fallen victims to their vengeance. 

A Dangerous Mission. 

The settlements in the Connecticut valley 
were now greatly alarmed. They could not 
muster over two hundred fighting men, and 
the Indians in their immediate vicinity could 
bring into the field at least seven hundred 
warriors. War was certain, and it was not 
known at what moment the savages would 
attack the settlements in overwhelming 
force. Connecticut called upon Massachu- 
setts for aid, but only twenty men under 
Captain Underbill, were sent to their aid. 
The energies and attention of the Bay 
colony were engrossed by the Hutchinson 
quarrel. 

The Pequods, notwithstanding their im- 
mense numerical superiority, were unwilling 
to make war upon the English without the 
support of another tribe. They accordingly 
sent envoys to Miantonomoh, the chief of 
the Narragansetts, to endeavor to engage 
that tribe in the effort against the whites. 
Such a union would have menaced all New 
England, and as soon as the news of the 
negotiation reached Boston the government 
of the Bay colony prepared to prevent the 
alliance. Governor Vane at once wrote to 
Roger Williams, the friend of Miantonomoh, 
urging him to seek that chieftain and prevent 
him from joining the Pequods. 

It was a dangerous mission, and certainly 
a great service for the magistrates of Massa- 
chusetts to ask of the man whom they had 
driven into exile. They did not ask in vain, 
however. All of Williams' generous nature 
was aroused by the danger which threatened 
his brethren, and he embarked in a frail 



COLONIZATION OF CONNECTICUT. 



153 



canoe, and braving the danger of a severe 
gale, sought the quarters of Miantonomoh, 
He found the Pequod chiefs already there, 
and the Narragansetts v;avering. Knowing 
the errand on which 
he had come, the 
hostile chieftains 
were ready at any 
moment to des- 
patch him, and 
had Miantonomoh 
shown the least fa- 
vor to the project, 
Williams would 
have paid for his 
boldness with his 
life. He spent three 
days and nights in 
the company of the 
savages, and suc- 
ceeded in inducing 
Miantonomoh not 
only to refuse to 
join the war against 
the English, but to 
promise the colo- 
nists his assistance 
against the Pe- 
quods. In the 
meantime he sent a 
messenger to Bos- 
ton to inform the 
governor of the de- 
signs of the In- 
dians. 

The Pequods, 
left to continue the 
struggle alone, flat- 
tered themselves 
that their superi- 
ority in numbers would give them the vic- 
tory, and continued their aggressions upon 
the Connecticut settlements to such an extent 
that in May, 1637, the general court of that 



province resolved to begin the war at once. 
A force of eighty men, including those sent 
from Massachusetts, was assembled at Hart- 
ford, and the command was conferred by 




A GROUP OF INDIANS. 



Hooker upon Captain John Mason. The 
night previous to their departure was spent 
in prayer, and on the twentieth of May the 
little force embarked in boats and descended 



154 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



the river to the sound, and passed around to 
Narragansett Bay, intending to approach the 
Pequod town from that quarter. As the 
boats sailed by the mouth of the Thames, 
the savages supposed the English were 
abandoning the Connecticut valley. 

The day after the arrival of the English 
in Narragansett Bay was the Sabbath, 
and was scrupulously observed. On the 
following day they repaired to the quarters 
of Canonicus, the old chief and principal 
ruler of the Narragansett tribe, and asked 
his assistance against the Pequods. Mian- 
tonomoh, the nephew and prospective suc- 
cessor of Canonicus, hesitated to join in the 
doubtful enterprise, but two hundred war- 
riors agreed to accompany the English, who 
could not, however, count upon the fidelity 
of these reinforcements. Seventy Mohe- 
gans, under Uncas, their chief, also joined 
Mason. With this force the English com- 
mander marched across the country toward 
the Pequod towns on the Thames, and halted 
on the night of the twenty-fifth of May 
within hearing of them. 

A Sudden Attack. 

In the meantime the Pequods, convinced 
that the English had fled from the Connecti- 
cut region, and never dreading an attack in 
their fort, which they considered impreg- 
nable, had given themselves up to rejoicing. 
The night, passed by the English in waiting 
the signal for the attack, was spent by the 
Pequods in revelry and songs, which could 
be plainly heard in the English camp. Two 
hours before dawn, on the morning of the 
twenty-sixth of May, the order was given to 
the little band under Mason lo advance. 
They knew they would have to decide the 
battle by their own efforts, and were by no 
means certain that their Indian allies would 
not turn against them. 

The Pequods were posted in two strong 
forts made of palisades driven into the ground 



and strengthened with rush-work, an excel- 
lent defence against a foe of their own race, 
but worthless when assailed by Europeans. 
The principal fort stood on the summit of a 
considerable hill, and was regarded by Sassa- 
cus, the Pequod chief, as impregnable. The 
tramp of the advancing force aroused a dog, 
whose fierce bark awoke the Indian sentinel. 
The keen eye of the savage detected the 
enemy in the gloom of the morning, and he 
rushed into the fort, shouting, " The English I 
The English ! " 

The next moment the English were 
through the palisades. On all sides they 
beheld the Indians pouring out of their 
lodges to take part in the hand-to-hand fight. 
The odds were too great. " We must burn 
them," cried Mason, and, suiting the action 
to the word, he applied a torch to a wigwam 
constructed of dry reeds. The flames sprang 
up instantly, and spread with the rapidity of 
lightning. The Indians vainly endeavored 
to extinguish the fire, and the English, with- 
drawing to a greater distance, began to pick 
off the savages, who were doubly exposed 
by the light of the blazing fort. Wherever 
a Pequod appeared, he was shot down. The 
Narragansetts and Mohegans now joined in 
the conflict, and the victory was complete. 
More than six hundred Pequods, men, 
women and children, perished, the majority 
of them in the flames. The English lost 
only two men ; and the battle was over in 
an hour. 

Indians in a Rage. 

As the sun rose, a body of three hundred 
Pequod warriors were seen advancing from 
their second fort. They came expecting to 
rejoice with their comrades in the destruc- 
tion of the English. When they beheld the 
ruined fort and the remains of its defenders, 
they screamed, stamped on the ground and 
tore their hair with rage and despair. Mason 
held them in check with twenty men, while 



COLONIZATION OF CONNECTICUT. 



the rest of the EngHsh embarked in their 
boats, which had come round from Narra- 
gansett Bay, and hastened home to protect 
the settlements against a sudden attack. 
Mason, with the party mentioned, marched 
across the country to the fort at Saybrooke, 
where he was received with the honors due 
to his successful exploit. 

In a few days a body of one hundred men 
arrived from Massachusetts, under Captain 
Stoughton, and the cam- 
paign against the Pe- 
quods was resumed. 
Their pride was crushed, 
and they made but a 
feeble resistance. They 
fled to the west, closely 
pursued by the English, 
who destroyed their 
cornfields, burned their 
villages and put their 
women and children to 
death without mercy. 
They made a last des- 
perate effort at resist- 
ance in the fastnesses of 
a swamp, but were de- 
feated with great slaugh- 
ter. Sassacus, their chief^ 
with a k\v of his men 
took refuge with the 
Mohawks, where he was 
soon after put to death 
by one of his own people. 

The remainder of the tribe, about two hundred 
in number, surrendered to the English, and 
were reduced to slavery. Some were given 
to their enemies, the Narragansetts and Mo- 
hegans ; others were sent to the West Indies 
and sold as slaves. The Pequod nation was 
utterly destroyed. 

The thoroughness and remorselessness of 
the work struck terror to the neighboring 
tribes. If the Pequods, the most powerful 



155 

of all their race, had been exterminated by a. 
mere handful of Englishmen, what could they 
expect in a contest with them but a similar 
fate ? For forty years the horror of this 
dreadful deed remained fresh in the savage 
mind, and protected the young settlements 
more effectually than the most vigilant 
watchfulness on the part of the whites could 
have done. 

Relieved from the fear of the Indians, the 




YALE COLLEGE. 

people of Connecticut prepared to establish a 
civil government for the colony, and in Jan- 
uary, 1639, a constitution was adopted. It 
was more liberal, and therefor^ more lasting, 
than that framed by any of the other colo- 
nies. It provided for the government of the 
colony by a governor, a legislature and the 
usual magistrates of an English province, 
who were to be chosen annually by ballot. 
Every settler who should take the oath of 



156 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



allegiance to the commonwealth was to have 
the right of suffrage. The members of the 
legislature were apportioned among the 
towns according to the population. The 
colony was held to be supreme within its 
own limits, and no recognition was made of 
the sovereignty of the king or Parliament. 
When Connecticut took her place among the 
states of the American Union, at the opening 
of the war of the Revolution, her constitution 
needed no change to adapt her to her new 
position. It remained in force for one hun- 
dred and fifty years. 

The Celebrated John Davenport. 

In the year of the Pequod war (1637), 
John Davenport, a celebrated clergyman of 
London, and Theophilus Eaton, a merchant 
of wealth, and a number of their associates, 
who had been exiled from England for their 
religious opinions, reached Boston. They 
were warmly welcomed, and were urged to 
stay in the Bay colony, but the theological 
disputes were so high there that they pre- 
ferred to go into the wilderness and found a 
settlement where they could be at peace. 
Eaton with a few men was sent to explore 



the region west of the Connecticut, which 
had been discovered by the pursuers of the 
Pequods. He examined the coast of Long 
Island Sound, and spent the winter at a place 
which he selected as a settlement. In April, 
1638, Davenport and the rest of the company 
sailed from Boston and established a settle- 
ment on the spot chosen by Eaton. The 
settlers obtained a title to their lands from 
the natives, and agreed in return to protect 
them against the Mohawks. 

They named their settlement New Haven. 
In 1639 a form of government was adopted, 
and Eaton was elected governor. He was 
annually chosen to this position until his 
death, twenty years later. The colonists 
pledged themselves " to be governed in all 
things by the rules which the Scriptures held 
forth to them." The right of suffrage was 
restricted to church members. " Thus New 
Haven made the Bible its statute book, and 
the elect its freemen." In the next ten years 
settlements spread along the sound and ex- 
tended to the opposite shores of Long Island. 
The colony was distinct from and independ- 
ent of the Connecticut colony, with which 
friendly relations were- soon established. 




CHAPTER XIII 
The Union of the New England Colonies 

Feeling of the Colonies Towards England — Hostility of the English Government to New England — Efforts to Intro- 
duce Episcopacy — Massachusetts Threatens Resistance — The Revolution in England — Establishment of Free School? 
in New England — Harvard College — The Printing Press — The Long Parliament Friendly to New England — The 
United Colonies of New England — Rhode Island Obtains a Charter — Maine Annexed to Massachusetts — The 
Quakers are Persecuted — Efforts to Christianize the Indians — John Eliot, the Apostle to the Indians. 



THE sentiments with which the people 
of the New England colonies 
regarded the mother country may- 
be briefly stated. They were proud 
of the name of Englishmen, and took a deep 
interest in the welfare of their old home. 
They regarded the British constitution as the 
supreme law of their new states, and claimed 
to be true and loyal subjects of the King of 
England. Nevertheless, they looked upon 
the success of their colonies as their own 
work, accomplished by their own patience 
and heroism, and they were fully aware that 
they owed nothing to the mother country. 

They had been driven forth from her shores 
by persecution, and left in neglect to struggle 
up to the successful position they now occu- 
pied. They owed nothing to England ; in 
their deepest distress they had never asked 
aid of her, and they were willing to undergo 
any hardship rather than do so. They had 
made laws and established institutions under 
which they had surmounted their early trials, 
and they regarded their paramount allegiance 
as due to their respective provinces. They 
acknowledged the right of no power beyond 
the Atlantic to interfere with or change their 
work. They would acknowledge their alle- 
giance to the king as long as he respected the 
system they had built up at such great cost, 
and without assistance from him, but would 
resist any effort from him, or any one else, to 
interfere with it. They had made New Eng- 



land what she was, and they meant to retain 
the possession and control of their new home 
at any cost. They had made themselves a 
free people, and they meant to preserve their 
liberties as a precious heritage for their 
children. 

This was the general sentiment of New 
England. There were some discontented 
persons, however, in the midst of these deter- 
mined people. They had found the stern 
discipline of the Massachusetts colony too 
oppressive, and some had been severely pun- 
ished by the fiery Endicott. Upon returning 
to England they endeavored to induce the 
king to exert his power and remedy what 
they termed the distraction and disorder of 
the province of Massachusetts. Their com- 
plaints were echoed by a strong party in 
England. Burdett wrote to Archbishop Laud 
that " The colonists aimed not at a new dis- 
cipline, but at sovereignty; that it was 
accounted treason in their general court to 
speak of appeals to the king;" in which 
assertion he was right. 

The English archbishop began to regard 
the departure of so many " faithful and free- 
born EngUshmen and good Christians " to 
join a new communion as a serious matter, 
and i'mpediments were thrown in the way of 
emigration. In February, 1634, a requisi- 
tion was addressed to the colony of Massa- 
chusetts ordering the colonial officials to 
produce the patent of the company irt- 

157 



158 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



England. The colony took no notice of this 
demand. A little later the king appointed 
the Archbishop of Canterbury and some 
others a special commission, with full power 
over the American colonies. They were 
authorized to make such changes in church 
and state as they deemed necessary; to 
enforce them with heavy penalties ; and even 
to revoke all charters that contained privi- 
leges inconsistent with the royal prerogative. 

Massachusetts Indignant. 

The news of the appointment of this com- 
mission reached Boston in September, 1634, 
.and it was also rumored that a governor- 
general for the colonies had been appointed, 
and had sailed from England. All Massa- 
chusetts burned with indignation, and the 
colony resolved to resist the attempt upon 
its liberties. It was very poor, but in a short 
space of time the large sum of six hundred 
pounds was raised for the public defence, and 
fortifications were begun and pushed forward 
with energy. In January, 1635, the ministers 
were assembled at Boston and their opinion 
was asked upon the question whether the 
colony should receive a governor-general. 
They answered boldly : " We ought to 
defend our lawful possessions if we are able ; 
if not, to avoid and protract." 

In April, 1638, the privy council demanded 
the surrender of the charter of Massachu- 
setts, threatening in case of refusal that the 
king would take the management of the 
colony into his own hands. The colonial 
authorities were firmly resolved to give 
the king no pretext for interference with 
their affairs, and instead of complying 
witii the order of the privy council,, they 
addressed a remonstrance to that body 
against the surrender required of them, thus 
seeking to gain time. They were fully 
determined not to give up their charter ; but 
before their remonstrance could reach Eng- 



land the troubles which encompassed Charles 
at home made it impossible for him to carry 
out his designs against Massachusetts. 

The breaking out of the civil war in Eng- 
land put a stop to the emigration to New 
England. At the opening of the year 1640 the 
population of New England numbered twenty 
thousand. Some fifty towns and between 
thirty and forty churches had been built, and 
the most desponding could no longer doubt 
the ultimate success and prosperity of the 
country. The wretched cabins of the fir.st 
settlers were rapidly giving way to fair and 
comfortable houses, and the colonists were 
beginning to gather about them many of the 
comforts and much of the refinement they 
had been accustomed to in England. 
The Puritans. 

Nor were the Puritans mindful of material 
success only. Many of them were persons 
of education, and they were anxious that 
their children should have the opportunity 
of enjoying the blessings of knowledge in 
their new homes. In 1636 the general court 
made provision for the establishment at New- 
town of a high school. The name of the 
town was changed to Cambridge as a token 
that the people meant that it should yet be 
the seat of a university. 

In 1637 the school was formally opened. 
The next year the Rev. John Harvard, of 
Charlestown, bequeathed to the infant insti- 
tution his library and the half of his fortune, 
and in gratitude for this assistance the school 
took the name of "Harvard College." In 1647 
the general court ordered that in every town 
or district of fifty families there should be a 
common school ; and that in every town or 
district of one hundred families there should 
be a grammar school, conducted by teachers 
competent to prepare young men for college. 
This system rapidly found its way into the 
other New England colonies, with the excep- 
tion of Rhode Island. 



THE UNION OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 



159 



Thus was founded the American system of 
common schools. Until now education had 
been the task of the church, or had been 
confided to private individuals; but now, for 
the first time in the history of the world, the 
state took the task of educating its young 
citizens into its own hands, and established 
the schools in which it was to be conducted. 
Henceforth Icmwledge was to be restricted 
to no favored class ; educadon was made f cj 



more for posterity than this, they would still 
deserve to be held'in grateful remembrance 
as the founders of our public schools. Gen- 
erations yet unborn shall rise up to call them 
blessed, and to acknowledge the truth of 
their conviction that ignorant men cannot 
make good citizens. 

In 1639 a printing press, presented to the 
colony by some friends iii Holland, was set 
up in Massachusetts. Stephen Daye was the 




AN AMERICAN FREE SCHOOL. 



to every child, and every parent being taxed 
for the support of the public schools was 
made to feel interested in their proper con- 
duct. 

From the little beginning thus made a vast 
and noble system has been developed, the 
beneficial results of which must be felt to the 
latest period of our national existence. Had 
the fathers of New England done nothing 



printer, and in that year printed an almanac 
calculated for New England, and in 1640 a 
metrical version of the Psalms, made " by 
Thomas Welde and John Eliot, ministers of 
Roxbury, assisted by Richard Mather, min- 
ister of Dorchester." It was the first book 
printed in the English language in America, 
and continued to be used for a long time in 
the worship of the New England churches. 



i6o 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



Many of the settlers went back to England 
at the outset of the civil war to take part in 
the struggle, among whom were Governor 
Henry Vane and Hugh Peters, and very few 
emigrants arrived in New England during 
the existence of the commonwealth. Yet 
the colonies continued to prosper. Ship- 
building, which had been introduced by the 
first settlers of. Salem, was carried on with 
activity, and vessels of four hundred tons 
were constructed. A little later the manu- 
facture of woollen and linen cloth was begun 
by order of the general court. 

The colonial churches were invited to send 
their representatives to the assembly of 
divines at Westminster, but they wisely 
neglected to do so, judging it better to remain 
in their obscurity than to give the English 
people a pretext for future interference by 
joining in their affairs. 

Religious Liberty. 

The Long Parliament was friendly to New 
England, and granted to the colonies an 
exemption from all duties upon their com- 
merce " until the House of Commons should 
take order to the contrary." Massachusetts 
took advantage of the security afforded by 
the friendship of the Long Parliament to 
establish a written constitution, or " body of 
liberties," which placed the rights and privi- 
leges of her people upon a more stable basis. 
It contained some of the severest laws of the 
Mosaic code, such as those against witch- 
craft, blasphemy, and sins against nature, but 
secured the freedom of the citizen, the right 
of representative government, and the indepen- 
dence of the state and the municipality. The 
rights of property, the freedom of inheritance, 
and the independence of each church from 
control by the others were also placed beyond 
dispute. " This constitution," says Bancroft, 
" for its liberality and comprehensiveness, 
may vie with any similar record from the 
days of Magna Charta." 



m April, 1642, the towns on the Piscata- 
qua, now embraced within the limits of the 
state of New Hampshire, were annexed at 
their own request to Massachusetts. As the 
people of this region were not Puritans, and 
many of them were attached to the forms 
and faith of the Church of England, the gen- 
eral court in September adopted a measure 
providing that neither the freemen nor the 
deputies of New Hampshire should be 
required to be church members. This act 
of justice removed all danger of political dis-^ 
cord. In the same year Massachusetts made 
a less creditable and an unsuccessful effort 
to annex Rhode Island to her dominions. 

The United Colonies. 

Though relieved of the interference of the 
mother country, the dangers of New Eng- 
land were not yet at an end. The Indians 
were still powerful upon their narrow border, 
the French were beginning to threaten them 
from the direction of Canada, and the Dutch 
from the Hudson. The colonies had so many 
interests in common that it was of vital im- 
portance that they should act in concert for 
their defence. After several ineffectual 
attempts, a league was formed in 1643 
between the colonies of Massachusetts, Ply- 
mouth, Connecticut, and New Haven, under 
the title of " The United Colonics of New 
England." Each colony was to retain its. 
freedom in the management of its own affairs ; 
the authority of the union, which was 
intrusted to a commission of two members 
from each province, being limited to objects 
which concerned the general welfare of the 
colonies. Provision was made for the pres- 
ervation of the purity of the gospel, the com- 
missioners were required to be church mem- 
bers, and the expenses of the confederacy 
were to be assessed upon the colonies 
according to population. This union lasted 
for forty years. 



THE UNION OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 



i6i 



The colony of Rhode Island desired to be 
admitted into the union, but its petition was 
refused, as it would not acknowledge the 
jurisdiction of Plymouth, The people of the 
two settlements on Narragansett Bay, dread- 
ing an attempt to absorb them into some of 
the other colonies, now determined to apply 
to Parliament for an independent charter. 
Roger Williams was despatched to England 
for that purpose in 1643, and reached that 
country soon after the death of Hampden. 
The fame of his labors among the Indians 
secured for him a cordial welcome. 

The Charter Confirmed 

Assisted by Sir Henry Vane, a charter 
was obtained in March, 1644, organizing the 
settlements on Narragansett Bay as an inde- 
pendent colony under the name of " The 
Providence Plantations," " with full power 
and authority to rule themselves." The ex- 
ecutive council of state in England, in 165 1, 
made some grants to Coddington which 
would have dismembered the little state, and 
Williams was obliged to make a second voy- 
age to England to have these grants vacated. 
He succeeded in his efforts, and the charter 
was confirmed. He received in this, as in 
his former mission, the cordial co-operation 
of Sir Henry Vane, whose name should be 
ever dear to the people of Rhode Island, 
since but for him her territory would have 
been divided among the neighboring col- 
onies. In the interval between his first and 
second voyages Roger Williams became a 
Baptist, and founded the first church of that 
denomination in America. 

The country between the Piscataqua and 

the Kennebec was assigned to Sir Ferdinand 

Gorges, who, in 1639, was confirmed in his 

possession by a formal charter from Charles 

L, who called the territory the Province of 

Maine. In 1640, Gorges sent his son 

Thomas to Maine as his representative. 
II 



Thomas Gorges took up his residence at the 
settlement of Agamcnticus, now the town of 
York, and in 1642 changed the name of the 
lace to Gorgeana. 

Maine Comes Into the Union. 

Since the settlement of the colony the 
French had claimed the region between the 
St. Croix and the Penobscot, which they had 
settled under the name of Acadia, as has 
been stated elsewhere. After the death of 
Sir Ferdinand Gorges Maine was divided 
among his heirs. These cut it up into four 
weak communities, whose helplessness laid 
them open to the encroachments of the 
French in Canada. Apprehensive of the 
results of this, Massachusetts, to whom 
many of the inhabitants of the province had 
appealed to take such a course, in 165 1 
claimed the province of Maine as a part of 
the territory which had been granted to the 
colony by the original charter of Massa- 
chusetts. 

Commissioners were sent to establish the 
authority of the Bay colony over the prov- 
ince, but the magistrates of Maine resisted 
them, and appealed to the English govern- 
ment for protection. The people of Maine 
were the adherents of the king and the estab- 
lished church, and England was now ruled 
by the Puritans ; consequently Massachusetts 
won her cause, and Maine was declared a 
part of that province. Massachusetts made a 
generous use of her power, and allowed the 
towns of Maine very much the same govern- 
ment and privileges they now enjoy, and in 
religious matters treated them with the same 
leniency she had shown to New Hampshire.. 

In 1646, a dispute in the Bay colony in- 
duced one of the parties to it to appeal to 
Parliament to sustain his claims, and an order 
was sent out to Boston in his behalf" couched 
in terms which involved the right of Parlia- 
ment to reverse the decisions and control the 




JOHN ELIOT PREACHING TO THE INDIANS. 



THE UNION OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 



163 



government of Massachusetts." In plainer 
terms, Parliament claimed the right to revoke 
the charter of the colony, as the king had 
done at the outset of the civil war. The 
danger was great, and Massachusetts met it 
with firmness. The general court met on 
the fourth of November, and sat with closed 
doors to discuss the claim of the English 
government. It was resolved " that Massa- 
chusetts owed to England the same allegi- 
ance as the free Hanse towns had rendered 
to the empire ; as Normandy, when its dukes 
were kings of England, paid to the monarchs 
of France." 

Parliament Must Keep Hands Off. 

The court also refused to accept a new 
charter from Parliament, as that action might 
imply a surrender of the original instrument, 
or to allow Parliament to ccfntrol in any way 
the independence of the colony. Great as 
this claim was, it was admitted by the Eng- 
lish Parliament, in which the rights of the 
colony were stoutly maintained by Sir Henry 
Vane and others ; and in reply to a respectful 
address of the general court setting forth the 
views of that body, a committee of Parlia- 
ment declared : " We encourage no appeals 
from your justice. We leave you with all 
the freedom and latitude that may, in any 
respect, be duly claimed by you." Later on, 
upon the establishment of the common- 
wealth. Parliament invited the people of 
Massachusetts to receive a new patent from 
that body ; but the colonial authorities wisely 
declined to do this, or to allow the home 
government any hold upon the administra- 
tion of the affairs of the province. 

In 165 1, Cromwell, who had subdued 
Ireland, offered that island to the Puritans of 
New England as a new home; but they 
declined to leave America. Cromwell proved 
himself in many ways a judicious friend of 
New England, and the people of that country 



treasured his memory with the gratitude and 
respect it so richly deserved. 

Though so successful in asserting her own 
liberties, Massachusetts had not yet learned 
the lesson of religious tolerance. When 
the Baptists began to appear in the colony, 
severe measures were inaugurated to crush 
them, and one of their number — Holmes — a 
resident of Lynn, was whipped unmercifully. 
Still greater were the severities practised 
towards the Quakers. This sect had grown 
out of the Protestant Reformation, and con- 
stituted at this day the most advanced 
thinkers upon religious matters to be found 
in England. They claimed a perfect freedom 
in matters of faith and worship, and regarded 
all laws for enforcing religious systems as 
works of the devil. They were persons of 
pure lives, and even their most inveterate 
enemies could not charge them with wrong- 
doing. Previous to their appearance in 
Massachusetts exaggerated reports reached 
the colony concerning them. They were 
represented as making war upon all forms of 
religion and government. 

Intolerance Toward Quakers. 

The first of this creed who came to New 
England were Mary Fisher and Ann Austin, 
who reached Boston in July, 1656. In the 
absence of a special law against Quakers, 
they were arrested under the provisions of 
the general statute against heresy; their 
trunks were searched and their books burned 
by the hangman. Their persons were exam- 
ined for marks of witchcraft, but nothing 
could be found against them, and after being 
kept close prisoners for five weeks, they were 
sent back to England. 

During the year eight others were also sent 
back to England. Laws which were a dis- 
grace to an enlightened community were 
now passed prohibiting the Quakers from 
entering the colony. Such as came were 



164 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



imprisoned, cruelly whipped, and sent away. 
In 1657 a woman was whipped with twenty 
stripes for this offence. In 1658 a law was 
enacted that if any Quaker should return 
after being banished, his or her offence 
should be punished with death. It was hoped 
that this barbarous measure would rid the 
colony of their presence ; but they came in 
still greater numbers, to reprove the magis- 
trates for their persecuting spirit, and to call 




INDIAN MEDICINE-MAN. 

them to repentance. In 1659 Marmaduke 
Stephenson, William Robinson, Mary Dyar 
and William Leddro were hanged on Boston 
Common for returning to the colony after 
being banished. 

These cruelties were regarded with great 
discontent by the people of the colony , whose 
humanity was shocked by the barbarity of 
the magistrates. Their opposition grew 
stronger every day, and at last it became evi- 
dent to the macfistrates themselves that their 



severities were of no avail. When William 
Leddro was being sentenced to death, the 
magistrates were startled by the entrance into 
the court-room of Wenlock Christison, a 
Quaker who had been banished and forbid- 
den to return on pain of death. Christison 
was arrested, but the complaints of the 
people became so loud that the magistrates 
were obliged to pause in their bloody work. 
Christison and twenty-seven of his com- 
panions were released from custody, the 
persecution of the Quakers was discon- 
tinued, and the general court, in obedi- 
ence to the will of the people, repealed the 
barbarous laws against that sect. 

The Apostle to the Indians. 

In pleasing contrast with these sever- 
ities were the efforts of the Puritans to 
spread a knowledge of the gospel among 
the savages. Chief among those engaged 
in the good work was John Eliot, the min- 
ister of Roxbury, whose labors won him 
the name of "the apostle Eliot." He went 
among the red men in the forests, and ac- 
quired a knowledge of their language that 
he might preach to them in their own 
tongue. When he had become suffi- 
ciently proficient in it, he translated the 
Bible into the Indian language. This 
translation was printed at Cambridge, and 
a part of the type was set by an Indian 
compositor. He spent many years in the 
preparation of his Bible, and made a good 
use of it during his life; but it is now valu- 
able only as a literary curiosity and as the 
evidence of the devotion of the translator to 
his noble work. The destruction of the race 
for which it was intended has made it a 
sealed book. 

Eliot gathered his savage converts into a 
settlement at Natick, and taught the men the 
art of agriculture and the women to spin and 
to weave cloth. He had to encounter the 



THE UNION OF THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 



165 



opposition of the chiefs and medicine men 
or priests, who resented his efforts to win 
their people from the worship and habits 
of their ancestors, but he persevered. He 
was greatly beloved by his disciples, and 
continued his labors among them far into 
old age, and to a limited extent to 
the day of his death, which took place 
when he had attained the ripe age of 
eighty-six years. " My memory, my utter- 
ance fails me," he said near the close of his 
life; " but I thank God my charity holds out 
still." When Walton, a brother minister, 
visited him on his death-bed, he greeted him 



with the words ; " Brother, you are welcome ; 
but retire to your study and pray that I may 
be gone." His last words on earth were 
the triumphal shout with which he entered 
upon his reward : " Welcome joy ! " . 

Many of the Quakers, after the persecu- 
tion against them was over, joined Eliot in 
his labors. He had other fellow-workers. 
The two Mayhews, father and son, Cotton, 
and Brainerd thought it a privilege to labor 
for the souls of the poor savages. Native 
preachers were ordained, and at last there 
were thirty churches of "praying Indians" 
under such preachers. 




CHAPTER XIV 
New England after the Restoration 



Arrival of the News of the Restoration of Charles II. — The Regicides in New England — They are Protected — Revival 
of the Navigation Acts— Effect of this Measure upon the New England Colonies — Massachusetts Delays the Proclama- 
tion of the King — Connecticut Obtains a Charter — Union of New Haven with the Connecticut Colony — Rhode Island 
Given a New Charter — Massachusetts Settles her Difficulties with the Crown — Changes in the Government — High- 
handed Acts ol the Royal Commissioners — Troubles with the Indians — Injustice of the Whites— King Philip's War — A 
Forest Hero — An Incident in the Attack upon Hadley — Sufferings of the Colonies — Destruction of the Narragansetts — 
Death of Philip — Close of the War — England Asserts her Right to Tax the Colonies — Massachusetts buys Gorges' claims 
to Maine — New Hampshire Made a Separate Province — James II. Revokes the Charter of Massachusetts — Dudley and 
Randolph in New England — Andros Appointed Governor-General — His Tyranny — He Demands the Charter of Con- 
necticut — It is Carried Away and Hidden — The Charter Oak — Fall of James II. — The People of Massachusetts take 
up Arms — Andros Arrested — Effects of the Revolution upon New England. 



THE news of the restoration of Charles 
II. to the EngHsh throne was 
brought to Boston by Edward 
Whalley, and WiUiam Goffe, two 
of the judges of Charles I, They came to 
seek refuge from the vengeance of the king, 
having offended him beyond forgiveness by 
their share in the death of his father. They 
remained about a year in Massachusetts, 
protected by the people, and preaching to 
them. A few months after their arrival, 
warrants for their arrest and transportation 
to England for trial arrived from the king, 
and to escape this danger they took refuge in 
New Haven. 

The royal officers instituted a diligent 
search for them, and they were obliged to 
change their place of concealment frequently. 
Great rewards were offered for their betrayal, 
and even the Indians were urged to search 
the woods for their hiding-places. The peo- 
ple whom they trusted protected them, and 
aided them to escape the royal officers until 
the vigor of the search was exhausted. They 
then conducted them to a secure refuge in 
the vicinity of Hadley, where they remained 
in seclusion and peace until the close of their 
lives. 
1 66 



' News was constantly arriving in the colo- 
nies of the execution of the men who had 
been the friends of America in the Parlia- 
ment, and a general sadness was cast over 
the settlements by the tidings of the death of 
Hugh Peters and the noble Sir Henry Vane. 
From the first the people of New England 
saw plainly that they had little reason to 
expect justice at the hands of the royal gov- 
ernment, and there was little rejoicing in that 
region at the return of the king to " his own 
again." 

One of Charles's first acts was to revive in 
a more odious form the navigation act of the 
Long Parliament. We have spoken of the 
effect of this measure upon the colonies of 
Virginia and Maryland. This act closed the 
harbors of America against the vessels of 
every European nation save England, and 
forbade the exportation of certain American 
productions to any country but England or 
her possessions. This was a very serious 
blow to New England, and was intended as 
such. The colonies of that region had 
already built up a growing commerce, and 
this, together with their activity in ship- 
building, excited the envy and the hostility 
of the British merchants, who hoped, by 



NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



167 



inducing the king to place these restrictions 
upon the colonies, to compel the Americans 
to depend upon them for the supply of all 
their wants. 

Later on, America was forbidden not only 
to manufacture any articles which might 
compete with English manufactures in foreign 
markets, but to supply her own wants with 
her own manufactures. At the same time 
Parliament endeavored to destroy the trade 
that had grown up between New England 
and the southern colonies by imposing upon 
the articles exported from one colony to 
another a duty equal to that imposed upon 
the consumption of these articles in England. 

Foul Injustice. 

Thus did Great Britain lay the foundation 
of that system of commercial injustice toward 
her colonies which eventually deprived her 
of them, and which her greatest writer on 
political economy declared to be " a manifest 
violation of the rights of mankind." The 
policy thus established in the reign of Charles 
IL was never departed from. Each succeed- 
ing administration remained true to the prin- 
ciples of the navigation act, and consistently 
declined to admit the claim of the colonies 
to just and honorable treatment at the hands 
of the mother country. 

Charles IL was promptly proclaimed in 
the colonies of Plymouth, Connecticut, New 
Haven and Rhode Island, and those provinces 
were administered in his name. Massachu- 
setts, distrusting his purposes towards her, 
held back, and waited until he should show 
his intentions more plainly, 

Connecticut had purchased the claims of 
the assigns of the Earl of Warwick to the 
region occupied by her, and had bought the 
territory of the Mohegans from Uncas, their 
sachem. The colony sent the younger Win- 
throp to England in 1661 to obtain a charter 
from the king. The noble character of Gov- 



ernor Winthrop was well known in England, 
and impressed even the profligate Charles. 
His reception was cordial and his mission 
entirely successful. In 1662, the king granted 
to the colony a charter incorporating Hart- 
ford and New Haven in one province under 
the name of Connecticut, and extending its 
limits from Long Island Sound westward to 
the Pacific Ocean, thus bestowing upon the 
colony those rich western lands which were 
subsequently made the basis of the magnifi- 
cent school fund of Connecticut. The charter 
was substantially the same in its provisions 
as the constitution adopted by the Hartford 
colony. By it the king conferred upon the 
colonists the right to elect their own officers 
and to make and administer their own laws 
without interference from England in any 
event whatever. Connecticut was made 
independent in all but name, and the charter 
continued in force as the constitution of the 
state after the period of independence until 
1818. 

Good Fortune of Connecticut. 

The colony of New Haven was much 
opposed to the union with Connecticut, and 
it required all Governor Winthrop's efforts 
to induce the people of that colony to accept 
it. The matter was adjusted in 1665, when 
the union was finally accomplished. The 
labors of Governor Winthrop were rewarded 
by his annual election as governor of Con- 
necticut for fourteen years. Connecticut was 
a fortunate colony. Its government was ably 
and honestly administered ; no persecutions 
marred its peace, and its course was uniformly 
prosperous and happy. It was always one 
of the most peaceful and orderly colonies of 
New England, and for a century its popula- 
tion doubled once in twenty years, notwith- 
standing frequent emigrations of its people 
to other parts of the country. The colony 
at an early day made a liberal provision for 



i68 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



education, and in 1700 Yale College was 
founded. It was originally located at Say- 
brooke, but in 17 18 was removed to New 
Haven. 

Rhode Island was equally fortunate. 
Through its resident agent at London, John 
Clarke, it made application to the king for a 
new charter, and after some delay, caused by 
the difficulty of arranging satisfactorily 
the limits of the province, a charter was 
granted in 1663, formerly establishing the 
colony of " Rhode Island and Providence 
Plantations " This charter continued to be 
the sole constitution of Rhode Island until 
the year 1842. By its provisions the govern- 
ment of the colony was to consist of a gov- 
ernor, deputy-governor, ten assistants, and 
representatives from the towns. 

Equal Rights to All. 

The laws were to be agreeable to those of 
England, but no oath of allegiance was 
required of the colony, and in matters of 
religion the charter declared that " no person 
within the said colony, at any time hereafter, 
shall be anywise molested, punished, dis- 
quieted, or called in any question for any 
difference in opinion in matters of religion ; 
every person may at all times freely and 
fully enjoy his own judgment and conscience 
in matters of religious concernments." Free- 
dom of conscience was not restricted to 
Christians ; it was extended by the charter 
to infidels and pagans as well. This charter 
made the little colony secure against the 
attempts of Massachusetts to absorb her, and 
its reception by the people was joyful and 
enthusiastic. 

At this period the population of Rhode 
Island was about twenty-five hundred. It 
increased rapidly and steadily ; the excellent 
harbors of the province encouraged com- 
merce, and the little state soon began to 
rival her larger associates in prosperity. 



Massachusetts was from the first regarded 
with disfavor by the royal government. It 
delayed its acknowledgment of Charles II. 
for over a year, and the king was not pro- 
claimed at Boston until the seventh of 
August, 1661. Even then the general court 
forbade all manifestations of joy. These 
signs of the independent spirit of the people 
had been observed in England, and the col- 
ony had been watched by the government 
with anything but favor. The enemies of 
the young state hurried their complaints be- 
fore the king, and Massachusets at length 
found it to her interest to send commission- 
ers to London, as, indeed, the express orders 
of the king required her to do. Among the 
agents sent over were John Norton and 
Simon Bradstreet, men of ability and mod- 
eration, who commanded the confidence of 
all classes of the colonists. Their instruc- 
tions were to assure the king of the loyalty 
of Massachusetts, to engage his favor for 
the colony; but to agree to " nothing preju- 
dicial to their present standing according to 
their patent, and to endeavor the establish- 
ment of the rights and privileges then 
enjoyed." 

Two Parties in Massachusetts. 

The commissioners reached London in 
January, 1662, and were graciously received 
by the king, who confirmed the charter, and 
granted a complete amnesty for all past 
offences against his majesty. He required, 
however, that all laws derogatory to his 
authority should be repealed ; that the col- 
onists should take the oath of allegiance to 
him ; that justice should be administered in 
his name : that the right of suffrage should 
be thrown open to all freeholders of com- 
petent estates ; and that all who wished to do 
so should be free to use " the book of com- 
mon prayer, and perform their devotion in 
the manner established in England." 



NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



169 



These were better terms than the commis- 
sioners had reason to expect, and were not 
in themselves objectionable, as Massachu- 
setts was growing beyond its early preju- 
dices; but the acceptance of them would 
have implied an acknowledgment by the 
colony of the king's right to change its fun- 
damental law, and to interfere with its affairs 
at pleasure. Massachusetts was at once 
divided into two parties, the larger of which 
maintained the independence of the colony 
■of royal control ; the smaller party supported 
the claims of the king. Under other circum- 
stances no opposition would have been made 
to the toleration of the practices of the 
Church of England in the colony; but now 
that it seemed that episcopacy was to be in- 
troduced as the ally of the royal power, the 
people of Massachusetts resolved to prevent 
it from obtaining a foothold in their midst. 
The general court resolved to maintain their 
political independence, and their religious 
establishment as well. As a measure of pre- 
caution, the charter was secretly intrusted 
for safe-keeping to a committee of four, ap- 
pointed by the general court ; and it was 
ordered that only small bodies of officers and 
men should be allowed to land from ships, 
and should be required to yield a strict 
obedience to the laws of the province while 
on shore. 

Contempt for Puritan Customs. 

These last measures were adopted because 
of the appointment by the king of commis- 
sioners to regulate the affairs of New Eng- 
land. The commissioners reached Boston 
in July, 1664, escorted by the fleet sent out 
from England for the reduction of New 
Amsterdam. They were ordered to investi- 
gate the manner in which the charters of the 
New England colonies had been exercised, 
and had " full authority to provide for the 
peace of the country, according to the royal 



instructions, and their own discretion " — a 
power which Massachusetts was justified in 
regarding as dangerous to her liberties. 

The People Redress their "Wrongs. 

The commissioners cared very little for 
the prejudices of the people of Massachu- 
setts, and from the first proceeded to outrage 
their feelings. They introduced the services 
of the Church of England into Boston to the 
great disgust of the people. The Puritans 
had always observed the old Jewish custom 
of beginning their Sabbath at sunset. The 
commissioners contemptuously disregarded 
this custom, and spent Saturday evening in 
merry-making. They soon gave cause for 
more serious alarm by exercising the powers 
with which they had been intrusted, and pro- 
ceeding to redress the grievances of the 
people. All persons who had complaints 
against Massachusetts were called upon to 
lay them before the commissioners, and 
Rhode Island and the Narragansett chiefs 
promptly availed themselves of the invita- 
tion. The general court now cut the matter 
short by a decisive step, and sternly ordered 
the commissioners to discontinue their pro- 
ceedings, as contrary to the charter. The 
commissioners obeyed the order, and though 
the firmness of the colony aroused the indig- 
nation of the king, he was not able to shake 
the determination of a free people. 

Nor was this the only opposition shown 
by New England to the injustice of the 
mother country. The navigation acts were 
generally disregarded; they could not be 
enforced; and Boston and the other New 
England ports continued to enjoy their grow- 
ing commerce as freely as before the passage 
of these infamous acts. Vessels from all the 
other colonies, and from France, Spain, Hol- 
land and Italy, as well as from England, 
were to be seen at all seasons in the port of 
Boston. 



I/O 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



Massachusetts owned the greater number 
of vessels built and operated in America, 
and was the principal carrier for the other 
colonies. Its ships sailed to the most dis- 
tant lands beyond the sea, and the commerce 
of the colony was rapidly becoming a source 
of great wealth. So marked indeed was the 
prosperity of New England, that upon the 
receipt of the news of the great fire in Lon- 
don the colonists were able to send large 
sums to the assistance of the sufferers. The 



14,000; Massachusetts, about 22,000; Maine, 
about 4,000; New Hampshire, about 4,000; 
Rhode Island, about 4,000. The settlements 
lay principally along the coast, from New 
Haven to the northeastern border of Maine. 
Little progress had been made towards pene- 
trating the interior. Haverhill, Deerfield, 
Northfield and Westfield were towns on the 
remote frontier. 

This rapid growth alarmed the Indians, 
who had already begun to regard the whites. 




N LIFE IN THEIR NATIVE FORESTS. 



people of New England were industrious 
and frugal. Villages multiplied rapidly, and 
wherever a village sprang up a common 
school accompanied it. The villages began 
to assume a more tasteful and pleasing ap- 
pearance, and men gave more care to the 
adornment and beautifying of their homes. 

The population of New England in 1675 
has been estimated at about 55,000 souls, 
divided among the colonies as follows : 
Plymouth, about 7,000; Connecticut, about 



as enemies bent on their destruction. Though 
there had been peace for forty years in New 
England, the savages saw that the policy 
pursued by the settlers was meant to force 
them back from the lands of their fathers. 
The whites had gradually absorbed the best 
lands in New England, and the red men had 
been as gradually crowded down upon the 
narrow necks and bays of the southern 
shores of the Plymouth and Rhode Island 
colonies. This had been done in pursuance 



NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



171 



of a settled policy, as the savages could be 
more carefully watched, and more easily 
managed in these localities than if left to 
roam at will over the country. The Indians 
on their part sullenly resented the course of 
the whites, and they had cause for complaint. 
They were ignorant of the art of cultivating 
the soil, and unwilling to practice it, and in 
their restricted limits it was difficult for them 
to obtain the means of supporting life. The 
game had been almost entirely driven from 
the forests, and the savages were forced to 
depend upon fish for their food ; and these 
were obtained in scanty and uncertain quan- 
tities. Thus the very success of New Eng- 
land was about to bring upon it the most 
serious misfortunes it had yet sustained. 

The Chief Entrapped. 

Massasoit, who had been the early friend 
of the English, left two sons at his death, 
Wamsuttaand Metacom, who had long been 
reckoned among the friends of the Plymouth 
colony. They were frequent visitors at 
Plymouth, and had received from the English 
the names of Alexander and Philip. At the 
death of Massasoit, Wamsutta, or Alexander, 
became chief of the Wampanoags. He and 
his brother Philip were men of more than 
ordinary abilities, and felt deeply the wrongs 
which were beginning to fall thickly upon 
their race. Uncas, the chief of the Mohe- 
gans, the determined enemy of Wamsutta, 
exerted himself, with success, to fill the 
minds of the English with suspicions of the 
intentions of the Wampanoag chieftain, and 
it was resolved to arrest him and bring him 
to Plymouth. 

Winslow was sent at the head of an armed 
force, and succeeded in surprising the chief 
in his hunting-lodge, together with eighty of 
his followers. The proud spirit of Wamsutta 
chafed with such fury at the indignity thus 
put upon him that he was seized with a dan- 



gerous fever, and the English were obliged 
to permit him to return home. " He died on 
his way," says Elliott. " He was carried 
home on the shoulders of men, and borne to 
his silent grave near Mount Hope, in the 
evening of the day, and in the prime of his 
life, between lines of sad, quick-minded 
Indians, who well believed him the victim of 
injustice and ingratitude ; for his father had 
been the ally, not the subject, of England, 
and so was he, and the like indignity had not 
before been put upon any sachem." 

By the death of his brother, Metacom, or 
Philip, became chief of the Wampanoags. 
He kept his own council, but the whites soon 
had cause to believe that he meditated a des- 
perate vengeance upon them for the death of 
Wamsutta and the wrongs of his race. To 
make the sense of injury deeper in his mind, 
the Plymouth authorities treated him with 
great harshness and compelled him to give 
up his arms. A "praying Indian" who 
lived among his people informed the colonists 
that the chief meditated harm against them, 
and his dead body was soon after found. 
Three of Philip's men were suspected of the 
murder. They were arrested, tried at Ply- 
mouth, and found guilty by a jury composed 
of whites and Indians, and were put to death. 
This was early in 1675. 

Cry for Revenge. 

The execution of these men awoke a wild 
thirst for revenge among the tribe to which 
they belonged, and the young warriors clam- 
ored loudly for war against the English. 
Philip, whose vigorous mind enabled him to 
judge more clearly of the issue of such a 
strucrpfle. entered into the contest with reluct- 
ance, for he saw that it must end in the 
destruction of his race. He was powerless 
to resist the universal sentiment of his people, 
and like a true hero resolved to make the 
best of the situation in which he was placed. 



1/2 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



and to share the fate of his nation. The 
Indians were tolerably well provided with 
fire-arms, for, in spite of the severe punish- 
ments denounced against the sale of weapons 
to the savages, the colonists had not been 
proof against the temptations of gain held 
out to them by this traffic. 

Their chief dependence, however, was upon 
their primitive weapons. The English, on 
the other hand, were well armed, and were 
provided with forts and towns which fur- 
nished them with secure places of refuge. 




KING PHILIPo 

They might have averted the war by concil- 
iating the savages, but they persisted in 
their unjust treatment of them, regarding 
them as " bloody heathen," who it was their 
duty to drive back into the wilderness. 

Philip was able to bring seven hundred 
desperate warriors into the field. They had 
no hope of success, and they fought only for 
vengeance. They knew every nook and 
hiding-place of the forest, and in these nat- 
ural defences could hope to continue the 



struggle as long as the leaves remamed on 
the trees to conceal their lurking-places from 
the white man's search. 

War Breaks Out, 

Immediately after the execution of the 
three Indians at Plymouth, Philip's men had 
begun to rob exposed houses and carry off 
cattle, but the war did not actually begin 
until the twenty-fourth of June, 1675, the day 
of fasting and prayer appointed by the gov- 
ernment as a preparation for the struggle. 
On that day the people of Swanzey, in Ply- 
mouth colony, while returning home from 
church, were attacked by the Wampanoags, 
and eight or nine were killed. Philip burst 
into tears when the news of this attack was 
brought to him, but he threw himself with 
energy into the hopeless struggle, now that 
it had come. 

Reinforcements were sent from Massachu- 
setts to the aid of the Plymouth colony, and 
on the twenty-ninth of June the united forces 
made an attack upon the Wampanoags, killed 
six or seven of their men and drove them to 
a swamp in which they took refuge. The 
English surrounded this swamp, determined 
to starve the Indians into submission, but 
Philip and his warriors escaped and took 
refuge among the Nipmucks, a small tribe 
occupying what is now Worcester county, 
Massachusetts. The English then marched 
into the territory of the Narragansetts and 
compelled them to agree to remain neutral, 
and to deliver up the fugitive Indians who 
should take refuge among them. This 
accomplished, the colonists hoped they had 
put an end to the war. 

Philip succeeded in inducing the Nipmucks 
to join him in the struggle, and his warriors 
began to hang around the English settle- 
ments. The whites were murdered wherever 
they ventured to expose themselves, and a 
feeling of general terror spread through the 



NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



173 



colonies. No one knew the extent of the 
hostility of the savage tribes, or how many 
allies Philip had gained ; nor was it certain 
when or where the next great blow of the 
savages would be struck. 

Strange Stories. 

Some of the colonists began to give way 
to superstitious fears. It was asserted that 
an Indian bow, a sign of impending evil, had 
been seen clearly defined 
against the heavens, and 
that at the eclipse which 
occurred at this time the 
moon bore the figure of 
an Indian scalp on its 
face. The northern heavens 
glowed with auroral lights 
of unusual brilliancy; troops 
of phantom horsemen were 
heard to dash through the 
air; the sighing of the night 
wind was like the sound 
of whistling bullets ; and 
the howling of the wolves ^ 
was fiercer and more con- 
stant than usual. These 
things, the superstitious 
declared, were warnings 
that the colonies were 
about to be severely pun- 
ished for their sins, among 
which they named profane 
swearing, the neglect of 
bringing up their children 
in more rigid observances, 
the licensing of ale houses, 
and the wearing of long 
hair by the men, and of gay apparel by the 
women. The more extreme even declared 
that they were about to be "judged " for not 
exterminating the Quakers. 

In the meantime, Philip, with a party of 
Nipmucks and his own people, carried the 
war into the valley of the Connecticut, and 



spread death along the line of settlements 
from Springfield to Northfield, then the most 
remote inland town. With the hope of with- 
drawing the Nipmucks, v;ho could muster 
fifteen hundred warriors, from the confed- 
eracy, Captain Hutchinson, with twenty men, 
was sent to treat with them. His party was 
ambushed and murdered at Brookfield early 
in August. The Indians then attacked 




THE BURNING OF BROOKFIELD BY THE INDIANS. 

Brookfield, and burned the village with the 
exception of one strong house to which the 
colonists retreated. 

After a siege of two days, during which 
they kept up a constant fire upon the build- 
ing, they attempted to burn the house, but 
were prevented by a shower of rain which 



174 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



extinguished the flames. At the same 
moment a reinforcement of fifty men arrived 
to the aid of the whites, and the savages 
were driven off with the loss of several of 
their number. Philip succeeded in drawing 
to his support nearly all the tribes of New 
England, and it was resolved by the savages 
to make a general effort for the destruction 
of the whites. A concerted attack was to 
be made upon a large number of settlements 
at the same day and hour, and the Sabbath 
was chosen as the day most favorable for the 
movement. 

King Philip a Refugee. 

Deerfield in Massachusetts and Hadley in 
Connecticut were among the places attacked. 
The former was burned. Hadley was as- 
sailed while the congregation were worship- 
ing in the church, and the whites were hard 
pressed by their antagonists. Suddenly in 
the midst of the battle there appeared a tall 
and venerable man with a flowing beard, and 
clad in a strange dress. With sword in hand 
he rallied the settlers, and led them to a new 
effort, in which the savages were beaten back 
and put to flight. When the battle was over, 
the stranger could not be found, and the 
wondering people declared that he was an 
angel sent by God for their deliv^erance. It 
was Goffe, the regicide, who had suddenly 
lelt his place of concealment to aid his coun- 
trymen in their struggle with the savages. 
He had been lying in concealment at the 
house of Russell, the minister of Hadley, and 
returned to his place of refuge when the 
danger was over. 

On the whole, the Indians, though they 
succeeded in causing great suffering to the 
colonies, were unsuccessful in their efforts 
during the summer and autumn of 1675. In 
October, Philip returned to his old home, 
but, finding Mount Hope in ruins, took shel- 
ter among the Narragansetts, who protected 



him notwithstanding their promise to deliver 
up all fugitives to the linglish. The colonial 
authorities seeing that the tribe had no inten- 
tion of fulfilling their promise, and being 
fearful that Philip would succeed in winning 
them over to his side, resolved to anticipate 
the danger and treat them as enemies. 

A force was collected and sent into the 
Narragansett country in December, 1675. 
This tribe, numbering about three thousand 
souls, had erected a strong fort of palisades, 
in the midst of a swamp near the present 
town of Kingston, Rhode Island. It was 
almost inaccessible, and had but a single 
entrance, defended by a morass, which could 
be passed only by means of a fallen tree. 
The English were led to the fort by an 
Indian traitor, and attacked it on the nine- 
teenth of December, After a severe fight of 
two hours they succeeded in forcing an en- 
trance into the fort. The wigwams were 
then fired, and the whole place was soon in 
flames. The defeat of the savages was 
complete, but it was purchased by the loss 
of six captains and two hundred and fifty 
men, killed and wounded, on the part of the 
English. 

Fury of the Savages. 

About one thousand of the Narragansetts 
were slain, their provisions were destroyed 
and numbers were made prisoners. Those 
who escaped wandered through the frozen 
woods without shelter, and for food were 
compelled to dig for nuts and acorns under 
the snow. Many died during the winter. 
Canonchet, the Narragansett chief, was 
among the survivors. *' We will fight to the 
last man rather than become servants to the 
English," said the undaunted chieftain. He 
was taken prisoner in April, 1676, near 
Blackstone, and was offered his life if he 
would induce the Indians to make peace. 
He refused the offer with scorn, and, when 




MKS. KOWLANDSON CAPTURED BY THE INDIANS. 



175 



176 



SETTLEiMENT OF AMERICA. 



sentenced to death, answered proudly : " I 
like it well ; I shall die before I speak any- 
thing unworthy of myself." 

In the spring- of 1676, Philip, who had been 
to the west to endeavor to induce the 
Mohawks to join the war against the Eng- 
lish, returned to place himself at the head of 
his countrymen in New England. The work 
of murdering and burning was resumed with 
renewed fury. The Indians seemed to be 
everywhere and innumerable, and the whites 
could find safety only in their forts. The 
surviving Narragansetts scourged the Rhode 
Island and Plymouth colonies with fire and 
axe, and even the aged Roger Williams was 
obliged to take up arms for the defence of 
his home Lancaster, Medford, Weymouth, 
Groton, Springfield, Sudbury and Marl- 
borough, in Massachusetts, and Providence 
and Warwick, in Rhode Island, were de- 
stroyed either wholly or in part, and numer- 
ous other settlements were attacked and made 
to suffer more or less severely. 

Mother and Child Wounded. 

Among the prisoners carried away by the 
sav^ages was Mrs. Rowlandson, wife of the 
resident minister, and her little girl six years 
old. A single bullet fired during the attack 
wounded both mother and child. With that 
devotion which is part of the nature of a 
mother, she carried and nursed the little one 
for nine days, when it died in her arms. The 
parent endured many hardships, and was a 
captive among the Indians for three months, 
when she was ransomed for twenty pounds. 

As the season advanced the cause of the 
Indians became more hopeless, and they 
began to quarrel among themselves. In June 
the Nipmucks submitted, and the tribes on 
the Connecticut refused to shelter Philip any 
longer. He then appealed to the Mohawks 
to take up the hatchet, but seeing that his 
cause was hopeless, they refused to join 



him. In proud despair Philip went back to 
Mount Hope to die. One of his people 
urged him to make peace with the whites, 
and was struck dead by the chief for daring 
to mention such a humiliation. 

•* I Ana Ready to Die!" 

It became known that Philip had returned 
to his old home, and Captain Church 
marched against him, dispersed his followers, 
and took the chiefs wife and little son pris- 
oners. Philip, who had borne the reverses 
and the reproaches of his nation with the 
firmness of a hero, was conquered by this 
misfortune. " My heart breaks," he cried, 
despairingly, " I am ready to die ! " He was 
soon attacked by Church in his place of 
concealment, and in attempting to escape 
was shot by an Indian who was serving in 
the ranks of his enemies. Philip's little son 
was sold as a slave in Bermuda, and the 
grandson of Massasoit, who had welcomed 
and befriended the English, was condemned 
to pass his days in bondage in a foreign 
clime. 

The death of Philip was soon followed by 
the close of hostilities. The power of the 
Indians was completely broken. Of the 
Narragansetts scarcely one hundred men 
were left alive, and the other tribes had suf- 
fered severely. The Mohegans had remained 
faithful to the English, and Connecticut had 
been happily spared the sufferings experi- 
enced by the other colonies, which were 
very severe. Twelve or thirteen towns were 
destroyed, and many others were seriously 
crippled. Six hundred houses were burned, 
and the pecuniary losses amounted to the 
then enormous sum of half a million of 
dollars. Over six hundred men, chiefly 
young men, fell in the war, and there was 
scarcely a family which did not mourn some 
loved one who had given his life for the 
country. 



NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



177 



In all their distress the colonies received 
no aid from England. The mother country- 
left them to fight out their struggle of life 
and death alone. The English people and 
government were indifferent to their fate. 
One generous Non-conformist church in 
Dublin sent a contribution of five hundred 
pounds to the sufferers. This relief Avas 
gratefully acknowledged ; but to the credit 
of New England it should be remembered 
that her colonies never asked assistance 
from England, The king was very careful, 
however, to exact every penny he could 
wring from the colonies, and towards the 
close of the Indian war established a royal 
custom-house at Boston for the collection of 
duties. Duties were imposed upon the com- 
merce of the colonies, and the royal govern- 
ment endeavored to enforce their payment 
by threatening to refuse the New England 
ships the protection which enabled them to 
escape the outrages of the African pirates of 
the Mediterranean. 

The province of Maine had been restored 
by Charles II. to the heirs of Sir Ferdinand 
Gorges, and in 1677 Massachusetts pur- 
chased their claims for the sum of twelve 
hundred and fifty pounds, and thus confirmed 
her possession of the region between the 
Piscataqua and the Kennebec. The region 
between the Kennebec and the Penobscot 
was held by the Duke of York, and that from 
the Penobscot to the St. Croix was occupied 
by the French. 

In July, 1679, King Charles detached New 
Hampshire from Massachusetts, and organ- 
ized it as a royal province; the first ever 
erected in New England. The province at 
once asserted its rights, and a controversy 
was begun with the crown, which was con- 
tinued for several years. The people resisted 
the effort to force upon them the observances 
of the English church, and the collection of 
taxes assessed by the royal officials, and 
12 



Cranfield, the royal governor, finding it 
impossible to continue his arbitrary rule, 
wrote to the British government, " I shall 
esteem it the greatest happiness in the world 
to remove from these unreasonable people. 
They cavil at the royal commission, and not 
at my person. No one will be accepted by 
them who puts the king's commands in' 
execution." 

Conflict With the King. 

In the last years of his reign Charles II. 
made a determined effort to destroy the 
charter of Massachusetts. Commissioners 
were sent by the colony to England to 
endeavor to defend its rights, but the royal 
government was resolved upon its course, 
and the people of Massachusetts were 
equally determined not to consent to the 
surrender of their liberties. At length, in 

1684, the general court having in the name 
of the people distinctly refused to make a 
surrender of the charter to the king, the 
English courts declared the charter forfeited. 
A copy of the judgment was sent to Boston, 
and was received there on the second of 
July, 1685. The colony was full of appre- 
hension. The charter under which it had 
grown and prospered, and which secured its 
liberties to it without the interference of the 
crown, had been stricken down by the sub- 
servient courts of the mother country, and 
there was now no defence between the liber- 
ties of Massachusetts and the arbitrary will 
of the king, who had given the colony good 
cause to fear his hostility. 

James II. came to the English throne in 

1685. He was even more hostile to New 
England than his brother Charles. He was 
a bigoted Roman Catholic, and was resolved 
to introduce that faith, not only into Eng- 
land, but also into the colonies. He attempted 
to accomplish this by proclaiming an indul- 
gence or toleration of all creeds. As he 



178 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



dared not proceed openly to violate his cor- 
onation oath, he hoped by this underhanded 
scheme to place his own religion upon such 
a footing in England that he would soon be 
in a position to compel its adoption by his 
subjects. He had greatly mistaken the 
temper of both England and America. 

Joseph Dudley, who had been sent to 
England as one of the agents of Massachu- 




SIR EDMUND ANDKOS. 

setts in the last controversy between the 
colony and King Charles, now found it to 
his interest to become as ardent a defender 
as he had formerly been an opponent of the 
royal prerogative, and James finding him a 
willing abettor of his designs, appointed him 
president of Massachusetts until a royal 
governor should arrive, for the king was 



resolved to take away the charters of all the 
colonies and make them royal provinces. 
At the same time, being determined to curtail 
the liberty of the press, the king appointed 
Edward Randolph its censor. Dudley was 
regarded by the people as the betrayer of 
the liberties of his country, and both he and 
Randolph were cordially despised by them. 
The king in appointing Dudley made no 
provision for an assembly or 
general court, as he meant to 
govern the colonies without 
reference to the people. He 
regarded the American pro- 
vinces as so many possessions 
of the crown, possessed of no 
rights, and entitled to no privi- 
leges save what he chose to 
allow them. 

In pursuance of this plan. Sir 
Edmund Andros, whom the king 
had appointed governor of New 
York, was made governor-gen- 
eral of all New England. He 
reached Boston in December, 
1686. Dudley was made chief 
justice, and Randolph colonial 
secretary. The governor-general 
was empowered by the king to 
appoint his own council, impose 
such taxes as he should think 
fit, command the militia of the 
colonies, enforce the naviga- 
tion acts, prohibit printing, 
and establish episcopacy in 
New England ; and in order 
to enable him to enforce his will, two 
companies of soldiers were sent over with 
him and quartered in Boston. Thus were 
the liberties of New England placed at the 
mercy of a tyrant, and thus was inaugu- 
rated a despotisfn the most galling that 
was ever imposed upon men of English 
descent. 



NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



179 



Andros promptly put in force a series of 
the most arbitrary measures. The public 
schools, which had been fostered with such 
care by the colonial governments, were 
allowed to fall into decay. The support 
which had been granted to the churches was 
withdrawn. The people were forbidden to 
assemble for the discussion of any public 
matter, though they were allowed the poor 
privilege of electing their town officers. The 
form of oath in use in New England was an 
appeal to Heaven with uplifted hand. The 
governor now ordered the substitution of a 
form which required the person to place his 
hand on the Bible. This was particularly 
repugnant to the Puritans, who regarded it 
as a " Popish practice." Probate fees were 
increased twenty-fold. The holders of lands 
were told that their titles were invalid 
because obtained under a charter which had 
been declared forfeited. 

Tyrannical Proceedings. 

No person was allowed to leave the colony 
without a pass signed by the governor. The 
Puritan magistrates and ministers were 
refused authority to unite persons in mar- 
riage. The clergyman of the Church of 
England, stationed at Boston, was the only 
person in New England who could perform 
a legal marriage. Episcopacy was formally 
established, and the people were required to 
build a church for its uses. At the com- 
mand of the king, a tax of a penny in the 
pound, and a poll-tax of twenty pence, was 
imposed upon every person in the colony. 

Some of the towns had the boldness to 
refuse to pay this tax, and John Wise, the 
minister of Ipswich, advised his fellow- 
townsmen to resist it. He and a number of 
others were arrested and fined. When they 
pleaded their privileges under the laws of 
England, they were told by one of the coun- 
cil : " You have no privilege left you but 



not to be sold as slaves." " Do you think,'* 
asked one ot the judges, "that the laws of 
England follow you to the ends of the 
earth ? " The iniquitous exactions of Andros 
and his associates threatened the country with 
ruin. When the magistrates mentioned this, 
they were told, " It is not for his majesty's 
interest you should thrive." " The governor 
invaded liberty and property after such a 
manner," wrote Increase Mather, " as no man 
could say anything was his own." 

The Old " Charter Oak." 

The other colonies came in for their share 
of bad treatment. Soon after he reached 
Boston, Andros demanded of the authorities 
of Rhode Island the surrender of their char- 
ter. Governor Clarke declined to comply with 
this demand, and Andros went to Providence, 
broke the seal of the colony, and declared its 
government dissolved. He appointed a com- 
mission irresponsible to the people for the 
government of Rhode Island, and then had 
the effrontery to declare that the people of 
that colony were satisfied with what he had 
done. 

In October, Andros went to Connecticut 
with an armed guard to take possession of 
the government of that colony. He reached 
Hartford on the thirty-first of the month, 
and found the legislature in session, and de- 
manded ot that body the surrender of the 
charter. The discussion was prolonged until 
evening, and then candles were brought, and 
the charter was placed on the table. Sud- 
denly the lights were extinguished, and when 
they were relighted the charter could not be 
found. It had been secured by Joseph 
Wadsworth of Hartford, and carried to the 
southern part of the city, where it was con- 
cealed in a hollow oak tree, which was after- 
wards known as the " Charter Oak." 

Andros, furious at the disappearance of the 
charter, was not to be balked of his purpose 



i8o 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



of seizing the colonial government, and 
taking the record book of the assembly, 
he ^vrote the word "Finis" at the end 
of the last day's proceedings. He then 
declared the colonial government at an 
end, and proceeded to administer the affairs 
of the province in the spirit in which he 
had governed Massachusetts and Rhode 
Island. 

The people of New England had borne 
these outrages with a patience which no one 
had expected of them. They were a law- 
abiding people, and wished to exhaust all 
legal means of redress before proceeding to 
extreme measures for their protection ; but 




THE CHARTER OAK. 

the party in favor of driving Andros and his 
fellow-plunderers out of the country was 
rapidly growing stronger, and it was not 
certain how much longer the policy of for- 
bearance would be continued. Increase 
Mather was appointed to go to England 
and endeavor to procure a redress of the 
grievances of the colonies. It was a danger- 
ous mission, for the king was in full sympa- 
thy with the men whom he had placed over 
the liberties of New England. It was also 
difficult to leave America without the knowl- 
edge of Andros and his colleagues, but 
Mather succeeded in escaping their vigilance, 
and was on his way to the old world when 



relief arrived from a most unexpected 
quarter. ^ 

The efforts of James to bring about the 
re-establishment of the Roman Catholic 
religion in England roused the whole Eng- 
lish nation against him, and in 1689 the 
nation invited William, Prince of Orange, 
the husband of James' eldest daughter, 
Mary, to come over to England and assume 
the throne. James, left without any adher- 
ents, fled to France, and William and Mary 
were securely seated upon the throne. 

The news of the landing of William in 
England and the flight of King James 
reached Boston on the fourth of April, 1689. 
The messenger was at once imprisoned by 
Andros, but his tidings soon became known 
to the citizens. On the morning of the eight- 
eenth the people of Boston took up arms, and 
having secured the person of the com- 
mander of the royal frigate in the harbor, 
seized the royalist sheriff. 

Sent to England for Trial. 

The militia were assembled, and Andros 
and his companions were obliged to take 
refuge in the fort. Simon Bradstreet, the 
governor who had held office at the time of 
the abrogation of the charter, was called 
upon by the people to resume his post, and 
the old magistrates were reinstated and 
organized as a council of safety. Andros 
and his creatures attempted to escape to the 
frigate, but were prevented and were com- 
pelled to surrender. The next day rein- 
forcements came pouring into Boston from 
the other settlements, and the fort was taken 
and the frigate mastered. Town meetings 
were now held throughout the colony, and it 
was voted to resume the former charter. 
The people were almost unanimous in favor 
of this course, but the counsels of a more 
timid minority prevailed, and the council, 
which had appointed itself to the control of 



NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE RESTORATION. 



i8i 



affairs, decided to solicit a new charter from 
William and Mary. A general court was 
convened on the twenty-second of May. 
The people of the colony were anxious that 
Andres, Dudley and Randolph should receive 
prompt punishment for their offences, but 
the authorities wisely determined to send 
them to England for trial, 

Plymouth, upon receipt of the news from 
Boston, seized the agent of Andros, impris- 
oned him, and re-established the government 
which Andros had overthrown, under the 
constitution signed on board the " May- 
flower." There were none of the old Pil- 
grim fathers living to witness this event, but 
their children were none the less determined 
to maintain unimpaired the liberties they 
had inherited from them. 

The Charter Safe. 

Rhode Island promptly resumed her 
charter and reinstated the officers whom 
Andros had displaced. Connecticut, upon 
hearing of the downfall of the governor- 
general, brought out her charter from its 
hiding place, and restored the old officers to 
their positions. 

Thus the work of James II. was over- 
thrown, and the destinies of New England 
were once more in the hands of her own 
people. The generation that had settled 
New England had nearly all been gathered 
to their rest, and their children were in some 
respects different from the fathers. They 
had learned lessons of toleration, and had 
acquired many of the refining graces that the 
elder Puritans regarded as mere vanity. 
They retained, however, the earnest and 
lofty virtues which had made the first gen- 
eration superior to hardships and trials of all 



kinds, and which had enabled them in the 
face of every discouragement to lay the 
foundations of the great commonwealths 
which to-day cherish their memories as 
their most precious legacies. The fathers of 
New England richly merited the honor 
which succeeding generations have delighted 
to bestow upon their memories. However 
they may have erred, they were men who 
earnestly sought to do right in all things, 
and who did their duty fearlessly according 
to the light before them. 

In the first generation we have noticed an 
extraordinary degree of influence exerted by 
the ministers. This was due to no desire of 
the Puritans to connect church and state, 
but was owing to the fact that the ministers 
represented the best educated and most in- 
tellectual class of that day, and the people 
regarded them as the best qualified guides 
in the community. As New England ad- 
vanced in prosperity her schools and col- 
leges were able to turn out numbers of edu- 
cated men, who embraced the other learned 
professions, and divided the influence with 
the ministers. New England always chose 
its leaders from among its most intelligent 
men, and its people always yielded a willing 
homage to the claims of intellect 

At the downfall of Andros there were 
about two hundred thousand white inhabi- 
tants in the English colonies of North 
America. Of these, Massachusetts, includ- 
ing Plymouth and ' Maine, had about forty- 
four thousand ; New Hampshire and Rhode 
Island about six thousand each ; Connecticut 
about twenty thousand ; making the total 
population of New England about seventy- 
six thousand. 



CHAPTER XV 
Witchcraft in Massachusetts 



Results of the Failure of Massachusetts to Resume her Charter — The New Charter — Loss of the Liberties of the Colony 
— Union of Plymouth with Massachusetts Bay — Belief in Witchcraft — The History of Witchcraft in Massachusetts — 
The Case of the CJoodwin Children — Cotton Mather Espouses the Cause of the Witches — Samuel Parris — He Origi- 
nates the Salem Delusion — A Strange History — A Special Court Appointed for the Trial of the Witches — The Victims 
— Execution of the Rev. George Burroughs — Cotton Mather's Part in the Tragedies — The General Coart takes Action 
in Behalf of the People — End of the Persecution — Failure of Cotton Mather's Attempt to- Save his Credit. 



THE decision of the magistrates of 
Massachusetts to disregard the 
wishes of a majority of the people of 
the colony, who desired an imme- 
diate restoration of the government under 
the old charter, and to wait for a new charter 
from William and Mary, gave great offence 
to the popular party. Had the wish of this 
party been complied with, Massachusetts 
might have recovered every liberty and priv- 
ilege of which she had been deprived by King 
James. Increase Mather distinctly declares 
that " had they at that time entered upon the 
full exercise of their charter government, as 
their undoubted right, wise men in England 
were of opinion that they might have gone 
on without disturbance." The self-constituted 
government hesitated, however, and the op- 
portunity was lost. 

When the convention of the people met, in 
May, 1689, they refused to acknowledge the 
council that had taken charge of affairs upon 
the downfall of Andros, and demanded that 
the governor, deputy governor and assist- 
ants elected in 1686 should be restored to 
office. The council refused to comply with 
this demand, and the matter was referred to 
the people, who sustained their representa- 
tives. A compromise was effected, and the 
council agreed to permit the officers of 1686 
to resume their places until instructions could 
be received from England. Agents were 
182 



sent to England to solicit a restoration of the 
charter, and their appeal was supported by 
the English Presbyterians with great unani- 
mity. Even the Archbishop of Canterbury 
urged the king " not to take away from the 
people of New England any of the privileges 
which Charles I. had granted them." 

In spite of the pressure exerted upon him 
in behalf of the colony. King William 
granted to Massachusetts a charter which 
placed the liberties of the province so entirely 
at the mercy of the crown that the colonial 
agent refused to accept it. There was no 
help for it, however, and the charter became 
the fundamental law of Massachusetts. 
Under the old charter the governor of Mas- 
sachusetts had been elected annually by the 
votes of the freemen ; he was now to be 
appointed by the king and to serve during 
the royal pleasure. He was given power to 
summon the general court, and to adjourn 
or dissolve that body. 

The election of magistrates of all kinds, 
which had been confided to the people by 
the old charter, was taken from them, and 
henceforth these officials were to be appointed 
by the governor with the consent of the 
council. The old charter had made the 
decision of the colonial courts final ; the 
new permitted appeals from these tribunals 
to the privy council in England. The old 
charter had given to the general court full 



WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. 



powers of legislation ; the new conferred 
upon the governor the right to veto any of 
its measures, and reserved to the crown the 
power of cancelling any act of colonial 
legislation within three years after its pass- 
age. The council was at first appointed 
by the king, but was 
subsequently elected by 
the joint ballot of the 
two branches of the gen- 
eral court. 

To compensate the 
people for the loss of 
their political power the 
king greatly enlarged 
the limits of the colony. 
Massachusetts and Ply- 
mouth were united in 
one province, the name 
of the former being given 
to the whole. The Eli- 
zabeth Islands were also 
added to the province, 
and its northern bound- 
ary was extended to the 
St. Lawrence. Toleration 
was granted to every 
religious sect except the 
Roman Catholics. New 
Hampshire was separ- 
ated from the jurisdic- 
tion of Massachusetts 
and made a separate 
province ; but Maine 
and the vast wilderness 
beyond it were confirmed 
to the Bay colony. The 
charter bore the date of 
October 7, 1691. Upon 
the nomination of Increase Mather, one of 
the colonial agents, Sir William Phipps, a 
native of New England, a well-meaning but 
mcompetent man, who was in religious 
matters strongly inclined to superstition, was 



183 

appointed governor of Massachusetts, Will- 
iam Stoughton, " a man of cold affections, 
proud, self-willed, and covetous of distinction" 
— a man universally hated by the people — 
was appointed deputy governor to please 
Cotton Mather. The members of the council 




THE REV. COTTON MATHER. 

were chosen entirely for their devotion " to 
the interests of the churches. " 

While these matters were in progress of 
settlement, there occurred in Massachusetts 
one of the most singular delusions recorded 



1 84 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



in history, and which was in some respects 
the last expiring" effort of ecclesiastical am- 
bition to control the political affairs of the 
colony. The clergy had always sought in 
New England, as in other lands, to fight 
their political enemies with spiritual weapons. 
They now carried this to an extreme which 
taught the people of New England a lesson 
that was not soon forgotten. 

' Witches and "Witchcraft. 

The belief in witchcraft has not been con- 
fined to any single nation, and at this time 
was common to America and Europe. " The 
people did not rally to the error ; they 
accepted the superstition only because it had 
not yet been disengaged from religion." It 
"was believed that as Christians were united 
with God by a solemn covenant, so were 
witches leagued with the devil by a tie which, 
once formed, they could not dissolve. Those 
who thus placed themselves in the arch- 
fiend's power were used by him as instru- 
ments to torment their fellow-men. They 
were given power to annoy them by pinch- 
ing them, thrusting invisible pins into them, 
pulling their hair, afflicting them with disease, 
killing their cattle and chickens with myste- 
rious ailments, upsetting their wagons and 
carts ; and by practising upon them many 
other puerile and ludicrous tricks. 

The witches generally exerted their arts 
upon those whom they hated, but it was a 
matter of doubt how many persons were 
included in their dislikes. One of the most 
popular superstitions was that of the 
*' Witches' sacrament," a gathering at which 
the devil, in the form of " a small black man," 
presided, and required his followers to 
renounce their Christian baptism and to 
sign their n^mes in his book. They were 
then re-baptised by the devil, and the meet- 
ing was closed with horrid rites which varied 
in different narratives according to the im- 
agination of the relators. 



The belief in the existence o( witchcraft 
was held by some of the leading minds of 
this period. Sir Matthew Hale, Lord Chief 
Justice of England, was firmly convinced of 
the truth of the doctrine, and it was advo- 
cated by many of the clergy of England. 
In New England the clergy held it to be 
heresy to deny the existence of witches, 
which, they claimed was clearly taught in 
the Scriptures. It was evidently to their 
interest to maintain this belief, as it made 
them the chief authorities in such cases, and 
furnished them with a powerful weapon 
against their adversaries. 

Devils and Wizards. 

By the early settlers of New England the 
Indians were supposed to be worshipers of 
the devil, and their medicine-men to be 
wizards. Governor Hutchinson, in his 
" History of Massachusetts," thus sums up 
the cases of supposed witchcraft that had 
occurred in the colony previous to the time 
or which we are now writing : 

" The first suspicion of witchcraft among 
the English was about the year 1645, at 
Springfield, upon Connecticut River ; several 
persons were supposed to be under an evil 
hand, and among the rest two of the min- 
ister's children. Great pains were taken to 
prove the facts upon several of the persons 
charged with the crime, but either the nature 
of the evidence was not satisfactory, or the 
fraud was suspected, and so no person was 
convicted until the year 1650, when a poor 
wretch, Mary Oliver, probably weary of her 
life from the general reputation of being a 
witch, after long examination, was brought 
to confession of her guilt, but I do not find 
that she was executed. 

" Whilst this inquiry was making, Mar- 
garet Jones was executed at Charlestown ; 
and Mr. Hale mentions a woman at Dor- 
chester, and another at Cambridge about the 



WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. 



1 85 



same time, who all at their death asserted 
their innocence. Soon after, Hugh Parsons 
was tried at Springfield, and escaped death. 
In 1655 Mrs. Hibbins, the assistant's widow, 
was hanged at Boston. 

" In 1662, at Hartford, in Connecticut, one 
Ann Cole, a young woman who lived next 
door to a Dutch family, and no doubt had 
learned something of the language, was 
supposed to be possessed with demons, who 
sometimes spoke Dutch and sometimes 
English, and sometimes a language which 
nobody understood, and who held a con- 
ference with one another. Several ministers 
who were present took down the conference 
in writing and the names of several per- 
sons, mentioned in the course of the con- 
ference, as actors or bearing parts in it , par- 
ticularly a woman, then in prison upon 
suspicion of witchcraft, one Greensmith, who 
upon examination, confessed and appeared to 
be surprised at the discovery. She owned 
that she and the others named had been 
familiar with a demon, who had carnal 
knowledge of her, and although she had not 
made a formal covenant, yet she had 
promised to be ready at his call, and was to 
have had a high frolic at Christmas, when 
the agreement was to have been signed. 
Upon this confession she was executed, and 
two more of the company were condemned. 
In 1669 Susanna Martin, of Salisbury, was 
bound over to the court upon suspicion of 
witchcraft, but escaped at that time. 
A Fortunate Escape. 

"In 1671 Elizabeth Knap, another ven- 
triloqua, alarmed the people of Groton in 
much the same manner as Ann Cole had 
done those of Hartford ; but her demon was 
not so cunning, for, instead of confining him- 
self to old women, he railed at the good 
minister of the town and other people of 
good character, and the people could not 
then be prevailed on to believe him, but 



believed the girl when she confessed that she 
had been deluded, and that the devil had 
tormented her in the shape of good persons ; 
so she escaped the punishment due to her 
fraud and imposture. 

" In 1673 Eunice Cole, of Hampton, was 
tried, and the jury found her not legally 
guilty, but that there were strong grounds 
to suspect her of familiarity with the devil. 

An Invisible Hand. 

" In 1679 William Morse's house, at New- 
bury, was troubled with the throwing of 
bricks, stones, etc., and a boy of the family 
was supposed to be bewitched, who accused 
one of the neighbors; and in 1682 the house 
of George Walton, a Quaker, at Portsmouth, 
and another at Salmon Falls (in New Hamp- 
shire), were attacked after the same manner. 

" In 1683 the demons removed to Con- 
necticut River again, where one Desborough's 
house was molested by an invisible hand, and 
a fire kindled, nobody knew how, which 
burnt up a great part of his estate ; and in 
1684 Philip Smith, a judge of the court, a 
military officer and a representative of the 
town of Hadley, upon the same river (a 
hypochondriac person), fancied himself under 
an evil hand, and suspected a woman, one of 
his neighbors, and languished and pined 
away, and was generally supposed to be be- 
witched to death. While he lay ill, a num-' 
ber of brisk lads tried an experiment upon 
the old woman. Having dragged her out of 
her house, they hung her up until she was 
near dead, let her down, rolled her some 
time in the snow, and at last buried her in it 
and left her there, but it happened that she 
survived and the melancholy man died." 

These cases, which were not generally 
regarded in the enlightened spirit of the 
writer we have quoted, served to confirm 
the common belief in witchcraft. Increase 
Mather published a work in 1684 containing 



1 86 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



an account of the cases which had already 
occurred in the colony, and giving detailed 
descriptions of the manner in which the 
afflicted persons had exhibited their " devil- 
try." The publication of this work seemed 
to revive the trouble, and in a more aggra- 
vated form, for it is a singular fact that the 
general discussion of delusions of this kind 
rarely fails to produce an increase of the evil. 
A Child Bewitched. 
In 1688 a case occurred which excited 
general interest, and was the beginning of one 
of the saddest periods in the history of New 
England. The daughter of John Goodwin, 
a child of thirteen years, accused the 
daughter of an Irish laundress of stealing 
some linen. The mother of the laundress, a 
friendless emigrant, succeeded in disproving 
the charge, and abused the girl soundly for 
making a false accusation. Soon after this, 
the accuser was seized with a fit, and pre- 
tended to be bewitched in order to be 
revenged upon the poor Irish woman. Her 
younger sister and two of her brothers fol- 
lowed her example. They pretended to be 
dumb, then deaf, then blind, and then all 
three at once. " They were struck dead at 
the sight of the * Assembly's Catechism,' " 
says Governor Hutchinson, dryly, '"Cot- 
ton's Milk for Babes,' and some other good 
books, but could read in Oxford jests, Popish 
^nd Quaker books, and the Common Prayer 
without any difficulty." Nevertheless their 
appetite was good, and they slept soundly at 
night. The youngest of these little im- 
postors was less than five years old. It was 
at once given out that the Goodwin children 
were bewitched, and no one suspected or 
hinted at the fraud. They would bark like 
dogs and mew like cats, and a physician who 
was called in to treat them solemnly declared 
that they were possessed by devils, as he 
discovered many of the symptoms laid down 
in Increase Mather's book. 



A conference of the four ministers of 
Boston, and one from Charlestown, was held 
at Goodwin's house, where they observed a 
day of fasting and prayer. As a result of 
their efforts, the youngest child, a boy of 
less than five years, was delivered of his evil 
spirit. The ministers now had no doubt 
that the children had been bewitched, and as 
the little ones accused the Irish woman of 
their misfortune, she was arrested, tried for 
witchcraft, convicted and hanged, notwith- 
standing that many persons thought the poor 
creature a lunatic. 

Among the ministers who had investigated 
this case and had procured the execution of 
the woman was Cotton Mather, the son of 
Increase Mather, then president of Harvard 
College. He was a young man who had but 
recently entered the ministry, and was- 
regarded as one of the most learned and 
gifted preachers in the colony. He was- 
withal a man of overweening vanity and full 
of ambition. He could not bear contradic- 
tion, and was devoted to the maintenance of 
the political power of the clergy. He was 
superstitious by nature, and was firmly con- 
vinced of the reality of witchcraft. He had 
become deeply interested in the case of the 
Goodwin children, and in order to study it 
more deeply took the eldest girl to his 
house, where he could observe and experi- 
ment upon her devil at his leisure. She was 
a cunning creature, and soon found that it 
was to her interest to humor the young pas- 
tor in his views, and she played upon his 
weakness with a shrewdness and skill which 
were remarkable in one so young, and exhibit 
the credulity of the investigator in a most 
pitiable light, 

" All Devils are Not Alike." 

Mather carried on his experiments with a 
diligence which would have seemed ludi- 
crous had its object been less baneful to the 



WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. 



187 



community. He read the Bible, and prayed 
aloud in the presence of the girl, who would 
pretend to be thrown into a fit by the pious 
exercise. At the same time she read the 
Book of Common Prayer, or Quaker or 
Popish treatises, without any interruption 
from her familiar spirits. The minister then 
tested the proficiency of the devil in lan- 
guages, by reading aloud passages of the 
Bible in Hebrew, Greek and Latin, which the 
girl professed to understand. When he tried 
her with an Indian dialect, however, she 
could not comprehend him. By other exper- 
iments, designed to ascertain if the spirits 
could read the thoughts of others, Mather 
came to the sage conclusion that " all devils 
are not alike sagacious." The girl flattered 
his vanity, and lulled his suspicion of fraud 
by telling him that his own person was 
especially protected against the evil spirits 
by the power of God, and that the devils did 
not dare to enter his study. 

Pious Belief in AVitchcraft. 

The vanity of Cotton Mather was elated to 
the highest pitch by what he deemed his 
successful experiments, and he wrote a book 
upon witchcraft, in which he endeavored to 
prove the truth of his theories, and declared 
that he should esteem it a personal insult if 
any one should hereafter venture to deny the 
existence of witchcraft. His book was 
reprinted in London, with a preface by 
Richard Baxter, the well-known author of 
" The Saints' Rest," warmly indorsing it. It 
was very generally read in New England, 
and had a most pernicious effect upon the 
people by inducing them to give credit to 
the stories of the writer rather than to listen 
to the promptings of their own good sense. 

Still there were some in Boston who had 
the boldness to differ with Mather, and these 
the indignant divine denounced as "sad- 
ducees." Mather supported his views by his 



sermons. " There are multitudes of sad- 
ducees in our day," he declared. "A devil 
in the apprehension of these mighty acute 
philosophers is no more than a quality or a 
distemper. Men counted it wisdom to credit 
nothing but what they say and feel. They 
never saw any witches ; therefore there are 
none." The ministers of Boston and 
Charlestown gave their young colleague their 
hearty support, and declared that those who 
doubted the existence of witchcraft were 
guilty of atheism, and indorsed Mather's 
book as proving clearly that " there is both a 
God and a devil, and witchcraft." Thus did 
the clergy of Massachusetts set themselves 
to the task of forcing their own narrow views 
upon the people. It was a needed lesson. 
New England had passed the time when 
clerical rule in political affairs could be pro- 
ductive of good, and was now to be taught 
the danger of permitting it to extend beyond 
this period. 

At this juncture Mather's power was 
greatly strengthened by the appointment of 
his friend and parishioner, Sir William 
Phipps, as governor of the province, and the 
nomination of his father-in-law and many of 
his intimate friends to the council. The 
ambitious Stoughton, the deputy governor, 
was also subject to his influence. Here was 
a fine opportunity to endeavor to establish 
the power of the clergy upon the old founda- 
tions, which were being destroyed by the 
growing intelligence and independence of 
the people. Many of the ministers, under 
the lead of Cotton Mather, had committed 
themselves to the doctrine of witchcraft, and 
the people must accept it upon their simple 
assertion. No inquiry must be allowed into- 
the matter, the opinions of the ministers 
must be adopted by the laity. And so 
Mather and his followers resorted to the usual 
weapons of superstition to accomplish the 
success of their plans. 



i88 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



In 1692, a new case of witchcraft occurred 
in Salem village, now the town of Danvers. 
The minister of this place was Samuel Parris, 
between whom and a number of his people 
there had for some time existed dissensions 
of such a bitter nature that the attention of 
the general court had been directed to them. 
In February, 1692, the daughter and niece of 
Parris, the former a child of nine years, and 
the latter of less than twelve, gave signs of 
being bewitched. Parris at once recognized 
the opportunity which was thus offered him 
for vengeance upon his enemies, and delib- 
erately availed himself of it. He demanded 
of the children the names of the persons who 
had bewitched them, and then proceeded to 
accuse those whom he succeeded in inducing 
the girls to denounce. The first victim was 
Rebecca Nurse. She was known in the 
community as a woman of exemplary Chris- 
tian character ; but she was one of the most 
resolute opponents of Parris. Upon his 
accusation she was arrested and imprisoned. 
The next Sunday Parris preached a sermon 
from the text, " Have I not chosen you twelve, 
and one of you is a devil." As his remarks 
were directed against Mistress Nurse, Sarah 
Cloyce, her sister, at once left the church. 

A Hundred in Prison. 

This in itself was a serious offence in those 
days, and Parris took advantage of it to 
accuse the offender of witchcraft, and she was 
sent to join her sister in prison. Mather, 
who deemed his credit at stake, lent his active 
aid to the persecution of these unfortunate 
people, and had the vanity to declare that he 
regarded the efforts of " the evil angels upon 
the country as a particular defiance unto 
himself" Parris scattered his accusations 
right and left, becoming both informer and 
witness against those whom he meant to 
destroy for their opposition to him. 

In a few weeks nearly one hundred per- 



sons were in prison upon the charge of 
witchcraft. Abigail Williams, Parris's niece, 
aided her uncle with her tales, which the 
least examination would have shown to be 
absurd. George Burroughs, one of the min- 
isters of Salem, had long been regarded by 
Parris as a rival, and he now openly 
expressed his disbelief in witchcraft, and his 
disapproval of the measures against those 
charged with that offence. This boldness 
sealed his doom. He was accused by 
Parris and committed to prison " with the 
rest of the witches." "The gallows was to 
be set up, not for those who professed them- 
selves witches, but for those who rebuked 
the delusion." 

Hanging a "Witch. 

Governor Bradstreet, who had been chosen 
by the people, was unwilling to proceed to 
extreme measures against the accused, as he 
had no faith in the evidence against them. 
The arrival of the royal governor and the 
new charter in Boston in May, 1692, placed 
Cotton Mather and his fellow-persecutors in 
a position to carry out their bloody designs. 
The general court alone had authority to 
appoint special courts, but Governor Phipps 
did not hesitate to appoint one himself for 
the trial of the accused persons at Salem, 
and this illegal tribunal, with Stoughton as 
its chief judge, met at Salem on the second 
of June. In this court Parris acted as pros- 
ecutor, keeping back some witnesses, and 
pushing others forward as suited his plans. 

The first victim of the court was Bridget 
Bishop, "a poor, friendless old woman." 
Parris, who had examined her at the 
time of her commitment, was the principal 
witness against her. Deliverance Hobbs 
being also accused, a natural infirmity of her 
body was taken as a proof of her guilt, and 
she was hanged, protesting her innocence. 
Rebecca Nurse was at first acquitted of the 



WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. 



189 



charges against her, but the court refused to 
receive the verdict of the jury, and Parris 
was determined that the woman against 
whom he had preached and prayed should 
not escape him, and the jury were induced 
to convict her, and she was hanged. John 



tion. He was immediately denounced, tried 
and hanged. 

When George Burroughs, the minister, 
was placed on trial, the witnesses produced 
against him pretended to be dumb. " Who 
hinders these witnesses from giving their testi- 




EXECUTION OF THE REV. GEORGE BURROUGHS. 



Willard, who had been compelled by his 
duty as a constable to arrest the accused, 
now refused to serve in this capacity any 
longer, as he had become convinced of the 
hypocrisy of the instigators of the persecu- 



monies ?" asked Stoughton, the chief judge. 
"I suppose the devil," replied Burroughs, con- 
temptuously. " How comes the devil," cried 
Stoughton, exultingly, " so loath to have any 
testimony borne against you ? " The words 



190 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



of the prisoner were regarded as a confes- 
sion, and his remarkable bodily strength was 
made an evidence of his guilt. He was con- 
victed and sentenced to be hanged. He was 
executed on the nineteenth of August with 
four others. As he ascended the scaffold, 
Burroughs made an appeal to the people 
assembled to witness the execution, and 
effectually vindicated himself from the absurd 
charges against him, and repeated the Lord's 
prayer, which was regarded as a test of inno- 
cence. The spectators seemed about to 
interfere in favor of the victim. 

An Innocent Man Hanged. 

Cotton Mather, who was present on horse- 
back, now exerted himself to complete the 
judicial murder. He harangued the people, 
insisted on the guilt of Burroughs, remind- 
ing them that the devil could sometimes 
assume the form of an angel of lig-ht. and 
even descended to the falsehood of declaring 
that Burroughs was no true minister, as his 
ordination was not valid. His appeal was 
successful and the execution was completed. 

Giles Cory, an old man over eighty years 
of age, seeing that no denial of guilt availed 
anything, refused to plead, and was pressed 
.to death, in accordance with an old English 
law, long obsolete, which was revived to 
meet his case. Samuel Wardwell confessed 
his guilt, and escaped the gallows. Over- 
come with shame for his cowardice, he 
retracted his confession, and was hanged for 
denying witchcraft. A reign of terror pre- 
vailed in Salem ; the prisons were full ; and 
no one could feel sure how long he would 
■escape accusation and arrest. Many persons 
confessed their guilt to save their lives. 
Children accused their parents, parents their 
children, and husbands and wives each other 
of the most impossible offences, in the hope 
of escaping the persecution themselves. 
Hale, the minister of Beverley, was a zealous 



advocate of the persecution until the bitter 
cup was presented to his own lips by the 
accusation of his wife. Many persons were 
obliged to fly the colony, and the magistrates, 
conscious that they were exceeding their 
powers, did not demand their surrender. 

Crime Added to Crime. 

We have mentioned only some of the 
principal cases to show the character of the 
persecution, as our limits forbid the relation 
of all. The total number hanged was 
twenty ; fifty-five were tortured or terrified 
into confessions of guilt. The accusations 
were at first lodged against persons of 
humble station, but at length reached the 
higher classes. Governor Phipps' wife and 
two sons of Governor Bradford are said to 
have been among the accused. " Insanity," 
says Judge Story, " could hardly devise 
more refinements in barbarity, or profligacy 
execute them with more malignant coolness." 
Every principle of English justice was vio- 
lated to secure the condemnation of the 
accused, and people were encouraged by the 
magistrates to accuse others as a means of 
securing the favor of the authorities. 

These terrible deeds were not the work of 
the people of Massachusetts, and under a 
popular government would have been im- 
possible ; for though the belief in witchcraft 
was general, the sentiment of the people was 
against the barbarity of the court. The 
Salem tragedies were the work of a iQ\v 
men, not one of whom was responsible in 
any way to the people. " Of the magistrates 
at that time, not one held office by the suf- 
frage of the people ; the tribunal, essentially 
despotic in its origin, as in its character, had 
no sanction but an extraordinary and an 
illegal commission ; and Stoughton, the chief 
judge, a partisan of Andros, had been re- 
jected by the people of Massachusetts. The 
responsibility of the tragedy, far from attach- 



WITCHCRAFT IN MASSACHUSETTS. 



191 



ing to the people of the colony, rests with the 
very few, hardly five or six, in whose hands 
the transition state of the government left for 
a season unlimited influence. Into the in- 
terior of the colony the delusion did not 
spread at all." * 

Public Indignation. 

Stoughton's court, having hanged twenty 
of its victims, adjourned about the last of 
September, 1692, until November, and on the 
•eighteenth of October the general court met. 
The indignation of the people had been 
gathering force, and men were determined to 
put a stop to the judicial murders and tor- 
tures which had disgraced them so long. 
Remonstrances were at once presented to 
the assembly against " the doings of the 
witch tribunals," the people of Andover 
leading the way in this effort. The assembly 
abolished the special court, and established 
a tribunal by public law. It was ordered 
that this court should not meet until the fol- 
lowing January. The governor attempted 
to undo the work of the assembly by ap- 
pointing Stoughton chief judge of the new 
■court. 

When that tribunal met at Salem in Jan- 
uary, 1693, it was evident that the public 
mind had undergone a marked change. The 
influence of the leaders of the delusion was 
at an end. The grand jury rejected the ma- 
jority of the presentments offered to it, and 
when those who were indicted were put on 
trial, the jury brought in verdicts of acquittal 
in all but three cases. The governor, now 
alive to the force of public sentiment, re- 
prieved all who were under sentence to the 
great disgust of Stoughton, who left the 
bench in a rage when informed of this 
action. The persecutors, anxious to cover 
their defeat by the execution of one more 
victim, employed all their arts to procure 



Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. iii., p. 



the conviction of a woman of Charlestown, 
who was commonly believed to be a witch. 
They supported their charge by more im- 
portant evidence than had been presented in 
any case at Salem, but the jury at once 
returned a verdict of " not guilty." 

Cotton Mather was intensely mortified by 
the failure of his efforts to force the people 
into a general acceptance of his views. He 
got up a case of witchcraft in Boston, but was 
careful to caution his possessed people to 
refrain from accusing any one of bewitching 
them. Robert Calef, an unlettered man, but 
one whose common sense could not be led 
astray by Mather, promptly exposed the im- 
posture in a pamphlet, which effectually 
destroyed Mather's influence for harm. 
Mather, unable to reply to him, denounced 
him as an enemy of religion, and complained 
that Calef 's book was " a libel tlpon the 
whole government and ministry of the land," 
forgetting that only seven or eight ministers, 
and no magistrate commanding the confi- 
dence of the people, had any share in the 
tragedies. Calef continued his writings, 
however, undismayed by the indignation of 
his adversary, and his book was finally pub- 
lished in England, where it attracted con- 
siderable attention. 

The Danger Past. 

The danger was now over. It was no 
longer possible to procure a conviction for 
witchcraft. The indignant people of Salem 
village at once drove the wretched Parris 
and his family from the place. Noyes, the 
minister of Salem, who had been active in 
the persecutions, was compelled to ask the 
forgiveness of the people, after a public con- 
fession of his error. The devotion of the 
rest of his life to works of charity won him 
the pardon he sought. Sewall, one of the 
judges, struck with horror at the part he had 
played in the persecution, made an open and 



192 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



frank confession of his error, and implored 
the forgiveness of his fellow-citizens. His 
sincerity was so evident that he soon regained 
the favor he had lost. Stoughton passed 
the remainder of his life in proud and haughty- 
disregard of the opinion of his fellow-men, 
scorning to make any acknowledgment of 
error, and evincing no remorse for his cruel- 
ties. 

Cotton Mather Duped. 

As for the prime mover of the delusion, 
the Rev. Cotton Mather, nothing could induce 
him to admit that he could by any possibility 
have been in error ; not even the recollection 
of the sorrow he had brought upon some of 
the best people in the colony could shake 
his impenetrable self-conceit or humble him. 
When it was plain to him that he was the 
object oPthe indignation of all good men in 
New England, he had the hardihood to 
endeavor to persuade them that after all he 
had not been specially active in the sad 
affair. " Was Cotton Mather honestly credu- 
lous ? " asks Bancroft. " Ever ready to dupe 
himself, he limited his credulity only by the 
probable credulity of others. He changes. 



or omits to repeat, his statements, without 
acknowledging error, and with a clear inten- 
tion of conveying false impressions. He is 
an example how far selfishness, under the 
form of vanity and ambition, can blind the 
higher faculties, stupefy the judgment, and 
dupe consciousness itself His self-right- 
eousness was complete till he was resisted." 
And yet this man was not to die without 
rendering to the country a genuine service. 
In 1 72 1, having become satisfied that inocu- 
lation was a sure preventive of small-pox, he 
advocated the introduction of it into the 
colony. He was opposed by the whole body 
of the clergy, who declared that it was an 
attempt to defeat the plans of the Almighty, 
who " sent the small-pox as a punishment 
for sins, and whose vengeance would thus be 
only provoked the more." The people of 
the colony were also bitterly opposed to 
inoculation, and threatened to hang Mather 
if he did not cease his advocacy of it. His 
life was at one time in serious danger, but he 
persevered, and at length had the satisfaction 
of seeing the practice of inoculation gener- 
ally adopted by the people who had so hotly 
opposed it. 




CHAPTER XVI 
The Settlement of New York 



Voyages of Henry Hudson — He is Employed by the Dutch — Discovery of the Hudson River — Early Dutch Voyages — 
Adrian Block — Fate of Hudson — The Dutch Build a Fort on Manhattan Island — Settlement of New Amsterdam — 
The Province Named New Netherlands — Fort Nassau — Peter Minuits Governor — The Dutch Settlement of Dela- 
ware — Wouter Van Twiller — Kieft Governor — His Unjust Treatment of the Indians — Massacre of the Indians at 
Hoboken — The Indian War — Stuyvesant Appointed Governor — Disputes with the English in Connecticut — The 
Swedes Settle Delaware — Stuyvesant Captures the Swedish Forts — Growth of New Amsterdam — Disputes Between 
the People and Governor — Growing Spirit of Popular Liberty — The People Appeal to the States General — Capture of 
New Netherlands by the English — The Name of the Province Changed to New York — Results of the English Con- 
quest — Progress of New Jersey — Andros Governor of New York — He Fails to Establish His Authority Over 
Connecticut — New York Allowed an Assembly — Discontents of the People — Teisler's Rebellion — Execution of 
Leisler and Milboume — Fletcher Governor — His Attempt to Obtain Command of the Connecticut Militia — Episcopacy 
Established in New York — The Freedom of the Press Sustained — New Jersey a Royal Province. 



WHEN the hope of finding a 
northwest passage to India 
began to die out, a company 
of " certain worshipful mer- 
chants " of London employed Henry Hud- 
son, an Englishman and an experienced 
navigator, to go in search of a northeast 
passage to India, around the Arctic shores 
of Europe, between Lapland and Nova 
Zembla and frozen Spitzbergen. These 
worthy gentlemen were convinced that since 
the effort to find a northzt'est passage had 
failed, nothing remained but to search for a 
north^^^y^ passage, and they were sure that if 
human skill or energy could find it, Hudson 
would succeed in his mission. They were 
not mistaken in their man, for in two suc- 
cessive voyages he did all that mortal could 
do to penetrate the ice-fields beyond the 
North Cape, but without success. 

An impassable barrier of ice held him 
back, and he was forced to return to London 
to confess his failure. With unconquerable 
hope, he suggested new means of overcoming 
the difficulties; but while his employers 
praised his zeal and skill, they declined to go 
to further expense in an undertaking which 

13 



promised so little, and the " bold Englishman, 
the expert pilot and the famous navigator" 
found himself out of employment. Every 
effort to secure aid in England failed him, and, 
thoroughly disheartened, he passed over to 
Holland, whither his fame had preceded him. 
The Dutch, who were more enterprising 
and more hopeful than his own countrymen, 
lent a ready ear to his statement of his 
plans, and the Dutch East India Company 
at once employed him and placed him in 
command of a yacht of ninety tons, called 
the " Half Moon," manned by a picked 
crew. On the twenty-fifth of March, 1609, 
Hudson set sail in this vessel from Amster- 
dam and steered directly for the coast of 
Nova Zembla. He succeeded in reaching 
the meridian of Spitzbergen, but here the ice, 
the fogs and the fierce tempests of the north 
drove him back, and turning to the west- 
ward, he sailed past the capes of Greenland, 
and on the second of July was on the banks, 
of Newfoundland. He passed down the 
coast as far as Charleston Harbor, vainly 
hoping to find the northze^^'i-/ passage, and 
then in despair turned to the northward, dis- 
covering Delaware Bay on his voyage. 



194 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



On the third of September he arrived off* 
a large bay to the north of the Delaware, 
and passing into it, dropped anchor " at two 
cables' length from the shore," within Sandy 
Hook. Devoting some days to rest, and to 
the exploration of tlie bay, he passed 
through The Narrows on the eleventh of 
September, and then the broad and beautiful 
" inner bay " burst upon him in all its 



the natives who came out to the "Half Moon" 
in their canoes, that the river came from far 
beyond the mountains, convinced him that 
the stream flowed from ocean to ocean, and 
that by sailing on he would at length reach 
India — the golden land of his dreams. 

Thus encouraged, he pursued his way up 
the river, gazing with wondering delight 
upon its glorious scenery, and listening with 




NOVA ZEMBLA FROM AN OLD PRINT. 



splendor, and from the deck of his ship he 
watched the swift current of the mighty 
river rolling from the north to the sea. He 
was full of hope now, and the next day con- 
tinued his progress up the river, and at 
nightfall cast anchor at Yonkers. During 
the night the current of the river turned his 
ship around, placing her head down stream ; 
an,d this fact, coupled with the assurances of 



gradually fading hope to the stories of the 
natives who flocked to the water to greet 
him. The stream narrowed, and the water 
grew fresh, and long before he anchored 
below Albany, Hudson had abandoned the 
belief that he was in the northwest passage. 
From the anchorage a boat's crew continued 
the voyage to the mouth of the Mohawk. 
Hudson was satisfied that he had made a 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



195 



great discovery — one that was worth fully as 
much as finding the new route to India. He 
was in a region upon which the white man's 
eye had never rested before, and which 
offered the richest returns to the commercial 
ventures. He hastened back to New York 
Bay, took possession of the country in the 
name of Holland, and then set sail for 
Europe. He put into Dartmouth, in Eng- 
land, on his way back, where he told the 



The discovery of Hudson was particularly 
acceptable to the Dutch, for the new country 
was rich in fur-bearing animals, and Russia 
offered a ready market for all the furs that 
could be sent there. The East India Com- 
pany, therefore, refitted the " Half Moon " 
after her return to Holland, and despatched 
her to the region discovered by Hudson on 
a fur trading expedition, which was highly 
successful. Private persons also embarked 





MOCK SUNS, SEEN BY EARLY EXPLORERS. 



story of his discovery. King James I. pre- 
vented his continuing his voyage, hoping to 
deprive the Dutch of its fruits ; but Hudson 
took care to send his log-book and all the 
ship's papers over to Holland.and thus placed 
his employers in full possession of the know- 
ledge he had gained. The English at length 
released the " Half Moon," and she continued 
her voyage to the Texel, but without her 
commander. 



in similar enterprises, and within two years 
a prosperous and important fur trade was 
established between Holland and the country 
along the Mauritius, as the great river dis- 
covered by Hudson had been named, in 
honor of the Stadtholder of Holland. No 
government took any notice of the trade for a 
while and all persons were free to engage m it. 
Among the adventurers employed in this 
trade was one Adrian Block, noted as one of 



196 



SETTLEiMENT OF AMERICA. 



the boldest navigators of his time. He 
made a voyage to Manhattan Island in 16 14, 
then the site of a Dutch trading-post, and 
secured a cargo of skins, with which he was 
about to return to Holland, when a fire con- 
sumed both his vessel and her cargo, and 
obliged him to pass the winter with his crew 
on the island. They built them log huts on 
the site of the present Beaver Street — the 
first houses erected on the island — and dur- 
ing the winter constructed a yacht of sixteen 




HENRY HUDSON. 

tons, which Block called the "Onrust" — 
the " Restless." In this yacht Block made 
several voyages of discovery, and explored 
the coasts of Long Island Sound, and gave 
his name to the small island near the eastern 
end of the sound. He soon after went back 
to Europe. 

In the meantime Hudson had not been 
permitted by the English king to take service 
again with the Dutch, and after apprising his 
employers in Holland of his discoveries, he 



was engaged by an English company to 
make further explorations in their behalf. 
He sailed to the north of his former route, 
reached the coast of Labrador, and passing 
through the straits, entered the bay which 
bears his name. He spent the remainder of 
the season in exploring its coasts, and re- 
solved to winter there, hoping to push his 
discoveries still further northward in the 
spring. In the spring of 161 1 he found it 
impossible to continue his voyage, as his 
provisions had begun to run low, and 
with tears turned his vessel's prow 
homeward. His men now broke out 
into mutiny, and seizing Hudson and 
his son and four others, who were sick, 
they placed them in the shallop and 
set them adrift. And so the great navi- 
gator, whose memory is perpetuated by 
one of the noblest of the rivers of 
America, and whose genius gave the 
resfion throue^h which it flows to civili- 
zation, perished amid the northern seas. 
" The gloomy waste of waters which 
bears his name is his tomb and his 
monument." 

Forts Along the Hudson. 
In 16 14 the Dutch built a fort on. 
the lower end of Manhattan Island, 
and in the next few years established 
forts or trading hou.ses along the 
river as far as Fort Orange, on the 
site of Albany. These were merely 
trading-posts, no effort being yet made to 
occupy the country with a permanent col- 
ony. In 1 62 1 the Dutch West India Com- 
pany was organized for the purpose of trad- 
ing with America, and took possession of the 
country along the Hudson, intending'to hold 
it merely as temporary occupants. The 
States General of Holland granted them the 
monopoly of trade from Cape May to Nova 
Scotia, and named the whole region New 
Netherland. The Dutch thus extended their 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



197 



claims into regions already claimed by 
the English and French, and prepared 
the way for future quarrels and complica- 
tions. 

The English, now awake to the import- 
ance of Hudson's discoveries, warned the 
Dutch government to refrain from making 
further settlements on " Hudson's River," as 
they called the Mauritius; but the latter, 
relying upon the justice of their claim, paid 
no attention to these warnings, and in the 
spring of 1623 the Dutch West India Com- 
pany sent over thirty families of Walloons, 
or one hundred and ten persons in all, to 
found a permanent colony. 

These Walloons 
were Protestants 
from the frontier 
between France 
and Flanders, and 
had fled to Amster- 
dam to escape re- 
ligious persecution 
in their own coun- 
try. They were 
sound, healthy, 
vigorous and pious 
people, and could 
be relied upon to 
make homes in the 
new world. The 

majority of them settled around the fort on 
the lower end of Manhattan Island, and the 
colony was named New Amsterdam. The 
remainder established themselves on Long 
Island, about where the Brooklyn navy yard 
now stands, and there Sarah de Rapelje, the 
first white child born in the province of New 
Netherlands, saw the light. Eighteen fami- 
lies ascended the river and settled around 
Fort Orange, 

In the same year (1623) a party under 
command of Cornells Jacobsen May, who 
gave his name to the southern cape of New 



Jersey, ascended the Delaware, then called 
the South River, «^and built Fort Nas- 
sau, on the east side of the river, a few 
miles below the present city of Cam- 
den. This w^as done in order to estab- 
lish the claim of the Dutch to this re- 
gion. 

In 1626 the West India Company sent out 
to New Amsterdam the first regular governor 
of the province, Peter Minuits by name. He 
brought with him a koopman, or general 
commissary, who was also the secretary of 
the province, and a schout, or sheriff, to 
assist him in his government. The only 
laws prescribed for the colony were the 




HUDSON STRAIT. 

instructions of the West India Company. 
The colonists, on their part, were to regard 
the orders of the governor as their law. He 
was authorized to punish minor offences at 
his discretion, but cases requiring severe or 
capital punishment were to be sent to Hol- 
land for trial. Minuits set to work with 
great vigor to lay the foundations of the 
colony. He called a council of the Indian 
chiefs, and purchased the island of Manhat- 
tan from them for presents valued at about 
twenty-four dollars in American money. He 
thus secured an equitable title to the island 




198 



MUTINY ON HUDSON'S SHIP. 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



199 



and won the friendship of the Indians. To 
encourage emigration, the company granted 
to each emigrant as much land as he could 
properly cultivate, and it was ordered that 
any member of the company who in four years 
should induce fifty persons to settle anywhere 
within the limits of New Netherland, the 
island of Manhattan alone 
excepted, should be termed 
" Patroon," or " Lord of the 
Manor," and should be en- 
titled to purchase a tract of 
land sixteen miles in length 
by eight in width for the 
support of this dignity. A 
number of persons availed 
themselves of this privilege 
and secured from the In- 
dians by purchase the best 
lands and the most valuable 
trading places in the prov- 
ince. Those who were in- 
ferior to them in wealth 
were of necessity compelled 
to become the tenants of 
the patroons, and thus a 
check was placed upon the 
improvement of the colony. 
In order to compel the col- 
onists to purchase their 
supplies from Holland, the 
company forbade them to 
manufacture even the sim- 
plest fabrics for clothing, on 
pain of banishment. The 
patroons were enjoined to 
provide a minister and a 
schoolmaster for their tenants, but no pro- 
vision was made for them by the company, 
which was careful, however, to offer to fur- 
nish the patroons with African slaves if 
their use should be found desirable. 

In 1629 Samuel Godyn and Samuel Blom- 
maert purchased from the Indians the region 



between Cape Henlopen and the mouth of 
the Delaware River, and in 1631 a col- 
ony of thirty souls was planted on Lewes 
Creek, in the present state of Delaware. 
" That Delaware exists as a separate com- 
monwealth is due to this colony. Accord- 
ing to English rule, occupancy was neces- 




FIRST SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



sary to complete a title to the wilderness, 
and the Dutch now occupied Delaware." 
Less than a year later De Vries came over 
from Holland with a reinforcement, and 
found only the ruins of the settlement, the 
people of which had been massacred by the *■ 
Indians. 



200 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



Under the vigorous administration of 
Minuits, New Netherland prospered; houses 
were built, farms laid off; the population was 
largely increased by new arrivals from 
Europe. During this period New Amster- 
dam fairly entered upon its career as one of 
the most important places in America. It 
was a happy settlement as well ; the rights 
of the people were respected, and they were 
practically as free as they had been in Hol- 
land, 

Troubles with the Indians marked the 
close of Minuit's administration. The latter 
were provoked by the murder of some of 
their number by the whites, and by the aid 
rendered by the commander at Fort Orange 
to the Mohegans in one of their forays upon 
the Mohawks. Alarmed by the hostility of 
the savages, many of the families at Fort 
Orange, and from the region between the 
Hudson and the Delaware, abandoned their 
settlements and came to New Amsterdam for 
safety, thus adding to the population of that 
town. Minuits was recalled in 1632 and 
left the province in a prosperous condition. 
During the last year of his government New 
Amsterdam sent over ^60,000 worth of furs 
to Holland. 

The Renowned Van Twiller. 

Minuits was succeeded by Wouter Van 
Twiller, a clerk in the company's warehouse 
at Amsterdam, who owed his appointment 
to his being the husband of the niece of 
Killian Van Rensselaer, the patroon of Alba- 
ny. Irving has thus sketched this redoubt- 
able governor : " He was exactly five feet six 
inches in height, and six feet five inches in 
circumference. His head was a perfect 
sphere, and of such stupendous dimensions 
that dame Nature, with all her sex's ingenu- 
ity, would have been puzzled to construct a 
neck capable of supporting it ; wherefore she 
wisely declined the attempt, and settled it 



firmly on top of his back-bone just between 
the shoulders. His body was oblong and 
particularly capacious at bottom, which was 
wisely ordered by Providence, seeing that he 
was a man of sedentary habits and very 
averse to the idle labor of walking. 

"A Beer Barrel on Skids." 

" His legs were very short, but sturdy in 
proportion to the weight they had to sustain ; 
so that, when erect, he had not a little the 
appearance of a beer barrel on skids. His 
face — that infallible index of the mind — pre- 
sented a vast expanse, unfurrowed by any of 
those lines and angles which disfigure the 
human countenance with what is termed 
expression. Two small gray eyes twinkled 
feebly in the midst, like two stars of lesser 
magnitude in a hazy firmament ; and his full- 
fed cheeks, which seemed to have taken toll 
of everything that went into his mouth, were 
curiously mottled and streaked with dusky 
red, like a Spitzenberg apple. His habits 
were as regular as his person. He daily took 
his four stated meals, appropriating exactly 
an hour to each ; he smoked and doubted 
eight hours, and he slept the remaining 
twelve of the four-and-twenty." 

Van Twiller ruled the province seven years, 
and, in spite of his stupidity, it prospered. 
In 1633, Adam Roelantsen, the first school- 
master, arrived — for the fruitful Walloons 
had opened the way by this time for his 
labors — and in the same year a wooden 
church was built in the present Bridge Street, 
and placed in charge of the famous Dominie 
EverardusBogardus. In i635,the fort, which 
marked the site of the present Bowling 
Green, and which had been begun in 1614, was 
finished, and in the same year the first English 
settlers at New Amsterdam came into the 
town. 

The English in New England also began 
to give the Dutch trouble during this admin- 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



20 1 



istration, and even sent a ship into " Hud- 
son's River " to trade with the Indians. In- 
fluenced by De Vries,the commander of the 
fort, the governor sent an expedition up the 
river after the audacious EngHsh vessel, 
seized her, brought her back to New York, 
and sent her to sea with a warning not to 
repeat her attempt. The disputes between 
the Enghsh and the Dutch about the Con- 
necticut settlements also began to make 
trouble for New Amsterdam. Van Twiller 
possessed no influence in the colony, was 
laughed at and snubbed on every side, and 
was at length recalled by the company in 
1638. The only memorial of Van Twiller 
left to us is the Isle of Nuts, which lies in the 
bay between New York and Brooklyn, and 
which he purchased as his private domain. 
It is still called the *' Governor's Island." 

Van Twiller was succeeded by William 
Kieft, a man of greater abilities, but unscru- 
pulous and avaricious. He had become a 
bankrupt in Holland, and hoped to find in 
America the means of restoring his fortunes. 
His administration of the province was full 
of troubles, the greater part of which were 
due to his recklessness and rapacity. 

Mohav^rk Braves. 

The colonists were forbidden to sell fire- 
arms to the Indians, but some of the traders 
along the Hudson had violated this order, 
and it was estimated that the Mohawks had 
at least four hundred warriors armed with 
muskets. They were willing to pay large 
prices for the guns, as these weapons enabled 
them to meet on equal terms their enemies, 
the Canada Indians, who had been armed by 
the French. During Van Twiller's admin- 
istration the colony had been on good terms 
with the Mohegans and other tribes of the 
Algonquin race, who were generally known 
as the river Indians. Kieft, soon after his 
arrival, demanded of them the payment of a 



tribute, which he pretended he had been 
ordered by the company to levy upon them. 
They refused his demand with contempt, and 
from this time the friendship which they had 
entertained for the Dutch began to disappear. 
A year or two later the Raritans, a tribe 
living on the river of that name, were accused 
of stealing some hogs from the colony. The 
animals had been taken by some Dutch 
traders ; but Kieft, instead of investigating 
the matter, sent a party of soldiers among 
the Raritans and destroyed their corn and 
killed several of their number. The savages 
determined upon revenge, and with their 
usual unreasoning fury attacked the settle- 
ment which De Vries — who was always a 
friend of the Indians — had founded on Staten 
Island, and killed four men. The people of 
the colony now urged the governor to con- 
ciliate the savages by kind treatment, but he 
refused to do so. 

An Avenger of Blood. 

Another cause of trouble soon arose. 
Twenty years before a Dutch trader had 
killed an Indian chief in the presence of a 
little nephew of the warrior. That child, 
now grown to manhood, came into the colony 
in 1641, and avenged his uncle by killing an 
innocent settler. Kieft ordered the Indians 
to surrender the young man that he might 
be punished for his crime ; but the savages 
refused to give him up, but offered to ransom 
him. Kieft refiised their proposition, and 
the matter remained an open source of 
trouble. 

With the hope of finding a remedy for the 
Indian difficulty, the people obtained from 
the governor, in 1642, permission to hold a 
meeting of the heads of families at New 
Amsterdam. These appointed twelve of their 
numberto investigate the affairs of the colony. 
This was the first representative assembly of 
New Netherland, and its career was short. 



202 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



Venturing to pass beyond the Indian ques- 
tion, and to criticise the administration of the 
governor in other matters, it was dissolved. 
Near the end of the year 1642 the Mohawks 
sent a band of warriors armed with muskets 
to demand tribute of the river tribes. These, 
too weak to contend with their enemies, fled 
to the Dutch for protection. Kieft was at 
this time angry with the Indians for refusing 
to surrender to him one of their number who 
had killed a Dutchman who had made him 
drunk and then ill-treated him, and he 
resolved to take a signal vengeance upon 
them, and exterminate them. De Vries, to 
whom he communicated his plan, remon- 
strated with him in the hope of inducing him 
to abandon it. "If you murder these poor 
creatures who have put themselves under 
your protection, you will involve the whole 
colony in ruin, and their blood, and the 
blood of your own people, will be required 
at your hands," said De Vries. Nothing, 
however, could move the governor from his 
purpose. 

Attack Upon the Savages. 

The Indians who had sought the protec- 
tion of the Dutch were encamped with the 
Hackensack tribe just above Hoboken. On 
the night of the twenty-fifth of February, the 
garrison of the fort at New Amsterdam, rein- 
forced by the crews of some Dutch privateers 
in the river, crossed the Hudson and attacked 
the unsuspecting savages. Nearly a hundred 
were killed, and when the morning came 
many of the poor wretches were seen crowd- 
ing along the shore of the river in the vain 
attempt to cross over to their supposed 
friends at New Amsterdam. They were 
forced into the stream and drowned. A 
company of Indians, trusting to the friendship 
of the Dutch, had encamped on Manhattan 
Island, near the fort. They were put to death 
almost to a man. 



The massacre was regarded by the colo- 
nists with horror and detestation, and they 
took no part in the joy with which the gov- 
ernor greeted the troops on their return from 
their bloody work. He was not allowed to 
rejoice long, however. When it became 
known among the Algonquins that their 
brethren had been murdered, not by the Mo- 
hawks, but by the Dutch, every tribe took up 
the hatchet to avenge them, and a general 
warfare began along the entire line of the 
Dutch settlements. Several villages were 
destroyed, and a number of settlers were mur- 
dered or carried into captivity. The colony 
was threatened with ruin, and Kieft was 
obliged to open negotiations for peace. It 
was in this war that Mrs. Anne Hutchinson 
and her family, who had taken refuge in the 
territory of the Dutch, were murdered by the 
savages. 

Treaty of Peace Negotiated. 

On the fifth of March, 1643, a conference 
was held at Rockaway, between sixteen Indian 
chiefs and De Vries and two other envoys 
from the colony. One of the principal 
sachems arose, holding in his hands a bundle 
of small sticks. " When you first arrived on 
our shores," said the Indian, addressing the 
whites, " you were destitute of food. We gave 
you our beans and our corn ; we fed you with 
oysters and fish ; and now, for our recom- 
pense, you murder our people." He then 
laid down one of the little sticks and pro- 
ceeded : " The traders whom your first ships 
left on our shores to traffic till their return, 
were cherished by us as the apple of our eye. 
We gave them our daughters for their wives. 
Among those whom you have murdered 
were children of your own blood." 

" I know all," said Do Vries, interruptipg 
his recital of wrongs. I fe then invited the 
chiefs to go with him to the fort. They 
accompanied him to New Amsterdam, where 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



presents were exchanged and a treaty of peace 
negotiated. The younger warriors were not 
satisfied. Kieft's presents were niggardly. 
They were not regarded by the savages as 
a sufficient compensation for the wrongs they 
had suffered, and the war was renewed. 

The leader of the 
Dutch in this cam- 
paign was Captain 
John Underhill, who 
had served in the 
Pequod war in New 
England, and had 
removed to New 
Amsterdam in conse- 
quence of having been 
made to do penance 
in public at Boston in 
1640. The war con- 
tinued for two years, 
and though the col- 
ony suffered severely, 
the Dutch were able 
to inflict such heavy 
losses upon the sav- 
ages that the latter 
were at length as 
anxious for peace as 
the whites. Sixteen 
hundred of the In- 
dians had fallen, but 
the colony had been 
brought to the verge 
of ruin, and the popu- 
lation of New Ams- 
terdam was reduced 
to one hundred souls. 

On the thirtieth of August, 1645, the chiefs 
of the Algonquins and a deputation from 
their old enemies, the Mohawks, who came 
as mediators, met the whites on the spot now 
known as the Battery, and concluded a peace. 
The close of the war was hailed with re- 
joicings throughout the colony. Kieft was 



203 

regarded with universal hatred as the author 
of the terrible sufferings of the struggle, and 
his barbarous conduct was censured and 
disavowed by the company, and he was 
recalled. Hated throughout the colony, he 
at length determined to return to Europe. ' 




PETER STUYVESANT. 

Freighting a vessel with his ill-gotten gains, 
he sailed from Manhattan in 1647. As he 
neared the shores of the old world his ship 
was wrecked on the coast of Wales, and all 
on board perished. 

Kieft, in the vain hope of conciliating the 
people, appointed, immediately after the 



204 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



close of the war, a new municipal council of 
eight members. The first act of this council 
was to demand of the States General of Hol- 
land the removal of Kieft. Their demand 
was complied with, as we have seen, and in 
1647 Peter Stuyvesant was made governor 
of New Netherlands, and reached New Am- 
sterdam in the same year. 

" Vain as a Peacock.' 

Stuyvesant was essentially a strong man. 
A soldier by education and of long experi- 
ence, he was accustomed to regard rigid 
discipline as the one thing needful in every 
relation of life, and he was not slow to intro- 
duce that system into his government of 
New Amsterdam. He had served gallantly 
in the wars against the Portuguese, and had 
lost a leg in one of his numerous encounters 
with them. He was as vain as a peacock, as 
fond of display as a child, and thoroughly 
imbued with the most aristocratic ideas — 
qualities not exactly the best for a governor 
of New Amsterdam. Yet he was, with all 
his faults, an honest man, he had deeply at 
heart the interests of the colony, and his ad- 
ministration was mainly a prosperous one. 

He energetically opposed from the first all 
manifestations in favor of popular govern- 
ment. His will was to be the law of the 
province. " If any one," said he, " during 
my administration shall appeal, I will make 
him a foot shorter, and send the pieces to 
Holland, and let him appeal in that way." 
He went to work with vigor to reform mat- 
ters in the colony, extending his efforts to 
even the morals and domestic affairs of the 
people. He soon brought about a reign of 
material prosperity greater than had ever 
been known before, and exerted himself to 
check the encroachments of the English on 
the east, and the Swedes on the south. He 
inaugurated a policy of kindness and justice 
toward the Indians, and soon changed their 



enmity to sincere friendship. One thing, 
however, he dared not do — he could not 
levy ta.xes upon the people without their 
consent, for fear of offending the States Gen- 
eral of Holland. This forced him to appoint ■ 
a council of nine prominent citizens, and, 
although he endeavored to hedge round 
their powers by numerous conditions, the 
nine ever afterwards served as a salutary 
check upon the action of the governor. 

Opposition to Stuyvesant. 

The English in Connecticut made great 
efforts to extend their territories westward at 
the expense of New Netherland, and gave 
Stuyvesant no little annoyance by their 
aggressions. During his administration the 
colony received large accessions of English 
emigrants from New England, who came to 
New Netherland " to enjoy that liberty de- 
nied to them by their own countrymen." 
They settled in New Amsterdam, on Long 
Island, and in Westchester County. Being 
admitted to an equality with the Dutch set- 
tlers, they exercised considerable influence 
in the affairs of the colony, and towards the 
close of his administration gave the governor 
considerable trouble by their opposition to 
his despotic acts. Stuyvesant entered into 
an arrangement with Connecticut for the 
proper adjustment of the boundaries of the 
two colonies, and left the English in posses- 
sion of half of Long Island. 

Upon his removal from his place as gover- 
nor of New Amsterdam Peter Minuits offered 
his services to Gustavus Adolphus, king of 
Sweden, who was anxious to found in 
America a colony which might prove a place 
of refuge for the persecuted Protestants of 
Europe. The offer was accepted by the 
king, and the shores of the Delaware were 
chosen as the site of the new settlement. 
Near the close of 1637 a little company of 
Swedes and Fins embarked in two vessels 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



205 



under the direction of Minuits,and sailed for 
America. The Delaware was reached early 
in 1638, and the new-comers purchased from 
the natives the country on the west side of 
the river from Cape Henlopen to Trenton. 
A fort was built within the limits of the 
present state of Delaware, on the site of the 
present city of Wilmington, and named Fort 
Christiana, in honor of the youthful queen of 
Sweden, the daughter of Gustavus. 

Swedish Immigrants. 

Kieft,the Dutch governor of New Nether- 
land, protested against this occupation of the 
country by the Swedes, as Holland claimed 
the region along the Delaware. Sweden was 
too formidable a power for her colony to be 
attacked, however, and Kieft contented him- 
self with his protest. Fresh emigrants came 
out from Scandinavia, and New Sweden grew 
rapidly. The Dutch Fort Nassau was re- 
newed, but the Swedes succeeded in main- 
taining their ascendency along the Delaware 
in spite of it. Their plantations were 
extended along the river, and the smallest 
of the American commonwealths was per- 
manently settled by Europeans. 

When Stuyvesant was made governor of 
New Netherland the Dutch West India Com- 
pany resolved to enforce their claim to 
Delaware, and in 165 i built Fort Casimir on 
the site of Newcastle. The Swedes regarded 
this as an encroachment upon their domain, 
and in 1654 captured the Fort. Upon the 
receipt of this news the Dutch Company 
indignantly ordered Stuyvesant " to drive 
the Swedes from the river, or compel their 
submission." In September, 1655, Stuyve- 
sant, with a force of six hundred men, sailed 
from Manhattan into the Delaware. The 
Swedish forts were compelled to surrender 
one after another, and the colonists were 
forced to submit to the establishment of the 
rule of the Dutch. They were allowed to 



retain their possessions, and on the whole 
were treated well. Many of them, however, 
were dissatisfied with their new rulers, and 
in the next few years emigrated to Maryland 
and Virginia. 

The territory now included in the state of 
New Jersey was also claimed by the Dutch. 
They built Fort Nassau on the Delaware to 
establish this claim, but the Swedes were the 
first to settle the country. Soon after, estab- 
lishing themselves in Delaware, they crossed 
over to the eastern side of the river, and 
built a line of trading-posts extending from 
Cape May to Burlington. 




GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS. 

New Amsterdam continued to prosper,. 
and was even at this early day rapidly becom- 
ing an important commercial town. Stuy- 
vesant's arbitrary temper was held in check 
to a considerable extent by the more liberal 
policy of the company, who sincerely desired 
the prosperity of the colony. " Let ev^ery 
peaceful citizen," wrote the directors, "enjoy 
freedom of conscience ; this maxim has made 
our city the asylum for fugitives from every 
land ; tread in its steps, and you shall be 
blessed." The infant metropolis from the 



2o6 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



first acquired a cosmopolitan character. It 
contained settlers from every nation of 
Europe, and even from Africa ; for the Dutch 
at an early day introduced negro slavery 
into the colony. 

The people of New Netherland had no 
political rights, and the West India Com- 
pany, with every disposition to treat the 
colony with fairness, did not mean to allow 
the settlers to have any voice in govern- 
ing themselves. Town meetings were posi- 
tively forbidden, and every care was taken to 
discourage any manifestation of public spirit. 
Nevertheless the colonists were beginning to 
feel the promptings of the spirit of democ- 
racy, and the English settlers who had 
come into the province were by no means 
content to remain without the privileges of 
freemen. A series of disputes at once arose 
with the fiery old governor, who entertained 
the most profound contempt for the people, 
and laughed in scorn at the assertion of their 
ability to govern themselves. 

Rights of the People Disregarded. 

The discontents went on increasing, how- 
ever, and at length the people appointed a 
convention of two delegates from each settle- 
ment for the purpose of deliberating on the 
affairs of the colony. Stuyvesant was bit- 
terly opposed to this assembly, but deemed 
it best not to seek to prevent its meeting, as 
such a step would have brought about a 
collision with the people. The convention 
addressed the governor as follows ; " The 
States General of the United Provinces are 
our liege lords ; we submit to the laws of the 
United Provinces ; and our rights and priv- 
ileges ought to be in harmony with those of 
the fatherland, for we are a member of the 
state, and not a subjugated people. We, who 
have come together from various parts of 
the world, and arc a blended community of 
various lineage; we, who have, at our own 



expense, exchanged our native lands for the 
protection of the United Provinces ; we, who 
have transformed the wilderness into fruitful 
farms, demand that no new laws shall be 
enacted but with the consent of the people ; 
that none shall be appointed to office but 
with the approbation of the people ; that 
obscure and obsolete laws shall never be 
revived." 

This was too much for the governor. He 
attempted to reason with the deputies, who 
had the temerity to demand the right of 
self-government, and finding them firm, dis- 
solved the convention with the haughty 
declaration : " We' derive our authority from 
God and the West India Company, not from 
the pleasure of a few ignorant subjects." 
The West India Company entirely approved 
the course of the governor. " We approve 
the taxes you propose," they wrote to Stuy- 
vesant ; " have no regard to the consent of 
the people. Let them indulge no longer the 
visionary dream that taxes can be imposed 
only with their consent." 

Neither the company nor the governor 
could understand that this persistent disre- 
gard of the rights of the people was aliena- 
ting all classes of the colonists and making 
them long for the conquest of New Nether- 
land by the English as the only means of 
obtaining the privileges of the freemen of 
the English colonies. 

Large Land Grant. 

Nor was this an idle hope. For a long 
time past the English government had seri- 
ously entertained the idea of driving out the 
Dutch, and adding New Netherland to its 
American possessions. The English claim 
extended to the entire Atlantic coast as far 
south as Florida, and the Dutch were 
regarded as intruders. Cromwell and his 
son had each contemplated making such an 
effort, and at the return of Charles II. to the 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



207 



throne the plan was more seriously discussed, 
and at length put in operation. Charles, 
although at peace with Holland, and in spite of 
the charter which he had granted to Connecti- 
cut, bestowed upon his brother, the Duke of 
York, afterwards James n.,the entire region 
between the Connecticut and Delaware 
rivers. This was in February, 1664. A 
squadron was at once fitted out for the pur- 
pose of seizing the Dutch colony, and was 
placed in command of Richard Nicolls, an 
officer of the Duke of York's household. 
The fleet touched at Boston to land the com- 
missioners sent out by Charles to the New 
England colonies and to receive reinforce- 
ments. Governor Winthrop, of Connecticut 
also embarked on board of it. 

The first intimation Stuyvesant had of the 
intended robbery was the appearance of the 
fleet within the Narrows on the twenty- 
eighth of August, 1664. The next day 
Nicolls demanded the surrender of the town 
and fort of New Amsterdam. Stuyvesant, 
who had made preparations for defending 
the place, endeavored to resist the demand, 
but the citizens refused to sustain him and 
he was obliged to submit. On the eighth of 
September he embarked his troops for Hol- 
land and put to sea. The English at once 
took possession of the fort and town, and 
their vessels ascending the Hudson, received 
the submission of the other Dutch forts and 
settlements along the river. A few weeks 
later the Dutch and the Swedes along the 
Delaware submitted to the English, and the 
entire province was in their hands. The 
name of New Amsterdam was changed to 
New York, which name was also bestowed 
upon the province, and Fort Orange was 
called Albany, all in honor of the new pro- 
prietor. Nicolls was appointed governor. 

The English set themselves to work to 
conciliate the Dutch residents, a task not 
very difficult, as the English settlers in the 



province had already prepared the way for 
the change, and the treatment the colony 
had received from the West India Company 
had prevented the formation of any decided 
attachment to the rule of Holland. The 
English system of government was intro- 
duced, the towns were allowed to elect their 
own magistrates, and the desires of the people 
for representative government seemed about 
to be gratified. 

A Strong Alliance. 

The Mohawks had been the friends of the 
Dutch, and they now readily entered into an 
alliance with the English as their successors. 
This alliance remained unbroken all through 
the colonial period, and during the war of 
the Revolution ; and in the first-named period 
proved of the greatest advantage to the 
colonies, as the Mohawks, whose hatred of 
the French was deep and unrelenting, proved 
a formidable obstacle in the way of invading 
parties from Canada. 

Immediately upon becoming master of the 
province, the Duke of York proceeded to 
divide it. He sold to Lord Berkeley and 
Sir George Cartaret, both of whom were 
already proprietaries of Carolina, the country 
between the Hudson and the Delaware. This 
purchase was named New Jersey, in honor 
of the island of Jersey, of which Cartaret was 
governor, and corresponded in size very 
nearly to the present state of that name. 
The new proprietors made liberal oflers to 
induce emigrants to settle in their territory, 
and among other things offered them lands 
free of rent for five years. They granted to 
the province a political establishment con- 
sisting of a governor, a council, and assembly 
of representatives of the people, who were 
given the power to make the laws necessary 
for their government. 

The proprietors reserved the right to 
appoint the governor and judicial officers, 



208 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



and to veto the proceedings of the assembly. 
Negro slavery was also introduced. These 
offers drew a large number of settlers to 
New Jersey, and many families came over 
from Long Island to the new province. The 
principal settlement was named Elizabeth- 
town, in honor of Cartaret's wife. The 
colony prospered ; no trouble was experi- 
enced from the neighboring Indians, whose 
power had been thoroughly broken by the 
Dutch, and everything went on happily 
until the year 1670, when the proprietaries 
demanded the rents due for the lands held 
by the settlers. The demand was refused. 
Many of the colonists had lived in the 
province under the rule of the Dutch, and 
had bought their lands from the Indians, and 
they claimed that the grant of the province 
to Cartaret could not invalidate these pur- 
chases, as the king had no claim to the 
lands which he so lavishly bestowed upon 
his favorites. Others refused to pay rent 
because they had made their plantations 
without any assistance from the proprietaries 
and did not acknowledge any debt to them. 
The representative of the proprietaries was 
obliged to fly for safety, and went to England 
for assistance in enforcing his demands. 

Insult Added to Injury. 

The Duke of York heard the complaints 
of the proprietaries, but the only attention he 
paid to them was to appoint Sir Edmund 
Andros, who subsequently became infamous 
for his tyranny in New England, governor of 
New Jersey. This was a flagrant violation 
of the rights of Cartaret and Berkeley, and 
an act thoroughly characteristic of the last 
of the Stuarts. Berkeley in disgust sold his 
half of the province, known as West Jersey, 
to an English Quaker named Edward 
Byllinge, who subsequently made over his 
claim to William Penn, who made an ar- 
rangement with Cartaret to divide the Jer- 



seys. Cartaret retained East Jersey, and the 
line of division was drawn from the north- 
west corner of the province to the sea at 
Little Egg Harbor. This purchase became 
the cause of considerable litigation in after 
years, and West Jersey was claimed by Penn- 
sylvania until the next century, when, as we 
shall see, the dispute was settled. 

Scotch Covenanters. 

New Jersey received a considerable acces- 
sion to her population in consequence of the 
re-establishment of episcopacy in Scotland. 
The Cameronians or Covenanters refused to 
submit to the authority of the church, and 
thus became the objects of a cruel persecu- 
tion. As so many of their faith had done 
before them, they sought refuge from their 
persecutors in America, and in 1683 and the 
following years large numbers of them came 
over and settled in East Jersey. This portion 
of the state was the cradle of Presbyter- 
ianism in America. 

In the meantime matters in New York 
had not been conducted to the satisfaction 
of the people. The promises made to the 
colonists by the English authorities were 
not kept. The province was treated as the 
absolute property of the Duke of York, and 
the governor and his council were consti- 
tuted the highest authority for both the 
making and execution of the laws. Repre- 
sentative government was denied them, arbi- 
trary taxes were imposed by Governor 
Nicolls, and the titles to the lands held by 
the settlers, not even excepting the Dutch 
patents, were declared invalid, in order that 
by issuing new title-deeds Nicolls might gain 
enormous fees, Lovelace, the successor of 
Nicolls, carried his tyranny to a still greater 
extent. His system of government is thus 
summed up : " The method for keeping the 
people in order is severity, and laying such 
taxes as may give them liberty for no 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



209 



thought but how to discharge them." 
When the people of a number of the towns 
ventured to remonstrate with the governor, 
he ordered their petition for the redress of 
their grievances to be publicly burned before 
the town house in New York. The settle- 
ments in Delaware were treated with equal 
injustice. 

Peace Between England and Holland. 

In 1673, war having broken out between 
Holland and England, a Dutch squadron 
entered the harbor of New York. The peo- 
ple, thoroughly cured of their partiality for 
English rule by the injustice they had suf- 
fered, made no resistance and surrendered 
the town. Its name was changed to New 
Orange, and the authority of the Dutch was 
again extended over the province, and also 
over Long Island, New Jersey and Delaware. 
The Mohawks sent a deputation of their 
chiefs to congratulate the Dutch upon the 
recovery of their colony. The ne.\t year, 
however, peace was made between England 
and Holland, and the Dutch surrendered 
their conquests in America. New York 
passed once more into the hands of the Duke 
of York, and East Jersey into those of Car- 
taret. 

In the same year the Duke of York ap- 
pointed Sir Edmund Andros governor of 
New York. The eastern settlements of 
Long Island were anxious to adhere to Con- 
necticut, but the governor compelled them 
on pain of being declared rebels to acknowl- 
edge themselves a part of New York. The 
claim of the duke extended within the limits 
of Connecticut as far as the river of that 
name, and in the summer of 1675 Andros 
sailed with several armed sloops for that col- 
ony to establish his authority as far as the 
river. The government of Connecticut, 
warned of his purpose, determined to resist 
him, and Captain Bull, the commander of the 
14 



fort at Saybrooke, was ordered to pay no at- 
tention to his claim. Andros, arriving off 
Saybrooke, hoisted the royal standard and 
demanded the surrender of the fort. 

A Connecticut Captain. 

Bull instantly ran up the English colors, 
and refused to comply with the demand. 
Andros, who was a coward at heart, quailed 
before the firmness of the Connecticut cap- 
tain, and abandoned his undertaking and 
sailed for Long Island. Thus ended the at- 
tempt of the Duke of York to dismember 
Connecticut. Andros returned to New York 
to disgust the people of that province with 
his tyranny. 

When James II. became king he com- 
pelled the proprietaries of New Jersey to 
surrender their claim to the jurisdiction of 
that province to him, and annexed it to New 
York. In 1683 the grievances of the people 
of New York had become so unendurable 
that James, then Duke of York, deemed it 
best to conciliate them, and allowed the free- 
holders to send representatives to an assem- 
bly. This assembly met in October, 1683, 
and its first act was to demand the rights of 
Englishmen. " Supreme legislative power," 
they declared, " shall forever be and reside in 
the governor, '.-ouncil and people, met in gen- 
eral assembly. Every freeholder and freeman 
shall vote for representation without restraint. 
No freeman shall suffer but by the judgment 
of his peers ; and all trials shall be by a jury 
of twelve men. No tax shall be assessed, on 
any pretence whatever, but by the consent of 
the assembly. No seaman or soldier shall 
be quartered on the inhabitants against their 
will. No martial law shall exist. No person 
professing faith in God by Jesus Christ shall 
at any time be any ways disquieted or ques- 
tioned for any difference of opinion." These 
privileges were conceded by the Duke of 
York, who solemnly promised not to change. 



2IO 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



them except for the dvantage of the colony ; 
but he had scarcely become king when he 
overturned the liberties he had conceded and 
made New York a royal province, dependent 
entirely upon his unrestrained will for its 
privileges. 

Leisler Holds the Fort. 

The people of New York were Protestants, 
many of whom had had cause to dread the 
restoration of the Roman Catholic religion 
in England. When James gave evidence of 
his intention to compel the acceptance of that 
faith by all his subjects, the colonies included, 
they were greatly discontented. Their fears 
were increased by the appointment by the 
king of a Roman Catholic as collector of cus- 
toms at New York. Nicholson, the royal 
governor, was also exceedingly unpopular. 

As soon as the news of the overthrow of 
James II. in England reached New York, 
Jacob Leisler, the senior captain of the mili- 
tary companies, was requested by his men 
to take possession of the fort and assume the 
management of affairs until the government 
should be settled by the orders of King 
William. Leisler was a prominent merchant 
and was very popular with the common 
people, but he was opposed by the great land- 
holders, who were principally Dutch, and by 
the party devoted to the Church of England. 
He found himself at the head of about five 
hundred armed men, and taking possession 
of the fort avowed his intention to hold it 
until the will of King William should be 
known. He was sustained by a large ma- 
jority of the people of New York, but the 
aristocratic party, and the churchmen, who 
hated him, as he was a Presbyterian, de- 
nounced him as a rebel, and sustained the 
council of Nicholson, the last governor 
appointed by King James, which withdrew 
to Albany in August, 1689. 

Leisler appointed his son-in-law. Mil- 
bourne, his secretary. Later in the year the 



people of Albany, being in danger of an 
attack from the French from Canada, asked 
aid from New York. Leisler sent Milbourne 
with a body of troops to their assistance, but 
the old council refused to acknowledge his 
authority, or to allow him to assume the 
command of the fort, and he went back with 
his men to New York, leaving the people of 
Albany to depend upon their own exertions 
for the defeat of the French. In their neces- 
sity they asked for and received aid from 
Connecticut. 

Blood Runs High. 

In December letters from the English 
government were received, addressed to 
Nicholson, or, in his absence, to " such as, 
for the time being, take care for preserving 
the peace and administering the law " in 
New York. A commission for Nicholson 
accompanied these documents ; but he was 
on his way to England, and Leisler, who 
was temporarily in authority in New York, 
regarded his position as confirmed by the 
letters from England, and caused himself to 
be proclaimed governor. He ordered the 
members of the old council at Albany to be 
arrested, and summoned an assembly to pro- 
vide for the wants of the colony. 

Upon first taking charge of affairs Leisler 
had addressed a letter to King William set- 
ting forth his reasons for his action, and ask- 
ing the king to make known his royal pleasure 
concerning the colony. No answer was sent 
by the king to this communication, but on the 
thirtieth of January, 1691, a ship suddenly 
arrived in the harbor having on board a com- 
pany of English soldiers, commanded by a 
Captain Ingoldsby, who had been sent by 
Colonel Henry Sloughter, whom King Wil- 
liam had appointed governor of New York. 

The aristocratic party at once rallied around 
Ingoldsby as their leader, and that officer 
demanded of Leisler the surrender of the 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



211 



fort. Leisler insisted that he should produce 
his authority for such a demand, and, as 
none could be shown, refused to give up the 
fort, but offered Ingoldsby every assistance 
for himself and his men, and avowed his 
intention to submit to Sloughter upon his 
arrival. In the time which elapsed between 
the arrivals of Ingoldsby and the new gov- 
ernor party spirit ran so high that a collision 
occurred between the soldiers and the people, 
in which one man was wounded. 

Charged with Treason. 

Sloughter reached New York on the nine- 
teenth of March, 1691. Leisler at once sent 
messengers to receive his orders, but the mes- 
sengers were detained. The next morning 
Leisler addressed a letter to Sloughter, ask- 
ing to whom he should deliver up the fort. 
Sloughter returned no answer to this letter, 
but ordered Ingoldsby to " arrest Leisler 
and the persons called his council." 

Leisler, Milbourne, and six others were 
arrested and immediately arraigned before a 
tribunal composed of their inveterate enemies, 
on a charge of treason. This was a frivolous 
pretence, for it was well known that Leisler, 
who was an enthusiastic admirer of King 
William, had never dreamed of denying his 
authority ; but it was as good a charge as 
any other, as the fate of the prisoners was 
decided from the first. The prisoners denied 
the authority of the court, and refusing to 
plead before it, appealed to the king. The 
presiding officer of the court was the chief 
justice of New York, the infamous Joseph 
Dudley, who had been driven out of New 
England by the people whose liberties he 
had outraged. The prisoners, in spite of 
their appeal, were condemned to death. 

Sloughter was unwilling to disregard their 
appeal as entirely as the court had done, and 
wished to leave the matter to the king ; but 
the enemies of Leisler were resolved upon 



his death. Taking advantage of the known 
weakness of the governor, they made him 
drunk at a dinner party, and in this state 
induced him to sign the death warrant ofthe 
prisoners. The next morning at daybreak 
(May i6th) Leisler and Milbourne were hur- 
ried from their weeping families to the gal- 
lows, to be executed for treason. 

Judicial Murder. 

In spite of a pouring rain, the people who 
had gotten news of the tragedy crowded 
around the place of execution to cheer their 
martyrs in their last moments. " Weep not 
for us, who are departing to our God," said 
Leisler to the multitude. Milbourne saw 
standing among the crowd one of the men 
who had been prominent in their con- 
demnation, and cried out to him : " Robert 
Livingston, I will implead thee for this at 
the bar of God." Then turning to the peo- 
ple, he said : " I die for the king and queen, 
and for the Protestant religion, in which I 
was born and bred. Father, into thy hands 
I commend my spirit." The judicial murder 
was then completed, and New York's first 
martyrs laid down their lives in behalf of 
the rights of the people. 

The popular party was now more than ever 
embittered against the aristocratic class, and 
the principles which Leisler and Milbourne 
upheld were more than ever insisted upon. 
Their friends, " who were distinguished 
always by their zeal for popular power, for 
toleration, for opposition to the doctrine of 
legitimacy," continued the struggle, and at 
length succeeded in making their principles 
the law of the colony. 

The royalist assembly, while denying to 
the people an equality with themselves in 
political matters, were yet indisposed to sur- 
render to the crown the independence of the 
colony, and, with their successors, insisted 
upon the right of self-government, and the 



212 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



regulation of taxation by the assembly, with 
such firmness that in 1705 Queen Anne 
yielded so far as to permit the assembly to 
appoint " its own treasurer to take charge of 
extraordinary supplies." 



arts to prevent this act of justice. As for 
Governor Sloughter, who was at the best but 
a poor weak adventurer, he died of the effects 
of his dissipation six months after the execu- 
tion of his victims. * 




QUEEN 

The memory of Leisler and Milbourne 
was vindicated after their death. The son of 
the former made the appeal to the king which 
had been denied his father, and Parliament 
at length reversed the attainder under the 
charge of treason, and restored their estates 
to their families. Dudley exerted all his 



ANNE. 

In 1692 Benjamin Fletcher was appointed 
to succeed Sloughter. He was an officer of 
the royal army, and was as passionate and 
avaricious as he was incompetent in other 
respects. He was a firm ally of the aristo- 
cratic party, and a bitter foe to popular lib- 
erty. In 1693, in order to assist New York 



THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 



213 



against the attacks of the French in Canada, 
all the colonies were required to contribute 
their quota of troops to her defence. An 
effort was also made to place the militia of 
New Jersey and Connecticut under the 
orders of the governor of New York. The 
authorities of Connecticut, however, were 
resolved not to relinquish the control of 
their militia, which would have been to 
sacrifice their rights secured by the charter. 
In order to enforce his authority. Gov- 
ernor Fletcher repaired to Hartford, where 
the assembly of Connecticut was in session. 
At the time of his arrival a company of 
militia was engaged in training in the town. 
Governor Fletcher rode up to this force ; but 
its commander, Captain Wadsworth, paid no 
attention to him, and did not even acknowl- 
edge his presence. Fletcher, who had 
boasted that he would not stir from the 
colony until he was obeyed, ordered his 
secretary to read his commission in the 
hearing of the troops. 

" Silence ! " " Music ! Music ! " 

As the secretary commenced to read, 
Wadsworth ordered the drums to be beaten, 
and the secretary's voice was drowned. 
" Silence ! " cried Fletcher ; " begin again 
with the commission." " Music ! music ! " 
ordered Wadsworth, the same man who had 
hid the charter from Governor Andros. The 
drummers began again, and the governor, in 
a rage, ordered them to cease their music. 
Wadsworth sharply commanded the bewil- 
dered musicians to go on with their drum- 
ming, and then turning upon Fletcher, said 
to him fiercely : '' If I am interrupted again, 
I will make daylight shine through you." 
The voice and manner of the man con- 
vinced the governor that he was in earnest, 
and he went back to New York, satisfied of 
the impossrbility of bringing the Connecticut 
militia under his orders. 



New York was the most northern colony 
in which the authority of the Church of 
England was established. A number of its 
people were members of that communion, 
and in the colonial government the influence 
of that church was predominant. The vast 
majority of the people, however, were hostile 
to it, and it was not until 1695 that Governor 
Fletcher was able to obtain for it anything 
like favor from the assembly. The repre- 
sentatives of the people were fearful that if 
it obtained a firm footing among them, the 
British government might bestow upon it a 
power which would be dangerous to the 
other denominations. Naturally it enjoyed 
the favor of the home government, and 
engrossed all the provision made by England 
for religious matters in the colony. 

Struggle for Liberty. 

Lord Cornbury, the royal governor, at- 
tempted in 1705 to silence a Presbyterian 
minister for preaching without a license from 
the governor ; but a jury, composed of 
Episcopalians, acquitted the prisoner. The 
same governor connived at the seizure by 
the Episcopalians of a church in Jamaica, 
which had been built by the whole town ; 
but the colonial court restored it to its 
rightful owners. The spirit of popular lib- 
erty and toleration was growing rapidly in 
New York, and its colonial history is the 
story of a constant struggle between the 
people and the royal governors for the asser- 
tion and maintenanceof their rights.' Nearly 
all the governors regarded their position as 
but a means of enriching themselves, and 
systematically defrauded both the king and 
the colony. 

By 1732 the population of New York City 
numbered a little less than nine thousand 
souls. In that year a case of the deepest 
interest occurred in that city. John Peter 
Zenger had established a newspaper called 



214 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



the Weekly Journal, which ventured to cen- 
sure the arbitrary action of the governor and 
assembly in levying illegal taxes upon the 
colony. This was a bold step, for until now 
no newspaper had dared to criticise the 
action of the government. Cosby, the gov- 
ernor of New York, resolving to make an 
example of the offender, arrested Zenger on 
the charge of libel and caused his paper to 
be publicly burned. Zenger employed two 
lawyers to defend him, and these increased 
the anger of the government by denying the 
competency of the court, inasmuch as the 
appointment of the chief justice, Delancy, 
had been made by Cosby without the con- 
sent of the council, and was therefore illegal. 
The court at once struck their names from 
its list of attorneys, and this arbitrary action 
so intimidated the remaining members of 
the bar that Zenger found it impossible to 
procure counsel. 

Famous "Quaker Lawyer. 

In this helpless condition he was put on 
trial, and the court had actually begun its 
proceedings when a stranger, a venerable 
and noble-looking man, entered the room 
and took his seat at the bar. He announced 
his name to the court, and stated that he had 
come to act as counsel for the prisoner. A 
murmur of admiration greeted the announce- 
ment of his name. He was Andrew Hamilton, 
speaker of the assembly of Pennsylvania, the 
famous "Quaker lawyer" of Philadelphia. 
In the trial which ensued, Hamilton offered 
to prove the truth of the alleged libel, but 



was not allowed to do so ; the chief justice 
quoting English precedents in support of his 
decision. 

Hamilton then made an eloquent appeal 
to the jury, declaring that they of their 
own knowledge knew the statements of 
Zenger's paper to be true, and urged them 
to maintain the great principles of the free- 
dom of the press and liberty of speech 
throughout the colonies, which principles, 
and not John Peter Zenger, he solemnly 
declared were on trial before them. In spite 
of the unfavorable charge of the judge, the 
jury brought in a unanimous verdict of ac- 
quittal, which was announced amid the cheers 
of the people. Thus while the freedom of 
the press was still in doubt in England, and 
thirty-seven years before the famous trial for 
libel of the publisher of the Letters Junius 
established it in the mother country, the 
people of New York declared themselves its 
guardians, and struck down the effort of the 
royal power to impose shackles upon their 
most vigilant defender. 

In 1702 the proprietaries of New Jersey 
surrendered their rights of jurisdiction to the 
crown, and Queen Anne united tlie two Jer- 
seys in one province, and placed it under the 
governor of New York. It was given a sep- 
arate assembly, but this concession of partial 
independence of its neighbor did not suit the 
province, and after many protests it was 
given its own governor in the person of 
Lewis Morris, in 1708. During the rest of 
the colonial period it remained a loyal 
province. 



CHAPTER XVII 



Colonization of Pennsylvania 

The Quakers — Their Origin and Doctrines — William Penn — Becomes a Quaker — Is Persecuted for His Religious 
Opinions — Becomes Interested in American Colonization — Purchases "West Jersey from the Proprietor — Conceives the 
Idea of Founding a Free State in America — Purchases Pennsylvania from Charles II. — Conditions of His Charter — 
Sends Out a Colony — Arrival of Penn in America — Philadelphia Founded — Penn's Treaty with the Indians — Religious 
Toleration Guaranteed — Penn's Relations with His Colonists— Rapid Growth of Pennsylvania in Population and 
Prosperity — William Penn and James II. — Renewal of Penn's Troubles — William III. Declares Pennsylvania a Royal 
Province — Penn is "Vindicated and Restored to His Proprietary Rights — His Return to Pennsylvania — Character of 
the Settlers of the Province — Penn Goes Back to England — Efforts to Deprive Him of His Possessions — His Death. 



ONE of the most remarkable results 
of the English Reformation was 
the rise and growth of the Society 
of Friends, or Quakers, as they 
came to be called. Discarding what seemed 
to them superfluous and unnecessary forms 
in religion, they confined themselves to a 
simpler and more primitive expression of 
their faith. Believing that the only evil a 
Christian should resist is the evil of his own 
heart, they opposed no resistance to perse- 
cution or to ill-treatment from their fellow- 
men ; and as servants of the Prince of 
Peace, were unchangeably opposed to war and 
bloodshed. They held the doctrine of the 
Trinity : that we obtain salvation by the 
atoning blood of Christ ; that man was cre- 
ated a free and responsible agent ; that he 
forfeited his right to the blessings of the 
Creator by his fall, and will owe his restor- 
ation to his lost estate to the mercy of God 
and the blood of Christ; that the Holy 
Scriptures are the work of inspiration, and a 
good rule of life and faith. 

With them the test of Christianity was not 
a man's standing in the church, but the 
answer of a good conscience ; the sense of 
true inward communion between the soul of 
the individual and God. They conducted 
their worship in silence, and regarded all 



their members as sent by God to preach His 
Gospel ; therefore, any one, even women, was 
free to speak in their meetings the message 
which came to him from the Holy Spirit. 
They denied that the right to preach was 
restricted to any particular class, and refused 
to acknowledge the authority of the regular 
clergy. Oaths were regarded as unlawful 
for Christian men, and temperance and the 
utmost simplicity in all things were enjoined 
upon their people. They refused to recog- 
nize the social distinctions which prevailed 
in the world, though they admitted the 
power of the magistrates to enforce the laws, 
and regarded all men as equals. Their dress 
was simple and in proportion to the means 
of the wearer, and their lives were blame- 
less. They admitted the right of all men to 
worship God in their own way, and thus 
extended to all others the perfect toleration 
they claimed for themselves. 

The founder of this sect was the good 
George Fox, the son of a weaver of Leices- 
tershire, and " by his mother descended 
from the stock of the martyrs." He began 
to teach his doctrines about the middle of 
the seventeenth century, and at first his 
converts were people of the humbler classes 
of England. He was met with a determined 
opposition from both the established church 

215 



2l6 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



and the Presbyterians, and was imprisoned, 
set in the stocks, cruelly beaten and other- 
wise persecuted, and driven from place to 
place. Yet he persevered, and his doctrines 
began to spread. Distressed by the perse- 
cutions to which his followers were sub- 
jected, he visited America after the restora- 
tion of Charles II., in the hope of finding 
there a place of refuge for his people, but 
could find none. Puritan New England was 
hostile to -his doctrines, and the power of 
the Church of England was strong enough 
in the southern colonies to defeat his object. 

The Founder of Pennsylvania. 

Among Fox's converts were a few from 
the higher classes of English society. One 
of these was destined to be, next to its 
founder, the greatest benefactor of his faith, 
and one of the choice instruments of the 
Almighty in the settlement and Christianiza- 
tion of America. This was William Penn. 
He was the son and heir of Admiral Sir 
William Penn, one of the most distinguished 
naval commanders of England. The admiral 
desired for his son the advantages which his 
high position would readily secure to him, but 
the young man at an early day, happening to 
converse with a simple-minded Quaker, 
became so deeply impressed with his prin- 
ciples that he adopted them as his own. 
This greatly annoyed the father, but suppos- 
ing that it was a mere boyish notion which 
his son would outgrow, William was sent to 
study at the University of Oxford, and after 
leaving that institution was made to travel 
through Europe to improve his mind and to 
remove his tendency to Quakerism. 

William returned to England, after an 
absence of two years, greatly improved in 
mind, but still true to his religious convic- 
tions. In 1666, while traveling in Ireland, 
Penn met his old friend, Thomas Loe, and 
heard him speak of the glorious triumph of 



the faith of a Christian over the adversities 
of the world. His enthusiasm was once 
more awakened to such an extent that he 
from that moment began to seek to draw 
others into the communion which had given 
him so much happiness. His course gave 
offence to the authorities and he was impris- 
oned. He addressed a remonstrance to the 
viceroy of Ireland, in which he declared : 
" Religion is my crime and my innocence ; 
it makes me a prisoner to malice, but my 
own freeman." 

Being liberated, he went back home, but 
only to meet with mockery and persecution. 
He was ridiculed by his companions of his 
own rank in life, and it was a common jest 
in society, says Pepys, that " William Penn 
was a Quaker again, or some very melan- 
choly thing." His father, disappointed and 
indignant at the failure of his hopes, turned 
him out of his house without a penny; but 
his mother, truer to her nature, supplied him 
with sufficient funds to relieve his most 
pressing wants. 

Thrust Into Prison. 

Penn now began to defend his doctrines 
through the press, and thus brought them 
into greater prominence. This soon made 
him the victim of the ecclesiastical authori- 
ties, and the Bishop of London threatened 
him with imprisonment for life if he did not 
recant his doctrines. He answered firmly : 
" Then my prison shall be my grave." He 
was committed to the Tower on a charge of 
heresy and kept in close confinement. 
Charles II., naturally kind-hearted, was 
touched by his firmness, and sent the learned 
Stillingfleet, himself a man of humanity, to 
reason with him. " The Tower," said Penn, 
" is to me the worst argument in the world." 
At the end of a year his father's friend, the 
Duke of York, procured his release, for the 
consistency of the young man had won back 



COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



217 



for him the affection and sympathy of the 
stern old admiral. 

Every effort was now made to draw 
William Penn away from his faith. A high 
rank in the royal navy, the favor of the king, 
and many other inducements were held out 
•to him, but he refused them all and remained 
true to his principles. In 
less than a year after his 
release from the Tower 
he was arrested for hav- 
ing spoken at a Quaker 
meeting. He protested 
his right to do this and 
declared that no power 
on earth should prevent 
him from worshiping the 
God who made him. 

He was placed on trial 
foi his offence, and bold- 
ly demanded to know on 
what law the indictment 
against him was founded. 
" On the common law," 
replied the recorder. 
"Where is that law?" 
asked Penn, " The law 
which is not in being, far 
from being common, is 
no law at all." He con- 
ducted his own defence, 
and as he was pleading 
earnestly for his rights 
as an Englishman, was 
hurried out of court. He 
appealed to the jury to 
remember that they were 
his judges. The jury, 
in spite of an unfavor- 
able charge from the judge, brought in a 
verdict of acquittal. The court ordered 
them back to their room, with the angry 
declaration : " We will have a verdict, by 
the help of God, or ypu shall starve for it." 



" You are Englishmen," cried Penn to the 
jurors, as they were retiring: "mind your 
privilege; give not away your right." 

At last, after being kept two days and 
nights without food, the jury repeated their 
verdict of " not guilty," and were fined 
by the court for daring to assert their inde- 




WILLIAM PENN. 

pendence. Penn was fined for contempt of 
court, and sent back to prison. His fine was 
soon discharged by his father, who died 
shortly afterwards. " Son William," said 
the dying admiral, to whom earthly honors 



2l8 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



now appeared in their true light, " if you 
and your friends keep to your plain way of 
preaching and living, you will make an end 
of the priests." 

Penn was now nearly twenty-six years 
old, and had inherited from his father a 
handsome estate. He continued to explain 
and defend his doctrines through the press, 
and in 1671 was arrested and sentenced to 
six months' imprisonment in Newgate. 
From his prison he addressed a noble plea 
to Parliament and to the nation for tolera- 
tion in all matters of faith. 

The Wife of Penn. 

Upon his release from prison, Penn trav- 
elled in Holland and Germany, and upon his 
return to England, in 1673, married a woman 
of great beauty, whose noble character ren- 
dered her a fitting companion to him. He 
took no part in public affairs until the 
imprisonment of George Fox, upon his 
return to England to America, called him 
once more to the defence of his brethren. 
Fox being released, he and Penn and several 
others travelled through Holland and a part 
of Germany, seeking to make converts to 
their faith — an effort in which they were 
very successful among the Dutch and Ger- 
man peasantry. Returning to England, he 
once more appealed to Parliament, but with- 
out success, to do justice to the Quakers, 
and grant them the toleration to which they 
were entitled. 

Despairing of success in England, Penn 
now directed the whole of his energies to 
securing a home for his persecuted brethren 
in the new world. A number of Quakers 
were already settled along the banks of the 
Delaware and in New Jersey, and in 1675 
the embarrassments of Edward By Hinge, who 
had purchased Lord Berkeley's mterest in 
New Jersey, obliged him to sell his share of 
that province. It was purchased by William 



Penn, Gawen Lourie and Nicholas Lucas, 
for the benefit of the Quakers. This placed 
the Friends in possession of an asylum, but 
it left them more at the mercy of the English 
government and church than they desired to 
be, and New Jersey was divided into two 
equal parts ; Cartaret, Berkeley's former 
partner, retaining East Jersey, and West 
Jersey becoming the property of the 
Quakers. 

The People Rule. 

This was accomplished in 1676, and in 
March of the following year a government 
resting upon the will of the people, and 
securing to the inhabitants protection and 
equality in all their political and religious 
rights and privileges, was set up in West 
Jersey. The English Quakers came over to 
the new province in great numbers, with the 
good wishes of Charles II., and peaceful 
relations were established with the Indians. 
Byllinge, who had retained some interest in 
the province, now began to be troublesome, 
and claimed the right to nominate the deputy 
governor. The people denied his claim, and 
at the instigation of William Penn, amended 
their constitution so as to place the choice 
of all their officers in their, own hands, and 
then elected a governor. 

Penn had now become deeply interested 
in the colonization of America, and wished 
to secure for his faith a wider domain than 
West Jersey. He had inherited from his 
father a claim against the English govern- 
ment amounting to sixteen thousand pounds. 
He now proposed to exchange this claim for 
a grant of territory in America. Charles II., 
who was always in want of money, and who 
never set much value upon the lands of the 
new world, readily accepted his offer, as it 
was urged by Lords North, Halifax and 
Sunderland, and the Duke of York, who 
were firm friends of William Penn. The 



COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



219 



king, in 168 1, granted to Penn a district 
lying west of the Delaware River, and corre- 
sponding very nearly to territory embraced 
in the present state of Pennsylvania, which 
name the king bestowed upon it in honor of 
the proprietor. 

The Duke of York claimed Delaware as 
his own property, and Penn, who wished to 
have free access to the sea, purchased it of 
him the next year. The territory was granted 
to Penn as absolute proprietor; the people 
were secured in the right of self-government ; 
religious equality was guaranteed to all ; the 
acts of the colonial legislature were to be 
submitted to the king and council, who had 
the power to annul them if contrary to the 
law of England ; the power of levying 
customs was reserved to Parliament ; and no 
taxes were to be imposed upon the people 
save by the colonial legislature or by Parlia- 
ment. 

Settlers Throng the \A^ilderness. 

Penn then invited all persons who desired 
to do so to settle in Pennsylvania, and in a 
proclamation declared his intention to leave 
the settlers free to make their own laws. *' I 
propose," he said, " to leave myself and suc- 
cessors no power of doing mischief, that the 
will of no one man may hinder the good of a 
whole country." " God," he declared, "has 
furnished me with a better resolution, and has 
given me His grace to keep it." 

His resolution was soon tested. Soon 
after he obtained his patent a company of 
traders offered him six thousand pounds and 
an annual payment of a stipulated sum for 
the monopoly of the Indian traffic between 
the Delaware and the Susquehanna. He 
had already straitened himself very much by 
his expenditures for his colony, and his 
family had been obliged to endure some 
deprivations in consequence. The offer was 
tempting, but he declined it firmly. What 



was free to him should be free to every 
inhabitant of Pennsylvania, and he would 
derive no advantage at the expense of his 
people. 

Liberal Education. 

A company was collected and sent out to 
Pennsylvania, under William Markham, 
Penn's nephew, and the personal character 
of the proprietor of the colony was deemed 
by all a sufficient guarantee for the protec- 
tion of their liberties. Penn intended fol- 
lowing this company as soon as he could, 
and in the meantime enjoined Markham to 
continue the establishment already existing 
along the Delaware, and to govern in accord- 
ance with the laws of England. In 1682 he 
prepared to go out to America to superin- 
tend the formal establishment of his colony. 
As he was about to sail, he wrote to his 
wife, to whom he was devoted with all the 
ardor of his youth : " Live low and spar- 
ingly till my debts be paid ; I desire not 
riches, but to owe nothing ; be liberal to the 
poor and kind to all." With regard to their 
children, he wrote : " Let their learning be 
liberal ; spare no cost, for by such parsimony 
all is lost that is saved." 

Penn took out with him one hundred 
emigrants, and reached Newcastle on the 
twenty-seventh of October, 1682, after a long 
and trying voyage. In the presence of the 
Swedish, Dutch and English settlers, who 
welcomed him with joy, he took formal pos- 
session of the province, which was surren- 
dered to him by the agents of the Duke of 
York. He pledged himself to the people to 
grant them liberty of conscience and all their 
civil privileges. From Newcastle Penn went 
up the river to Chester, where a settlement 
had been formed by emigrants from the 
north of England, who had preceded him. 

Early in November, accompanied by a few 
friends, Penn ascended the Delaware in an 




220 



COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



221 



Open boat to the mouth of the Schuylkill, 
and passing a little distance beyond this, 
landed on the beautiful site now occupied by 
the city of Philadelphia. The place at 
which he landed was long known as the 
" Blue Anchor Landing," from a tavern of 
that name which stood there. A little later, 
under a spreading elm, Penn met the chiefs 
of the neighboring Indian tribes and entered 
into a treaty of peace and friendship with 
them. This treaty was confirmed by no 
oath, but it remained unbroken for fifty 
years, and as neither side sought to evade its 
obligations, which were simply of peace and 
good will, the colony of Pennsylvania 
escaped iii its earlier years the horrors of a 
savage warfare from which the other settlers 
suffered. " We will live," said the Indian 
sachems, " in love with William Penn and 
his children as long as the moon and the 
sun shall endure." They kept their word. 
" Penn came without arms ; he declared his 
purpose to abstain from violence ; he had no 
message but peace ; and not a drop of 
Quaker blood was ever shed by an Indian." 
The scene of the treaty was at Shacka- 
maxon, now Kensington, in the city of Phil- 
adelphia. 

Philadelphia Laid Out. 

On the pleasant tract lying between the 
Delaware and the Schuylkill, which was 
purchased from the Swedes, who had on 
their part purchased it from the Indians, 
Penn in 1683 laid out the capital of his 
province, which he named Philadelphia, 
the City of Brotherly Love, in token of the 
principles which he meant should constitute 
the common law of his possessions. If was 
abundantly supplied with streams of pure 
water and was admirably situated for pur- 
poses of trade. He did not wish it to be 
built after the manner of European cities, 
but designed it to be a " ereene country 



town, gardens round each house, that it 
might never be burned, and always be 
wholesome." The streets were laid off by 
marking their course through the primitive 
forest by blazing the trees, and the building 
of dwellings was begun. In the first year 
of Penn's arrival in the colony twenty-three 
ships with emigrants arrived in Pennsylvania. 
In three years after its foundation Philadel- 
phia contained upwards of six hundred 
houses, and the colony had a population of 
ten thousand. The Indians proved the firm 
friends of the colonists and supplied them 
with wild fowl and venison in return for 
articles of European manufacture. 




PENN TREATY MONUMENT. 

Penn from the first refused to retain m his- 
hands the exercise of the vast powers with 
which the charter granted him by the king 
invested him. As early as December, 1682, 
he convened a general convention of the 
people and gave them a charter of liberties 
which Bancroft thus sums up : " God was 
declared the only Lord of conscience ; the 
first day of the week was reserved as a day 
of leisure, for the ease of the creation. The 
rule of equality was introduced into families 
by abrogating the privileges of primogeni- 
ture. The word of an honest man was 



222 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



evidence without an oath. The mad spirit 
of speculation was checked by a system of 
strict accountabiUty, applied to factors and 
agents. 

" Every man liable to civil burdens pos- 
sessed the right of suffrage; and, without 
regard to sect, every Christian was eligible to 
office. No tax or custom could be levied 
but by law. The Quaker is a spiritualist; 
the pleasures of the senses, masks, revels and 




THE OLD swedes' CHURCH, BUILT IN 164I 

stage plays, not less than bull-baits and 
cock-fights, were prohibited. Murder was 
the only crime punishable by death. Mar- 
riage was esteemed a civil contract ; adultery 
a felony. The Quakers had suffered wrong 
from imprisonment ; the false accuser was 
liable to double damages. Every prison for 
convicts was made a workhouse. There 
were neither poor-rates nor tithes. The 



Swedes, and Finns, and Dutch were invested 
with the liberties of Englishmen." * In 
March, 1683, the first general assembly of 
Pennsylvania met at Philadelphia. " I am 
ready," said Penn to this body, " to settle 
such foundations as may be for your happi- 
ness." 

Under the guidance of the founder of the 
colony, the assembly established a constitu- 
tion which made Pennsylvania emphatically 
a free state. A government was es- 
tablished, consisting of a governor, a 
legislative council and an assembly 
composed of representatives of the 
people. As the charter made the pro- 
prietor responsible to the king for the 
legislation of the colony, no act of 
legislation was to be valid until it had 
passed the great seal of the province. 
With this exception, the entire 
power of the province was left in the 
hands of the people. " But for the 
hereditary office of proprietary, Penn- 
sylvania had been a representative 
democracy. In Maryland the council 
was named by Lord Baltimore ; in 
Pennsylvania, by the people. In 
Maryland, the power of appointing 
magistrates, and all, even the subor- 
dinate executive officers, rested solely 
with the proprietary; in PennsyK^ania, 
William Penn could not appoint a 
justice or a constable; every executive 
officer, except the highest, was elected 
by the people or their representatives ; 
and the governor could perform no public act 
but with the consent of the council. Lord 
Baltimore had a revenue derived from the 
export of tobacco, the staple of Maryland; 
and his colony was burdened with taxes; a 
similar revenue was offered to William Penn 
and declined, and tax-gatherers were un- 
known in his province." 

* Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. ii., p. 385. 



COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



223 



Thus did the "Quaker King" complete 
one of the sublimest surrenders of poh'tical 
power in all the annals of history. " I de- 
sired," he said, in his grand simplicity, " to 
show men as free and happy as they can be." 

The colony improved rapidly. Men were 
attracted from all parts of Great Britain, 
from Ireland, the Low countries, from Ger- 
many and Sweden, to Pennsylvania. The 
personal character of William Penn, not less 
than the advantaj^es afforded them, induced 



Lord Baltimore claimed Delaware as a part 
of the country granted to him. Penn sus- 
tained his claim to that region by pleading 
the actual settlement of the Dutch previous 
to the grant to Lord Baltimore, and his pur- 
chase of the rights which the Duke of York 
had derived from the Dutch. The English 
courts decided, in 1685, that Delaware did 
not constitute a part of Maryland and sus- 
tained Penn's claim. The boundaries of the 
two colonies were settled by a compromise. 




— ^<^\?i« S.'i'- 



INDIAN AMUSEMENTS CANOE-RACE BETWEEN SQUAWS. 



them to settle in the happy colony. Phila- 
delphia especially grew with rapidity, and 
already gave promise of becoming the prin- 
cipal city of colonial America. Schools 
were opened and liberally encouraged, for 
ignorance had no advocates in this thrifty 
community. The printing press was also 
set up and put to work. In August, 1684, 
Penn, having successfully established his 
colony, took leave of his people and returned 
to England. 



During Penn's absence in England the 
people of Delaware began to be restless. 
They presented to the proprietary a list of 
grievances, and were granted by Penn a sep- 
arate government. 

The fall of James II., who continued the 
friend of William Penn, though so widely 
opposed to him in religion, was the beginning 
of trouble for the proprietor of Pennsylvania. 
Penn did not relinquish his friendship for the 
dethroned king, and his enemies made this 



224 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



constancy, which in no way interfered with 
his loyahy to William and Mary, the means 
of injuring him in the estimation of the new 
king. William was induced to believe the 
charges of disloyalty which were brought 
against Penn, and deprived him of his patent 
and proprietorship of Pennsylvania. Penn 
was also imprisoned several times for dis- 
loyalty. 

Absurd Teachings. 

During this period the colony was much 
annoyed by a disturbance led by one George 
Keith, who pushed the Quaker doctrine of 
non-resistance to the verge of absurdity. He 
argued that no Quaker could with consist- 
ency take part in public affairs as a magis- 
trate or legislator. As the liberties of the 
colony were the work of Quakers the infer- 
ence was plain. If Keith Avas right, then 
Pennsylvania had no lawful government, and 
must apply to the king for one. Keith pro- 
duced such trouble in the colony that 
even the tolerant Quakers were at length 
obliged to lay hands on him. He was tried 
and fined for using seditious language ; but 
lest their action should seem to be a punish- 
ment of opinion the Quaker magistrates 
remitted the fine. He subsequently became 
a clergyman of the English church. 

This disturbance gave the king a pretext 
for declaring Pennsylvania a royal province, 
and in April, 1693, Benjamin Fletcher was 
appointed by William and Mary governor of 
Pennsylvania, to which province Delaware 
was reunited. The people, indignant at this 
invasion of their rights, attempted no resist- 
ance, but refused to recognize the royalist 
governor. 

Some of the magistrates resigned their 
offices upon his arrival. Upon the meeting 
of the assembly the hostility to Fletcher 
increased. The members of the assembly 
declared the laws they had made under the 
charter granted to Penn to be valid, and 



refused to have new ones, or recognize any 
other authority. A charter granted by King 
Charles was, they maintained, as valid as one 
granted by King William, and they refused to 
re-enact their old laws, as such a course would 
be to brand them as illegal. Fletcher de- 
manded that the assembly should appropriate 
a sum for the defence of New York against 
the Indians. His demand was flatly refused.. 
The assembly was willing, however, to make 
an appropriation for the relief of the people 
of New York who had suffered by this war,, 
but only upon condition that this sum should 
be disbursed by officers of its own appoint- 
ment. Fletcher refused to consent to this 
condition, as he regarded it as an infringe- 
ment of the king's prerogative, and the 
assembly was dissolved, A. D. 1694. 

Penn's Misfortunes. 

In the meantime Penn had been restored 
to his proprietary rights. The king ex- 
pressed himself satisfied of his innocence, 
which was established before the council, 
and in August, 1694, the patent for his 
restoration was formally issued. Penn was 
anxious to return to Pennsylvania, but was 
detained in England by his inability to raise 
the funds necessary for the voyage. He had 
spent a large part of his fortune in planting 
the colony, and the persecutions and annoy- 
ances to which he had been subjected in 
England had caused him great loss. Nor 
was this his only trouble. His wife and 
eldest son had died during his trials, and 
some whom he had imagined his friends in 
his prosperity had in his adversity shown 
themselves his enemies. He retained his 
serenity of mind, however, and persevered in 
the good work to which he had devoted his 
life. Being unable to go to Pennsylvania he 
sent his nephew, Markham, as his deputy. 
Markham summoned an assembly, and this 
body, alarmed at the recent changes in 



COLONIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



225 



their charter, which had threatened to 
deprive them of their political rights, en- 
deavored to provide against a recurrence of 
the danger by assuming the power of fram- 
ing a constitution for themselves. The assem- 
bly of 1696 made still further changes, and 
placed the control of the colonial govern- 
ment entirely in the hands of the people by 
giving them the election of all the officials 
of the province. 

Old Charter Discarded. 

Penn returned to Pennsylvania in Novem- 
ber, 1699, and sanctioned the action of the 
people. One of the members of the council 
proposed that they should make a constitu- 
tion that should be "firm and lasting" to 
them and to their descendants. " Keep what 
is good in the charter and frame of govern- 
ment," said Penn ; " and lay aside what is 
burdensome, and add what may best suit the 
common good." It was agreed by all par- 
ties that it would be best to surrender the 
old charter and frame a new constitution. 
This was attended with considerable diffi- 
culty, as Delaware dreaded the loss of its 
independence. It was conciliated by being 
given its own legislature, but was under the 
administration of the governor of Pennsyl- 
vania. The two colonies were never again 
united. The constitution secured to the 
people all the political privileges they 
claimed. Penn, whose sole desire was for 
the welfare of the colony, held back nothing 
for himself. 

Among the earliest emigrants to Pennsyl- 
vania were many Germans, who had been 
converted to the Quaker doctrines by Will- 
iam Penn during his missionary labors on 
the continent of Europe. They settled at 
Germantown, to which they gave its name. 
Towards the close of the seventeenth century 
the severe wars in Europe drove out large 
numbers of Germans from the Rhine valley. 
IS 



They sought refuge in England at first, and 
from that country passed over to Pennsyl- 
vania. They were chiefly Lutherans, and 
members of the German Reformed church. 
They settled chiefly in the southern part 
of Pennsylvania, and clung together instead 
of separating, thus giving to this part of the 
state the peculiar characteristics which dis- 
tinguish it to the present day. They held 
aloof from the English, and allowed the 
German language alone to be taught to their 
children. They attracted other settlers from 
their native country, and the region occupied 
by them was soon thickly settled, and was 
noted as one of the best cultivated sections 
of the province. 

Industrious Settlers. 

About the beginning of the eighteenth 
century a large emigration from the north of 
Ireland and from Scotland began to set in, 
and continued for some years. These people 
were nearly all Presbyterians and located 
themselves chiefly in the eastern and central 
sections of the province. They were an 
energetic, industrious and intelligent com- 
munity, and set to work with a will to 
improve their new home. They advanced 
the frontier of Pennsylvania steadily west- 
ward by their new plantations, and proved 
themselves among the most desirable settlers 
that had yet come into the province. 

William Penn had come to Pennsylvania 
with the intention of passing the remainder 
of his life there ; but rumors now began to 
reach the colony that it was the intention of 
the crown to deprive Pennsylvania of its 
charter and make it a royal province. These 
reports made it necessary for Penn to return 
to England, a step to which nothing but the 
importance of being near the home govern-, 
ment to defend the liberties of his people' 
could have forced him. He had done his 
work in America well, and could go back to 



226 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



his native land with the satisfaction that he 
had successfully laid the foundations of a 
great and rapidly-growing state, and had 
placed the liberties of its people upon such a 
secure basis that they would endure for all 
time. He had founded a democracy, and 
had proved by the most generous surrender 
of his truly regal powers that his chief aim 
in life was the good of his fellow-men. 
After making such arrangements as he 
deemed best for the welfare of his " young 
countrie," he went back to England in 
1701. 

Penn's Honorable Poverty. 

There were not wanting efforts after his 
arrival in England to deprive him of his 
proprietary rights and to convert Pennsyl- 
vania into a royal province; but the deep 
reverence with which the English people 
had now come to regard the virtues of Will- 
iam Penn prevented the consummation of 
these designs, and saved the people of Penn- 
sylvania from the rule of royal governors, 
such as plundered the sister province of New 
York. The crown could never be persuaded 
to rob the man whose pure life was an honor 
to the nation. In his last years Penn was so 
poor that he was for a while an inmate of a 



debtors' prison. He had bought the prov- 
ince of Pennsylvania from Charles II., and 
had confirmed his claim by purchasing the 
lands from the Indians, so that he was abso- 
lute owner of the unoccupied lands of the 
colony. 

He thus had it in his power to relieve his 
distress by selling his claims, but in his 
deepest poverty he refused to part with 
Pennsylvania, except upon terms which 
would secure to his people the full and per- 
fect enjoyment of the liberties he had guar- 
anteed them. He died in 171 8, peacefully 
and amid the sympathy of his countrymen 
in England, and the sorrow of those whom 
he had befriended in his beloved Pennsyl- 
vania. By his pure life he won for the peo- 
ple of his faith the respect of all candid men, 
and by his fidelity to the principles he pro- 
fessed he became the benefactor of millions 
who will ever count it a privilege tp honor 
his name. 

Penn left three sons, who were all minors 
at the time of his death. They succeeded 
to his rights as proprietary of Pennsylvania, 
and the government of the colony was ad- 
ministered for them by deputies until the 
Revolution, when their claims were pur- 
chased by the state. 




CHAPTER XVIII 

Settlement of the Carolinas 



Gradual Settlement of North Carolina from Virginia — Charles II. Grants Carolina to Clarendon and Others — The "Grand 
Model " — An Ideal Aristocracy Proposed for Carolina — The Authority of the Proprietaries Established in North Caro- 
lina — Continued Settlement of that Region — Characteristics of the Early Settlers of North Carolina — The People Reject 
the Grand Model — Hostility of England to the Colonial Commerce — Insurrection in North Carolina — Slothel Governor 
— Settlement of South Carolina — Charleston Founded — The Proprietary Constitutions Rejected by South Carolina — 
Rapid Growth of the Colony — Introduction of Slavery — Characteristics of the Early Settlers of South Carolina — Efforts 
to Enforce the Navigation Acts — Resistance of the People — The Proprietaries Abandon their Constitutions — Archdale's 
Reforms — Religious Intolerance — Establishment of the Church of England in South Carolina — Action of the Crown — 
Continued Prosperity of South Carolina — Governor Moore Attacks St. Augustine — Failure of the Effort — The Spaniards 
are Repulsed in an Attempt to Capture Charleston — Indian War in North Carolina — The Tuscaroras Driven Northward 
— War with the Yemmassees — Destruction of their Power — Separation of the Carolinas. 



WE have related the efforts of the 
French to colonize the shores 
of the beautiful region which 
they named Carolina, and the 
failure of Raleigh's attempt to found a city 
upon Roanoke Island. We have now to 
consider the successful planting of this same 
region with English settlements. 

After the settlement of Virginia the atten- 
tion of the English was frequently drawn to 
the fertile region south of the James, and as 
their plantations spread in that direction ad- 
venturous explorers went into this region, 
and returned with reports of its great beauty 
and fertility. When the severe measures of 
the Virginia colony for enforcing conformity 
to the established church were put in opera- 
tion, many dissenters withdrew from the 
limits of the colony and settled in what are 
now the northeastern counties of North 
Carolina. Among these were a company of 
Presbyterians, who settled upon the Chowan. 
Others followed them, and by the year 1663 
these counties contained a prosperous and 
growing community of English-speaking 
people. 

In 1663, Charles II., who always displayed 
the most remarkable liberality in his gifts of 



American lands, granted to eight of his 
favorites the vast region extending from the 
present southern boundary of Virginia to the 
St. John's River in Florida, and from the 
Atlantic to the Pacific. Those upon whom 
this rich gift was bestowed were the Earl of 
Clarendon, the prime minister, Lord Ashley 
Cooper, who was afterwards Earl of Shaftes- 
bury, the Duke of Albemarle, Lord Craven, 
Sir John Colleton, Lord John Berkeley, his 
brother. Sir William Berkeley, the governor 
of Virginia, and Sir George Cartaret. They 
were given absolute power over their terri- 
tory, the king reserving only a claim upon 
their allegiance. The country had been 
called Carolina by the first French settlers in 
honor of Charles IX. of France; the old 
name was retained in honor of Charles II. of 
England. 

The proprietors had but one object in view: 
to enrich themselves ; but they claimed to be 
influenced by a " pious zeal for the propaga- 
tion of the gospel." They at once set to work 
to prepare a code of laws for the govern- 
ment of their province. This task was com- 
mitted to Ashley Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury, 
and the great philosopher, John Locke, then 
an almost unknown man. These produced 

227 



228 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



a code known as " The Grand Model," or 
" Fundamental Constitutions." This was a 
system which might have been successful if 
the people for whom it was intended had 
been some European community of the 
Middle Ages, but it was utterly unsuited to 
a colony in the woods of America, composed 
of men whose personal independence and 
sturdy love of freedom were the indispensable 
conditions of the success of their enterprise. 
By the terms of the " Grand Model " an 
order of nobility was created, into whose 
hands the sole right to rule was committed. 
Earls, barons, and squires were made the 
natural heads of the various classes of society, 
and the common people were attached to the 
soil as tenants. 

A Mockery of Freedom. 

A simple tenant could never rise above his 
humble position, and was denied the right 
of suffrage ; only those who possessed fifty 
acres of land were allowed this right, or 
were entitled to the name of freemen. The 
freemen were allowed an assembly, but that 
body was placed entirely under the control 
of the nobility. Religious freedom was 
promised to all persons, but the constitution 
expressly declared that the only orthodox 
establishment was the Church of England. 
Trial by jury was guaranteed, but with the 
destructive provision that a majority should 
decide the verdict of the jury. 

It was very clear that this magnificent 
constitution would not suit the settlers in the 
log cabins of North Carolina, but the proprie- 
tors, ignorant of the people they had to deal 
with, proceeded to organize their govern- 
ment in England by electing the Duke of 
Albemarle to the rank of Palatine, as the 
head of their system was termed. Sir Wil- 
liam Berkeley, then governor of Virginia, was 
ordered to establish the authority of the pro- 
prietors over the settlers on Albemarle Sound. 



This he did, and appointed William Drum- 
mond, a Scotchman and one of the settlers, 
governor. This was the same Drummond 
who afterwards took part in Bacon's rebellion 
in Virginia, and was hanged by Berkeley, as 
has been related. A simple form of govern- 
ment was established, and the people of 
North Carolina were left in peace until it 
should be time to collect the quit-rents which 
the proprietors claimed as due for their occu- 
pation of their lands. 

In i66l, a few years previous to this action 
of Berkeley, a company from New England 
had made a settlement on the Cape Fear 
River. The colony did not prosper, how- 
ever, though liberal inducements were held 
out to it, and many of the emigrants 
returned home. In 1664 a colony from the 
Barbadoes joined the settlers on the Cape 
Fear. The new-comers had been sent out 
by a company at the Barbadoes, who pur- 
chased from the Indians a tract of land thirty- 
two miles square on the Cape Fear, and 
asked of the proprietors of Carolina a confir- 
mation of their purchase and a separate char- 
ter of government. A liberal charter was 
granted them, the country was named Clar- 
endon, and Sir John Yeamans, a resident of 
Barbadoes, was appointed governor. He 
was instructed to " make things easy to the 
people of New England ; from thence the 
greatest supplies are expected." 

Lumber Trade. 

In 1665 he led a company of emigrants 
from Barbadoes, and formed a settlement on 
the Cape Fear. The effort to found a town 
was unsuccessful, and the emigrants found 
great difficulty in contending against the 
natural barrenness and poverty of the region 
in which they had located. They devoted 
themselves to the cutting and export of lum- 
ber, and established a trade in boards, staves 
and shingles to the West Indies, which is 



SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 



229 



still carried on by their descendants. This 
trade was found to be profitable, and emi- 
gration increased. In 1666 the colony is 
said to have had a population of eight 
hundred souls. 

In the meantime the settlements on Albe- 
marle Sound and the Chowan had prospered, 
and had increased steadily in population, 
under the simple government established 
over them. This government consisted of a 
council of six persons named by the proprie- 
taries and six chosen 
by the assembly, and 
an assembly consist- 
ing of the governor, 
the council and twelve 
representatives chos- 
en by the freeholders 
of the colony. The 
proprietaries had con- 
firmed the colonists 
in the possession of 
their lands, and had 
solemnly promised 
them religious tolera- 
tion and exemption 
from taxation except 
by the colonial legis- 
lature. In 1669 the 
assembly, feeling se- 
cure in these guaran- 
tees, enacted a series 
of laws for the govern- 
ment of the colony, 

which remained in force in North Carolina 
until near the close of the next century. 
It was enacted that no emigrant should be 
sued for a debt contracted before his settle- 
ment in the colony until he had been a 
resident of the province for five years. 

Marriage was made a civil contract, and 
for its validity required simply the consent 
of the contracting parties before a magistrate 
in the presence of witnesses. No emigrant 



could be taxed during his first year's resi- 
dence in the colony. New settlers were 
invited by the offer of large bounties in 
lands, but no title to these lands could be 
obtained until after a two years' residence in 
the colony. The governor's salary and the 
other expenses of the province were secured 
by the imposition of a fee of thirty pounds 
of tobacco in every lawsuit. The members 
of the assembly served without compensa- 
tion, seeking no emoluments from office. 




THE COAST OF NORTH CAROLINA. 

In 1670 the constitution of Shaftesbury 
and Locke was sent over by the proprie- 
taries, and the governor was ordered to 
establish it in the colony. It met with a 
determined resistance from both legislature 
and people, who could never be induced to 
submit to it. 

The people upon whom the proprietaries 
endeavored to enforce their " Grand Model " 
were in many respects the most singular 



230 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



community in America. Many of them had 
fled from injustice and persecution in other 
colonies, and in the solitude of the forests of 
North Carolina had become possessed of an 
independence which scorned any control but 
that of the government established by their 
own consent. The plantations were chiefly 
along the rivers and the shores of Albe- 
marle Sound ; there were no roads but the 
paths marked through the forests by the 
blazing of the trees ; the inhabitants visited 
each other and travelled through the country 
in their boats, scarcely any, even among the 
women and children, being unacquainted 
with the use of the oar. 

A Happy Community. 

The people were attached to their beauti- 
ful " summer land," and to the freedom 
which they enjoyed in it. They had little 
use for laws, for they were mainly a simple- 
hearted and virtuous race, who, by pursuing 
the paths of right, gave no cause for restraint. 
They had no court-house until 1722. Their 
first church was not built until 1705, and the 
freedom of conscience which they enjoyed 
was perfect. Yet they were a God-fearing 
people, and George Fox, who visited them 
in 1672, testifies to their readiness to hear 
the word of God and to their homely virtues. 
They were cut off from the world, careless of 
the struggles which rocked Europe to its 
foundations, and anxious only to live in the 
peaceful enjoyment of the good things God 
had given them, and to rear their children in 
the ways which they deemed conformable to 
His will. There were no towns in the colony, 
and in power and importance North Carolina 
could not compare with any of her more 
northern sisters ; but there were no com- 
munities in which the people were happier or 
more contented than in this one. 

When the cruelties of Berkeley drove 
many of the Virginians from their province, 



they fled to North Carolina, and were kindly 
received by the people, who treated Berke- 
ley's demands to surrender the refugees for 
punishment with contempt. "Are there any 
who doubt man's capacity for self-govern- 
ment, let them study the early history of 
North Carolina ; its inhabitants were restless 
and turbulent in their imperfect submission 
to a government imposed on them from 
abroad ; the administration of the colony 
was firm, humane and tranquil when they 
were left to take care of themselves. Any 
government but one of their own institution 
was oppressive." * 

These were the people for whom the 
" Grand Model " was designed, and who 
successfully resisted its imposition. The 
proprietaries had withdrawn the government 
they had first established, at the time when 
the constitutions of Shaftesbury and Locke 
were offered to the colony, and the refusal of 
these constitutions by the colonists left 
North Carolina without any regularly estab- 
lished system of government. In this state 
of affairs Stevens, the governor, continued to 
administer the old system until a settlement 
of the matter in dispute could be had. He 
died in 1674, and the assembly elected Cart- 
wright, their speaker, as his successor, by 
whom the government was administered for 
two years. 

Another Appeal to England. 

Eastchurch, the new speaker, was sent to 
England to explain the grievances of the 
colony to the proprietaries and to endeavor 
to secure the withdrawal of the obnoxious 
constitution. Without withdrawing their 
favorite system, the proprietaries, who were 
disposed to conciliate the colony, thought 
best to leave matters in their present condi- 
tion and appointed Eastchurch governor 



* Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. ii., p. 158. 



SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 



231 



They did away with much of the good effect 
of this measure by coupHng this appointment 
with that of Miller as collector of customs. 
He had been driven out of the colony by the 
people some time before, and he was now 
sent to compel the payment of the revenues 
claimed by the proprietaries, and to enforce 
the navigation acts in North Carolina. 

England's Iniquitous Policy. 

The enforcement of the navigation acts 
meant simply the certain crippling and the 
probable ruin of the industry of North Caro- 
lina. The commerce of the colony was 
small and was already struggling against 
natural difficulties. The whole province 
contained a little less than four thousand 
inhabitants, and its exports consisted of about 
eight hundred hogsheads of tobacco, a small 
quantity of Indian corn and a few cattle. 
These were shipped in a few small vessels 
which came for them from New England, and 
brought in return the few articles of foreign 
manufacture which the planters could afford 
to purchase. Yet this humble trade was 
made the object of the e-nvy of the English 
merchants, and it was resolved by a vigorous 
enforcement of the navigation acts to cut the 
North Carolinians off from the use of the 
New England markets and to compel them 
to send their products to England for sale. 
Never was the iniquitous policy of England 
toward her colonies more strikingly and per- 
fectly illustrated than in her treatment of 
North Carolina at this period. 

The effort to enforce the navigation act 
was met by a deliberately planned and exe- 
cuted insurrection of the people, who pub- 
lished to the world a declaration of the 
causes which had impelled them to this 
action, and which were chiefly the loss of 
their liberties by the changes in the govern- 
ment, the imposition of excessive taxes, and 
the interruption of their commerce by the 



burdens laid upon it by the navigation 
acts. 

The leader of the movement was John 
Culpepper. One of the members of the 
council joined the insurrection ; but the 
rest, with Miller, who, in addition to his 
office of collector, had been acting as gov- 
ernor in the absence of Eastchurch, were 
arrested and imprisoned. When Eastchurch 
arrived the colonists refused either to 




A SETTLER S CABIN. 

acknowledge his authority or to allow him 
to enter the colony. In the meantime they 
arranged matters upon the old popular sys- 
tem, and sent Culpepper and another of their 
number to England to negotiate a settlement 
with the proprietaries. 

Miller escaped from confinement and re- 
paired to England to oppose the efforts ot 
Culpepper. By cunningly making himselt 



232 



sf:ttlement of America. 



the champion of the navigation acts, Miller 
succeeded in arousing a strong sentiment 
against Culpepper, who was arrested on a 
charge of resisting the collection of the rev- 
enue and embezzling the public funds. In 
support of this arbitrary act the government 
pleaded an old statute of Henry VIII., by 
which a colonist could be arraigned in Eng- 
land for an offence committed in a colony. 
Culpepper demanded to be tried in North Car- 
olina, upon the scene ol his alleged crinv^ ; but 
this was refused him, and he was put on trial in 
England. The Earl of Shaftesbury, shrewdly 
perceiving that such a course was repugnant 
to the real sentiment of the English people, 
and that it offered him an opportunity to 
increase his popularity, undertook the de- 
fence of Culpepper, and procured his 
acquittal. 

Captured by Pirates. 

The proprietaries now appointed as gov- 
ernor one of their number, Seth Slothel, who 
had purchased the rights of Lord Clarendon. 
Slothel on his voyage out was captured by the 
Algerine pirates, and during his absence the 
government of North Carolina was admin- 
istered by governors appointed by the in- 
surgents, who seem to have acted with the 
consent, or at least without the opposition 
of the proprietaries, who were much at a loss 
to know how to enforce their authority in 
the province. They instructed the colonists 
to " settle order among themselves," and 
appear to have left them very much to their 
own devices. The government was well and 
fairly administered, and order was main- 
tained ; an act of amnesty was published; 
and when Slothel reached the colony, in 
1683, after his release from his captivity, he 
found it peaceful and orderly. 

The administration of Slothel was un- 
fortunate for the province. He could enforce 
neither the constitutions of the proprietaries 



nor the navigation acts, as he was expected 
to do ; so he devoted his energies to the 
task of enriching himself, which he accomp- 
lished by robbing the colonists and defraud- 
ing his proprietary associates in England. 
In 1688 the colonists, greatly exasperated by 
his exactions, to which they had submitted for 
about five years, drove him out of the prov- 
ince by condemning him to an exile of a 
year, and forever disqualifying him from 
holding the office of governor. This was 
their boldest act yet and was an open defi- 
ance of the proprietaries. 

Charleston Founded. 

In the meantime the southern portion of 
Carolina had been brought under English 
rule. In 1670 a company of emigrants was 
sent out by the proprietaries, under the 
direction of William Sayle and Joseph West, 
the latter of whom was the commercial agent 
of the proprietaries. They went by way of 
Barbadoes and landed at Port Royal, where 
the ruins of Fort Carolina, which had been 
erected by the French, were still to be seen. 
After a short delay here, they removed to a 
more favorable location farther northward, 
between two rivers, which they named the 
Ashley and Cooper, in honor of the Earl of 
Shaftesbury, one of the proprietaries. In 
1680 this settlement was abandoned for a 
better situation nearer the harbor. This last 
settlement was the foundation of the city of 
Charleston. The first plantation on the 
Ashley River was afterwards known as Old 
Charleston. At present not even a log cabin 
remains to mark the site. 

The emigrants to South Carolina had 
been furnished with a copy of the constitu- 
tions of Shaftesbury and Locke, but they 
were as averse to the acceptance of them as 
were the people of North Carolina, for they 
perceived that such a system as that devised 
by the proprietaries could not be put in 



SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 



233 



operation in America. Immediately upon 
their arrival they proceeded to establish a 
form of government suited to their needs. 
It consisted of a governor, a council com- 
posed of five members appointed by the 
proprietaries and five by the assembly, and 
an assembly of twenty delegates chosen by 
the people. Thus was representative gov- 
ernment established as the basis of the 
political life of the province, and throughout 
all her subsequent history it was cherished 
by South Caro- 
lina as her most 
precious posses- 
sion. 

. The colony 
grew rapidly in 
population ; the 
delightful cli- 
mate, the rich 
soil and the li- 
beral offers of 
lands by the 
proprietaries at- 
tracting settlers 
in considerable 
numbers. In 167 1 
Sir John Yea- 
mans brought 
over African 
slaves from Bar- 
badoes, thus in- 
troducing negro slavery into the colony at the 
very outset of its existence. This species of 
labor being found well suited to the necessi- 
ties of the province, was generally adopted 
in the remaining years of the century, and 
became the basis of the industry of South 
Carolina, which was from the first a purely 
agricultural state. The negroes multiplied 
rapidly by natural increase and by fresh 
importations; "so rapidly," says Bancroft, 
" that in a few years, we are told, the blacks 
were to the whites in the proportion of 



twenty-two to twelve, a proportion that had 
no parallel north of the West Indies." 

The white population also increased rapidly. 
The dissenters, as all the Protestant sects 
who differed from the Church of England 
were called, came over to the colony in large 
numbers, hoping to find there the toleration 
they were denied at home. They consisted 
of Dutch and German Protestants, and 
Presbyterians from the north of Ireland and 
from Scotland. The last were generally 




BIRDS-EYE VIEW OF CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA. 



people of culture and gave to the colony 
many clergymen, physicians, lawyers and 
schoolmasters. Churchmen from England 
also emigrated in considerable numbers, as 
the " Grand Model " established their church 
as the orthodox faith of the province. Dutch 
emigrants came also from New York to 
escape the outrages of the English governors 
of that province. 

Last of all were the Huguenots, who were 
induced to settle in South Carolina by Charles 
II., who was sincerely anxious to give them 



234 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



a refuge from their persecutions in Europe, 
and who wished them to estabHsh in Carolina 
the culture of the vine, the olive and the 
silk-worm. The revocation of the Edict of 
Nantes drove thousands of the Huguenots 
from France. Large numbers of them joined 
their brethren in South Carolina. They 
were almost invariably persons of education 
and refinement. In France they had consti- 
tuted the most useful and intelligent part of 
the population. They had almost monopo- 
lized the mechanical skill and mercantile 
enterprise of their native land, and their loss 
was severely felt by it for many genera- 
tions. 

In South Carolina they soon became suffi- 
ciently numerous to constitute an important 
part of the population, and their influence 
was felt in a marked degree and for the good 
of the colony. They brought with them the 
virtues which had won them the respect and 
confidence of the people of Europe, and the 
industry which could not fail to place them 
among the most prosperous citizens of the 
new state. They mingled freely and inter- 
married- with the other classes of the people 
of the province, and thus became the ances- 
tors of a splendid race who did honor to 
their country and upheld her cause with 
their valor in her hour of trial in the next 
century. 

A Settlement Ruined. 

The early years of South Carolina were 
marked by a constant struggle between the 
colonists and the proprietaries. The latter 
vainly attempted to introduce the " Grand 
Model " as the law of the province, and the 
former steadily resisted it. A little later the 
proprietaries offered to make some modifica- 
tions in their constitutions, but these conces- 
sions were rejected also. The governor, Sir 
John Yeamans, regarded his office solely as 
a means of repairing his fortunes at the 



expense of both proprietaries and colonists, 
and was dismissed by his employers. West, 
who was a man of ability and liberality, was 
appointed his successor, and under him 
the colony prospered, but as he was too 
friendly to the people, he was removed also. 
In 1684 a small colony under Lord Card- 
ross, a Presbyterian, settled at Port Royal. 
These settlers had fled to America to escape 
persecution in England, but their effort to find 
an abiding place in the new world was not des- 
tined to be successful. Lord Cardross return- 
ed to Europe in a year or two, and in 1 686 the 
Spaniards from St. Augustine, who claimed 
the region as a dependency of their own, 
invaded the little settlement and laid it 
waste. Of the ten families which had con- 
stituted the colony, some returned to Scot- 
land, while the remainder disappeared among 
the colonists in the vicinity of the Cooper 
and Ashley rivers. 

Stubborn Resistance. 

In 1685, the proprietaries ordered the colo- 
nial authorities to enforce the navigation acts 
in the ports of the province. A rigid execu- 
tion of this order would have been as fatal to 
the feeble commerce of South Carolina as to 
that of the settlements in the northern part 
of the province, and it was resisted by the 
colonists as a violation of their natural rights 
and of the promises made to them at the time 
of their emigration. In order to establish 
their authority more firmly the proprietaries 
appointed James Colleton governor, with the 
rank of landgrave. 

He was brother of one of the proprietaries, 
and it was supposed that this fact and his 
aristocratic rank would give him a moral 
power which his predecessors had not pos- 
sessed. The new governor attempted to 
enforce the constitutions, but was met with a 
determined resistance, and when he under- 
took to collect the rents claimed by the 



236 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



proprietaries, and the taxes he had been 
ordered to levy, the assembly seized the 
records of the province, imprisoned the 
colonial secretary, and defied the governor 
to execute his orders. In 1690, they went 
still further, and having proclaimed Wil- 
liam and Mary, disfranchised Colleton and 
banished him from South Carolina. 

Disputes now ran high in the colony, 
chiefly in regard to rents and land tenures. 
The " cavaliers and ill-livers." as the 
party devoted to the interests of the pro- 
prietaries was termed, endeavored to 
compel the remainder of the settlers — the 
Presbyterians, Quakers and Huguenots, 
the last of whom had recently been ad- 
mitted to all the privileges of citizenship — 
to submit to their high-handed measures. 
They hoped among other things to secure 
the supremacy of the Church of England in 
the colony, notwithstanding the fact that a 
majority of the people were dissenters. The 
troubles went on increasing, and at length 
the proprietors, in the hope of putting an 
end to them, consented to abandon their 
effort to force upon the Carolinas the legisla- 
tion of Shaftesbury and Locke. In April, 
1693, they abolished the fundamental consti- 
tutions by a formal vote, and decided to 
allow the government of the province to be 
conducted according to the terms of the 
charter. 

A Wise Governor. 

Thomas Smith was appointed governor, 
but in spite of his many virtues he was unac- 
ceptable to the people, and the proprietaries 
determined to send out to Carolina one of 
their own number with full powers to inves- 
tigate and remedy the grievances of the 
colony. John Archdale, " an honest member 
of the Society of Friends," was chosen, and 
at once repaired to Carolina. He was a man 
of great moderation, and was well suited to 



the task before him. He succeeded in har- 
monizing the hostile factions which divided 
the province, and in the formation of the 
council selected two men of the moderate 
party to one high churchman, an arrange- 
ment which fairly represented the actual state 
of parties, and gave satisfaction to the mass 
of the people. He remitted the quit-rents for 
three and four years, and arranged the price 
of lands and the system of conveyances upon 
an equitable basis, and gave the colonists the 
privilege of paying their dues to the propri- 
etaries either in money or in produce. He 
established peaceful relations with the 
Indians, and put an end to the infamous 
practice of kidnapping them, which had 
prevailed since the establishment of the 
colony. The savages in the Cape Fear 
region had suffered especially from this, and 
now showed their gratitude by treating with 
kindness the sailors who were cast away on 
their coast. 

Friendly relations were also begun with 
the Spaniards at St. Augustine. Several 
Yemmassee Indians, who had been con- 
verted by the missionaries, having been 
captured and exposed for sale in Carolina, 
were ransomed by Archdale, who sent them to 
the governor of St. Augustine. The Spaniards 
gratefully acknowledged this kindness, and 
returned it by forwarding to South Carolina 
the crew of an English vessel which had 
gone ashore on the coast of Florida. The 
colonial government was organized by Arch- 
dale, on a plan similar to that of Maryland. 
The council was appointed by the proprie- 
taries, and the assembly elected by the peo- 
ple ; and the militia were charged with the 
defence of the colony. Archdale's adminis- 
tration was so satisfactory to all parties that 
upon his withdrawal from the province the 
assembly declared that he had, " by his wis- 
dom, patience and labor, laid a firm founda- 
tion for a most glorious superstructure." 



SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 



237 



Archdale went back to England in 1697, 
and the proprietaries, failing to profit by the 
lesson of his success, attempted to introduce 
a measure which would give the political 
power of the colony exclusively into the 
hands of the landowners. This measure was 
resolutely rejected by the colonial assembly. 
The majority of the people of the colony 
were, as has been stated, dissenters, Presby- 
terians, Quakers and Huguenots. They 
had consented, in order to pacify the high 
church party, that one minister of the Church 
of England should be maintained at the pub- 
lic expense, but the churchmen were re- 
solved to force their system upon them. 

The Assembly's Intolerance. 

In 1704 the churchmen had a majority of 
one in the assembly ; the governor was favor- 
able to them, and the council was no longer 
arranged upon the just plan of Archdale. 
The assembly, in violation of the plainest 
principles of justice, disfranchised the dis- 
senters, and established the Church of Eng- 
land as the religion of the colony. This 
action was approved by the council and gov- 
ernor, and was sustained by the proprietaries 
in spite of the earnest opposition of Arch- 
dale. The disfranchised people appealed for 
justice to the queen and the House of Lords. 
The committee of the lords declared that the 
proprietaries had forfeited their charter, and 
advised its recall, and the house pronounced 
the intolerant acts null and void, which de- 
cision was proclaimed by the queen in June, 
1706. In November of the same year the 
colonial legislature repealed its acts, and 
restored to the dissenters their political 
rights, but the laws establishing the Church 
of England as the religion of the province 
remained unrepealed until the Revolution. 

The disputes in the colony went on, but in 
spite of them South Carolina continued to 
prosper, and its population increased rapidly. 



During Archdale's residence in the colony 
the captain of a ship from Madagascar gave 
him some rice, which he distributed among 
the planters for the purpose of ascertaining 
whether it could be cultivated in the mari- 
time regions of the province, which were 
unsuited to the culture of wheat. The experi- 
ment was entirely successful, and the colony 
at once embarked in the culture of rice, which 
has ever since been one of its principal indus- 
tries. Carolina rice soon took rank as the 
best grown in any country. The fur trade 
was also carried on with great activity, and 
the manufacture of tar and the export of lum- 
ber also became prominent sources of wealth. 
It was believed that the colony could suc- 
cessfully manufacture a large part of the 
woollen fabrics necessary to the supply of its 
wants, and the attempt was made. It was 
struck down by the British government in 
pursuance of its plan to compel the colonies 
to depend upon England for all their supplies. 
Parliament forbade the several colonies to 
export woollen goods to any other province 
or to any foreign port. They were to ship 
their products to England alone, and to 
receive their supplies from her only. Eng- 
lish merchants were to be privileged to set 
a price to suit their own interests upon the 
products of the colonies and also upon the 
articles of European manufacture sold them 
in return. The effect of this iniquitous law 
upon Carolina was to drive her back into 
agricultural pursuits, and thus to increase the 
demand for slaves, which was promptly sup- 
plied by British traders. 

A Reckless Adventurer. 

In 1702, England was at war with France 
and Spain, and James Moore was governor 
of Carolina. He was a needy adventurer, 
who endeavored to fill his purse by kidnap- 
ping Indians and selling them as slaves. This 
being too slow a process, he determined to 



238 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



plunder the Spanish settlement of St. Augus- 
tine, He attacked that place with a force of 
whites and Indians. The town was readily- 
taken, but he could make no impression 
upon the citadel, and despatched a vessel to 
Jamaica for cannon to reduce the fort. The 
garrison in the meantime sent an Indian 
runner to Mobile with news of their situa- 
tion, and word was sent from Mobile to 
Havana. In a short while two Spanish ships 
of war arrived at St. Augustine to the relief 
of the garrison, and Moore was obliged to 
raise the siege. He abandoned his stores and 
retreated overland to Charleston. The only- 
result of his expedition was the accumula- 
tion of a debt which the colony was obliged 
to carry for many years. 

Brutal Butchery. 

Moore's next effort was directed against 
the Appalachee Indians of Florida. These 
had been converted to the Roman Catholic 
faith by the Spanish missionaries, and had 
begun to adopt habits of civilization ; they 
lived in villages, and supported themselves 
by cultivating the soil. They were also very 
friendly to the French, who had settled 
Louisiana. Moore professed to be very ap- 
prehensive of the effects of the Spanish and 
French influence upon the Appalachees, and 
declared his intention to cripple them before 
they could do any harm to the English set- 
tlements. His real motive was the hope of 
plunder. The only crime of the poor sav- 
ages was their adoption of the Roman faith. 

In 1705, with a force of about fifty white 
men and one thousand Seminole warriors, 
Moore invaded the settlements of the Appa- 
lachees, destroyed them, killed many of the 
natives, and made prisoners of large num- 
bers, who were removed to the region of the 
Altamaha. The churches were plundered 
and destroyed, and the country of the Appa- 
lachees was given to the Seminoles as a 



reward for their services. They at once 
occupied it, and thus became a barrier be- 
tween their English friends and the Spanish 
settlements. 

In 1706, the Spaniards and French sent a 
combined fleet to Charleston to avenge the 
attacks upon St. Augustine and the Appa- 
lachees. The attack of the fleet was repulsed 
by the people, who were led by William Rhet 
and Sir Nathaniel Johnson, and the assailants 
were forced to withdraw with the loss of one 
ship belonging to the French and upwards 
of thrce hundred men. 

North Carolina continued to prosper. Her 
people were happy and contented under their 
simple system of government, which was 
described by Spotswood as " scarce any gov- 
ernment at all." In 1704, the proprietaries 
attempted to establish the Church of England 
in this part of their province, the people of 
which were nearly all Presbyterians, Quakers 
and Lutherans. It was ordered that all who 
refused to submit to the laws for the estab- 
lishment and support of the Enghsh church 
should be disfranchised. 

Open Rebellion. 

The people opposed a general and deter- 
mined resistance to this measure, and at the 
end of a year there was but one clergyman 
of the English church within the limits of 
the colony. The resistance finally culmin- 
ated in open rebellion. The colony was 
divided into two parties, one of which sus- 
tained the authority of the proprietors, the 
other the rights of the people. Each party 
had its governor and assembly, and for six 
years the colony remained in a state of 
anarchy. The Quakers were the leading 
spirits of the popular party and maintained 
their rights with a steadfastness characteristic 
of their race. 

Thus far North Carolina had escaped a 
war with the Indians. The Tuscaroras, who 



SETTLEMENT OF THE CAROLINAS. 



239 



occupied the central and northwestern por- 
tions of the present state, had emigrated at 
some remote period from the north, and they 
now viewed with jealousy and distrust the 
encroachments of the whites upon their 
lands. About 171 1 the proprietaries assigned 
large tracts in the country of this tribe to a 
company of Germans from the region of the 
Neckar and the Rhine, who had fled to 
America to escape religious persecution. A 
company of these exiles had come out under 
the direction of De Graffenreid, and in Sep- 
tember, 171 1, De Graffenreid accompanied 
Lawson, the surveyor-general of the prov- 
ince, in an expedition up the Neuse for the 
purpose of locating these lands and of 
ascertaining how far the river was navigable. 
They were captured by a party of sixty 
Indians and hurried to a distant village of 
the Tuscaroras. Lawson was regarded with 
bitter hostility by the Lidians, who looked 
upon him as responsible above all others for 
the loss of their lands, as he had been com- 
pelled by his duties to locate the grants of 
the proprietaries, and he was put to death 
with cruel torments. 

Condemned to Death. 
De Graffenreid was also condemned to 
die, but he told the savages that he had 
been but a short time in the country, and 
that he was the " chief of a different tribe 
from the English," and promised that he 
would take no more of their land. The 
Indians kept him a prisoner for five weeks, 
and then permitted him to return to his 
friends. During this time the Tuscaroras 
and Corees, whom they had drawn into an 
alliance with them, attacked the settlements 
of the 'whites on the Roanoke and Pamlico 
Sound, and for three days spread death and 
devastation all along the frontier of the col- 
ony. A large number of the unoffending 
settlers were slain and many homesteads were 
destroyed. 



The people of North Carolina appealed to 
Virginia and South Carolina for assistance. 
South Carolina sent a small body of troops 
and a force of friendly Indians ; and Gov- 
ernor Spotswood, of Virginia, unable to send 
assistance, engaged one tribe of the Tusca- 
roras in a treaty of peace. The people of 
North Carolina, divided by their internal 
dissensions, took scarcely any part in the 
struggle. The South Carolina forces attacked 




KING GEORGE I. 

the Tuscaroras in their fort and compelled 
them to make peace. The troops, however, 
on their return home, violated the treaty by 
seizing some of the Indians for the purpose 
of selling them as slaves. The war broke 
out again and was prosecuted with vigor for 
about a year, and resulted in the expulsion 
of the Tuscaroras from North Carolina. 

The Yemmassees had for some time been 
hostile to the Spaniards, as they resented 
the efforts of the priests to convert them 



240 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



to Christianity. They had acted as the 
allies of the English in the war with the 
Tuscaroras, but after the close of that 
struggle the unscrupulous traders, who re- 
garded them as "a tame and peaceable 
people," had treated them so badly, and 
plundered them so systematically, that they 
were driven into hostility to the English. 
They thereupon renewed their friendship 
with the Spaniards, and induced the Cataw- 
bas, the Creeks and Cherokees, who had also 
been friendly to the English, to join them 
against their former allies. 

Indian Depredations. 

In 17 1 5 the savages, suddenly, and with- 
out warning, attacked the settlements on the 
frontier. The alarm was sent to Port Royal 
and Charleston, and the assailed people fled 
towards the settlements along the coast. 
The Indians continued their depredations, 
and the colony prepared as rapidly as pos- 
sible to resist them. Aid was sent from 
North Carolina, whose government had now 
been placed on a more stable footing. Gov- 
ernor Craven took the field without delay, 



with such troops as he could raise, and a 
long and bloody struggle ensued. The 
power of the savages was broken, however. 
The Yemmassees were compelled to take 
refuge in Florida, where they were provided 
for by the Spaniards, and the other tribes 
were driven farther westward. 

The contests between the proprietaries 
and the colonists now came to an end. The 
proprietaries had made no effort to help the 
colonists during their struggle with the In- 
dians, and the latter determined to have no 
more to do with their former lords. The 
dispute was carried before Parliament, which 
body declared that the proprietaries had for- 
feited their charter. In 1720 King George I. 
appointed Francis Nicholson provisional 
governor of Carolina. In 1729 the contro- 
versy was ended by the purchase of the pro- 
prietaries' interests by the crown for the sum 
of one hundred and ten thousand dollars. 
Carolina thus became a royal province, and 
was divided by the king into two separate 
states, known respectively as North and 
South Carolina, to each of which a royal 
governor was appointed. 




CHAPTER XIX 



Settlement of Georgia 



General James Edward Oglethorpe — His Efforts to Reform Prison Discipline of England — Proposes to Found a Colony 
in America for the Poor and for Prisoners for Debt — A Charter Obtained from the King — Colonization of Georgia — 
Savannah Settled — First Years of the Colony — Labors of Oglethorpe — Arrival of New Emigrants — Augusta Founded — 

■ The Moravian Settlements — The Wesleys in America — George Whitefield — War Between England and Spain — Ogle- 
thorpe Invades Florida — Failure of the Attack upon St. Augustine — The Spaniards Invade Georgia — Oglethorpe's 
Stratagem — Its Success — Battle of " Bloody Marsh " — Close of the War — Charges Against Oglethorpe — His Vindica- 
tion — His Return to Europe — Changes in the Colonial Government — Introduction of Slavery into Georgia — Prosperity 
of the Colony. 



THE severe laws in force in England 
in the last century against debtors 
aroused the opposition of many 
philanthropists, who strove to pro- 
cure their abolition or amelioration. Among 
these was General James Edward Oglethorpe, 
an officer of the English army and a member 
of Parliament. He was a man of fortune, 
and of generous nature, and devoted himself 
with energy to reform not only the laws 
against debtors but the entire prison disci- 
pline of England. There were at this time 
upwards of four thousand men in prison for 
debt. Their condition was most pitiful. 
They had no hope of relief save through the 
mercy of the creditors who had consigned 
them to their prisons, and were treated with 
a severity due only to criminals. 

It seemed an outrage to the generous 
Oglethorpe to visit such heavy punishments 
upon persons whose only crimes were their 
misfortunes, and he endeavored to have the 
laws authorizing imprisonment for debt re- 
pealed, and failing in this conceived the plan 
of establishing in America a place of refuge 
to which the poor and unfortunate might 
resort, and earn a support by their own 
industry'. He succeeded in interesting others 
in his benevolent scheme, and in 1732 a 
petition, signed by a number of men of rank 
16 



and influence, was presented to George II., 
praying him to grant to the petitioners a 
tract of unoccupied land in America for the 
purpose of founding such an asylum as that 
proposed by Oglethorpe. The king re- 
sponded favorably to this appeal, and granted 
to Oglethorpe and twenty other persons the 
region between the Savannah and the Alta- 
maha rivers. 

This region was to be held " in trust for 
the poor," for a period of twenty-one years, 
by the trustees named in the charter, and 
was to constitute a home for unfortunate 
debtors and Protestants from the continent 
of Europe, who might wish to seek safety 
there from persecution. The territory thus 
assigned formed a part of South Carolina, 
but was formally separated from it and 
named Georgia, in honor of the king. The 
" free exercise of religion " was secured to 
all sects " except Papists." No grant of land 
to any single settler was to exceed five hun- 
dred acres, a condition which it was hoped 
would prevent the rich from securing the 
best lands, and give to the poor an oppor- 
tunity to become landowners. It was be- 
lieved that the climate and soil of the new 
province were specially adapted to the rais- 
ing of silk-worms and the cultivation of the 
vine. 

241 



242 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



The scheme of Oglethorpe enlisted the 
sympathies of all classes of the English peo- 
ple. Liberal donations were made in its be- 
half, and its benevolent projector exerted 
himself with energy to secure a colony with 
which to lay the foundations of the new 
state. It was determined to take none but 
the poorest and most helpless, and Ogle- 
thorpe himself decided to accompany them, 
and give his personal care to the planting of 
the colony. 

Settlement of Savannah. 

One hundred and fifty persons, comprising 
thirty-five families, were embarked, and they 
sailed from England in November, 1732. 
They reached Charleston in fifty-seven days, 
and were formally welcomed by the assembly 
of South Carolina and presented with a sup- 
ply of cattle and rice. From Charleston the 
company sailed to Port Royal, while Ogle- 
thorpe hastened to explore the Savannah and 
select a site for the settlement. He chose a 
location at Yamacraw Bluff, on the right 
bank of the river, about twenty miles from 
its mouth. He purchased the land from the 
Yamacraw Indians, and the foundations of a 
town were laid. 

The place was named Savannah, from the 
river on which it stood. Oglethorpe has- 
tened forward the clearing of the land and 
the building of houses, but for nearly a year 
contented himself with a tent which was 
erected under four wide-spreading pines. 
*' The streets were laid out with the greatest 
regularity; in each quarter a public square 
was reserved ; the houses were planned and 
constructed on one model — each a frame of 
sawed timber, twenty-four feet by sixteen, 
floored with rough deals, the sides with 
feather-edged boards, unplaned, and the roof 
shingled." A garden was laid off by the 
river-side, to be the nursery of European 
fruits and other productions. 



Friendly relations were cultivated with the 
Indians. The chief of the Yamacraws came 
in bringing a buffalo skin, on the inner side 
of which was painted the head and feathers 
of an eagle. " Here is a little present," said 
Tomo-chichi, as the chief was named. " The 
feathers of the eagle are soft and signify 
love; the buffalo skin is warm, and is the 
emblem of protection; therefore love and 
protect our little families." The Muscogees, 
Creeks, Cherokees andOconees also senttheir 
chiefs to Savannah to make an alliance with 
the English. The savages were well pleased 
with the noble and commanding appearance 
of Oglethorpe and his frank and kind manner 
of dealing with them, and trusted implicitly 
in the promises he made them. The distant 
Choctaws also sent messengers to open 
friendly relations with the new settlers, and a 
profitable trade was established with the 
tribes as far west as the Mississippi. 

Grand Old German Hymns. |l 

Thus far the colony of Georgia was a 
success, and the friends of the movement in 
England were not slow to make public the 
accounts which came to them of its delightful 
climate and fertile soil, and all who were 
oppressed or in need were invited to seek 
the protection and advantages which the new 
land offered. The fame of the colony attracted 
the attention of a number of German Prot- 
estants in and around Salzburg, who were 
undergoing a severe persecution for the sake 
of their religion. 

Their sufferings enlisted the sympathy of 
the people of England, and the " Society 
for the Propagation of the Gospel " invited 
them to emigrate to Georgia and secured for 
them the means of doing so. The Germans 
readily accepted the offer, and rejoiced 
greatly that they were thus afforded an 
opportunity of spreading the gospel among 
the Indians. Nearly one hundred persons 



SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA. 



243 



set out from Salzburg, taking with them 
their wives and little ones in wagons, and 
journeyed across the country to Frankfort- 
on-the-Main. 

They carried with them their Bibles and 
books of devotion, and as they journeyed 
lightened their fatigues with those grand old 
German hymns which they were to make as 
precious in the new world as they were to 
the people of God in the old. From Frank- 
fort they proceeded to the Rhine and floated 
down that stream to Rotterdam, where, 
being joined by two clergymen — Bolzius 
and Gronau — they sailed to England. 
They were warmly received by a com- 
mittee of the trustees of the colony and 
forwarded to Georgia. 

A stormy passage of fifty-seven days 
brought them to Charleston, in March, 
1734, where they were met by Ogle- 
thorpe, who led them to their destina- 
tion. They were assigned a location on 
the Savannah, a short distance above 
the town of Savannah, where they began 
without delay to lay off a town, which 
they named Ebenezer, in gratitude to 
God for his guidance of them into a land 
of plenty and of rest from persecution. 
Others of their countrymen joined them 
from time to time, and their settlement 
grew rapidly and became noted as one 
of the most orderly, thrifty and moral 
communities in the new world. 

In 1734 the town of Augusta was laid 
out at the head of boat navigation on the Sa- 
vannah, and soon became an important trad- 
ing-post. Emigrants came over from England 
in large numbers, and Oglethorpe had the 
satisfaction of seeing his colony fairly started 
upon the road to prosperity. He was justly 
proud of the success of the colony, for it was 
mainly due to his disinterested efforts. 
Governor Johnson, of South Carolina, who 
had watched the labors of Oglethorpe with 



the deepest interest, wrote : " His under- 
taking will succeed, for he nobly devotes all 
his powers to serve the poor and rescue 
them from their wretchedness." The pastor 
of Ebenezer bore equally emphatic testimony 
to his devotion. " He has taken care of us 
to the best of his ability," said the pastor. 
" God has so blessed his presence and his 
regulations in the land that others would not 
in many years have accomplished what he 
has brougrht about in one." 







GENERAL OGLETHORPE. 

In April, 1734, Oglethorpe, whose pres- 
ence was required in Europe, sailed from 
Savannah, taking with him several Indians, 
and enough of the raw silk which had been 
produced in the colony to make a dress for 
the queen. Georgia was left to manage its 
own affairs during the absence of its founder. 
As the colonists regarded the use of ardent 
spirits as the sure cause of the debt and 
misery from which they had fled, they 



244 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



prohibited their introduction into the colony ; 
but it was found impossible to enforce this 
law. The importation of negro slaves was 
also forbidden. The colony was a refuge for 
the distressed and oppressed of all nations, 
and it seemed a violation of the spirit in 
which it was founded to hold men in bond- 
age. " Slavery," said Oglethorpe, " is against 
the gospel as well as the fundamental law of 
England. We refused, as trustees, to make 
a law permitting such a horrid crime." 



with the intention of becoming missionaries 
of the gospel among the savage tribes, and 
under their leader, Spangenberg, formed a 
new settlement on the Ogeechee, south of 
the Savannah. They claimed and received 
a grant of fifty acres of land for each of 
their number, in accordance with a law 
which had been passed for the encourage- 
ment of emigration. In the same year a 
company of Scotch Highlanders, under their 
minister, John McLeod, arrived and founded 




A SOUTHERN PLANTATION. 



The visit of Oglethorpe to England was 
productive of great benefit to Georgia. Par- 
liament was induced to grant it assistance, 
and the king became deeply interested in the 
province which had been called by his name. 
Emigrants from England continued to seek 
its hospitable shores, and the trustees induced 
a band of Moravians, or United Brethren, to 
emigrate to the colony. They came in 1735, 



the town of Darien, on the Altamaha. In 
1736 Oglethorpe himself returned, bringing 
with him three hundred emigrants. 

Among the new-comers were two broth- 
ers, men of eminent piety, who were destined 
to exercise a powerful influence upon the 
world. They were John and Charles Wes- 
ley, sons of a clergyman of the Church of 
England, and themselves ministers of that 



SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA. 



245 



communion. Charles Wesley had been 
selected by Oglethorpe as his secretary, and 
John Wesley came with the hope of becom- 
ing the means of converting the Indians to 
Christianity. He did not succeed in realiz- 
ing his noble ambition, but we cannot doubt 
that his experience in 
America formed a 
very important part 
of the training by 
which God was pre- 
paring him for the 
great work he meant 
to intrust to him at a 
later day. 

The preaching of 
Wesley had a marked 
effect upon the col- 
ony. Crowds flocked 
to hear him, neglect- 
ing their usual amuse- 
ments in their eager- 
ness to listen to him. 
His austerity of life, 
however, involved 
him in troubles with 
the people, and his 
popularity at length 
disappeared. His 
brother Charles was 
too tenderly moulded 
for so rough a life as 
that of the infant col- 
ony, and his health 
sank under it. The 
brothers remained in 
Georgia only two 
years, and then went 
back to their labors in 
Europe, never to return to America. 

Soon after the departure of the Wesleys 
came to the colony George Whitefield, their 
friend and associate, the " golden-mouthed " 
preacher of the century. In his own land he 



had begun to preach the message of his Mas- 
ter when but a mere youth, and had pro- 
claimed it to the inmates of the prisons and 
to the poor in the fields, and now he had 
come to bring the gospel to the people of 
the new world. He visited the Lutherans at 




JOHN WESLEY. 



Ebenezer, and was deeply impressed with tht 
care with which they protected the orphan 
and helpless children of their community. 
He determined to establish an institution 
similar to the orphan house at Halle, in 



246 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



Germany, and by his personal exertions suc- 
ceeded in raising in England and America 
the funds necessary for the success of his 
enterprise. 

He thereupon established near Savannah 
the first orphan asylum in America. He 




GEORGE WHITEFIELD. 

watched it with unceasing care during his 
life, but after his death it languished and was 
at length discontinued. Whitefield did not 
confine his labors to Georgia. He visited 
every colony in America, and finally died 



and was buried in New England. The 
memory of his wonderful eloquence is still 
retained in this country by the children of 
those who listened to him. 

Immediately upon his return to Georgia, 
Oglethorpe proceeded to visit the Lutheran 
settlement at Ebenezer, 
to encourage the people 
and lay out their town. 
The Germans repaid nis 
care by their industry, 
and in a few years their 
total annual product of 
raw silk amounted to ten 
thousand pounds. The 
culture of indigo* was 
also carried on by them 
with marked success, 

Oglethorpe, having 
visited the Scotch set- 
tlement at Darien, now 
resolved to come to a 
definite understanding 
with the Spaniards at 
St. Augustine respect- 
ing the southern border 
of Georgia, and to sus- 
tain the pretensions of 
Great Britain to the 
country as far south as 
the St. John's. Proceed- 
ing with a detachment of 
Highlanders to Cumber- 
land Island, he marked 
out the location for a 
fort, to be called St. 
Andrew's, and on the 
southern end of Amelia 
Island, at the mouth of 
the St. John's, built Fort St. George. The 
Spaniards on their part claimed the whole 
coast as far north as St. Helena's Sound, and 
Oglethorpe, a little later, decided to abandon 
Fort St. George, but strengthened Fort St. 



SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA. 



247 



Andrew, as it defended the entrance to the 
St. Mary's, which stream was finally settled 
upon as the boundary between Georgia and 
Florida. Oglethorpe was commissioned a 
brigadier-general by the king, and was 
charged with the defence of Georgia and 
South Carolina. He repaired to England 
and raised a regiment of troops, with which 
he returned to Georgia in 1738. 

Spain and England were rapidly drifting 
into war. The system of restrictions by 
which the European governments sought to 
retain the exclusive possession of the com- 
merce of their respective colonies was always 
a fruitful source of trouble. It now operated 
to bring England and Spain to open hostili- 
ties. The Spanish colonies were forbidden 
by law to trade with any port but that of 
Cadiz. The merchants of this place, being 
given a monopoly of the colonial commerce, 
were enabled to fix their prices without fear of 
competition, and thus earned large fortunes. 

Grasping Smugglers. 

The trade of the Spanish-American col- 
onies, however, was too tempting not to pro- 
duce rivals to the merchants of Cadiz. The 
English, who had watched its growth with 
eager eyes, determined to gain a share of it. 
By the terms of a treaty between the two 
nations, an English vessel was allowed to 
visit Portobello, in the West Indies, once a 
year, and dispose of its cargo. This vessel 
was followed by smaller ones, which in the 
night replaced with their cargoes the bales of 
goods that had been discharged during the 
day. An active smuggling trade sprang up 
between the English and Spanish-American 
ports, and English vessels repeatedly sought 
these ports, under the pretence of distress, 
and sold their goods. These enterprises' 
were carried to such an extent that the 
Spanish merchants were unable to compete 
with the English smugglers in the colonial 



markets, and the tonnage of the port of 
Cadiz fell from fifteen thousand to two thou- 
sand tons. 

The Spaniards visited with severe punish- 
ments all who were detected in engaging in 
this illicit traffic. Some of the ofifenders were 
imprisoned, and others were deprived of their 
ears. The English people resented the pun- 
ishment of these traders as an infringement 
of the freedom of trade, and regarded the 
smugglers who had suffered at the hands of 
Spanish justice as martyrs. The popular 
sentiment was therefore in favor of a war 
with Spain, and the English government^ 
which had all along connived at this illicit 
trade, which was rapidly crippling a rival 
power, shared the national feeling. 

Grievances of the Settlers. 

The English colonists, who had watched 
the growth of the trouble between the two 
European countries, had grievances of their 
own. South Carolina was a sufferer by the 
loss of numerous runaway negro slaves, who 
escaped to the Spaniards at St. Augustine. 
The return of these fugitives was demanded, 
and was refused, not because the Spaniards 
were opposed to slavery, but because they 
were always ready to injure the English col- 
onies by any means in their power. More- 
over, the Spanish authorities of Florida 
had ordered the English to withdraw from 
Georgia, and it was not certain that they 
would refrain from seeking to enforce this 
order. Oglethorpe had become convinced 
that war was inevitable, and in order to be 
prepared for it had visited Europe and raised 
a regiment of six hundred men, as has been 
related. 

War was declared against Spain by Eng- 
land in October, 1739. Admiral Vernon was 
sent against Portobello with his fleet, and 
captured that town and its fortifications, 
and gained some other successes over the 



248 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



Spaniards in Central America. In 1740, the 
American colonies were ordered by the 
British government to contribute each its 
quota to a grand expedition against the 
Spanish possessions in the West Indies. 
Each colony made its contribution promptly, 
and Pennsylvania, in the place of troops, 
voted a sum of money. 

Fleet of a Hundred Vessels. 

The expedition reached Jamaica in Janu- 
ary, 1 74 1, but instead of proceeding at once 
to attack Havana, which was only three 
days distant, and the conquest of which 
would have made England supreme in the 
West Indies, the fleet was detained for over 
a month at Jamaica by the dissensions be- 
tween Wentworth, the incompetent com- 
mander of the land forces, and Vernon, the 
admiral of the fleet. The expedition num- 
bered over one hundred vessels, of which 
twenty-nine were ships of the line, and was 
manned with fifteen thousand sailors and 
twelve thousand troops, and supplied with 
every requisite for a successful siege. Havana 
might have been taken, and England have 
gained a hold upon the southern waters of 
America which could never have been 
wrested from her. 

Instead of undertaking this important 
measure, the expedition attacked Cartha- 
gena, the strongest fortress in Spanish 
America. The Spaniards defended it with 
obstinacy and held the English in check 
until the besieging force, decimated by the 
ravages of the climate, was compelled to 
withdraw. The war continued through the 
next year, but England gained no advan- 
tage in the West Indies which could at 
all compensate her for her losses in the 
struggle. 

In the autumn of 1739, upon the breaking 
out of the war, Oglethorpe was ordered to 
invade Florida, and attack St. Augustine. 



He hastened to Charleston and urged upon 
the authorities of South Carolina, which 
formed a part of his military command, the 
necessity of acting with promptness and de- 
cision. He was granted supplies and a force 
of four hundred men, which, added to his 
own regiment, gave him a force of one 
thousand white troops. He was also fur- 
nished with a body of Indian warriors by the 
friendly tribes, and with his little army in- 
vaded Florida in the spring of 1741, and laid 
siege to St. Augustine. He found the gar- 
rison more numerous and the fortifications 
stronger than he had been led to believe. 
The Indians soon became disheartened and 
began to desert, and the troops from South 
Carolina, " enfeebled by the heat, dispirited 
by sickness and fatigued by fruitless efforts, 
marched away in large bodies." 

Spanish Settlers Protected. 

The small naval force also became dissat- 
isfied, and Oglethorpe, left with only his own 
regiment, was obliged to withdraw into 
Georgia after a siege of five weeks. During 
this campaign Oglethorpe made a few pris- 
oners, whom he treated with kindness. He 
prevented the Indians from maltreating the 
Spanish settlers, and, throughout the inva- 
sion, " endured more fatigues than any of 
his soldiers ; and in spite of ill-health, he 
was at the head in every important action." 

The invasion of Florida was a misfortune 
for Georgia in every way. Not only were 
some of the inhabitants lost to the colony by 
death, and the industry of the province 
greatly interfered with by the calling off of 
the troops from their ordinary avocations, 
but a serious misfortune was sustained in the 
withdrawal of the Moravians from the prov- 
ince. Uncompromisingly opposed to war, 
they withdrew from Georgia in a body and 
settled in Pennsylvania, where they founded 
the towns of Bethlehem and Nazareth. 



SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA. 



249 



In the last year of the war, 1742, the 
Spaniards resolved to avenge the attack upon 
Florida by driving the English out of 
Georgia. A strong fleet with a considerable 
land force was sent from Cuba to St. Augus- 
tine, from which it proceeded to the mouth 
of the St. Mary's. Oglethorpe had con- 
structed a strong work called Fort William, 
on the southern end of Cumberland Island, 
for the defence of this river. With no aid 
from Carolina, and with less than a thousand 
men, Oglethorpe was left to defend this 
position as well as he could. He posted his 
main force at Frederica, a small village on 
St. Simon's Island. The Spanish fleet 
attacked Fort William in June and succeeded 
in passing it and entering the harbor of St. 
Simon's. The troops were landed and ar- 
rangements were made for a combined attack 
upon Frederica. 

Entrapped and Defeated. 

Oglethorpe now resolved to anticipate the 
attack of the enemy by a night assault upon 
their position, but as his forces were approach- 
ing the Spanish camp, under cover of dark- 
ness, one of his soldiers, a Frenchman, 
betrayed the movement by firing his gun, 
and escaping into the enemy's lines, where 
he gave the alarm. Oglethorpe, by a happy 
stratagem, now induced the enemy to with- 
draw, and drew upon the deserter the pun- 
ishment he merited. He bribed a Spanish 
prisoner to carry a letter to the deserter, in 
which he addressed the Frenchman as a spy 
of the English, and urged him to use every 
effort to detain the Spaniards before Fred- 
erica for several days longer, until a fleet of 
six English ships of war, which had sailed 
from Charleston, could reach and destroy 
St. Augustine. The letter was delivered by 
the released prisoner to the Spanish com- 
mander, as Oglethorpe had known would be 
the case, and the deserter was placed in con- 
finement. 



Fortunately, at this moment, some vessels 
from South Carolina, laden with supplies for 
Oglethorpe, appeared in the ofiing. These 
the Spanish commander was confident were 
the ships on their way to attack St. Augus- 
tine. He determined to strike a vigorous 
blow at Frederica before sailing to the relief 
of his countrymen in Florida. On his march 
towards the English position he was ambus- 
caded and defeated, with great loss, at a 
place since called " Bloody Marsh." The 
next night he embarked his forces and sailed 
for St. Augustine to defend it from the attack 
which had no existence save in the fertile 
brain of Oglethorpe, whose stratagem was 
thus entirely successful. On their withdrawal 
the Spaniards renewed their attempt to cap- 
ture Fort William, but without success. 
The firmness and vigor of Oglethorpe had 
saved Georgia and Carolina from the ruin 
which the Spaniards, who had no intention 
of occupying the country, had designed for 
them. 

Oglethorpe Acquitted. 

Yet the founder and brave defender of 
Georgia was not to escape the experience of 
those who seek with disinterested zeal to 
serve their fellow-men. The disaffected 
settlers sent an agent to England to lodge 
complaints against him with the government. 
In July, 1743, having made sure of the tran- 
quility and safety of the colony, Oglethorpe 
sailed for England to meet his accuser, and 
upon arriving in his native country demanded 
an investigation of his conduct in the land 
for which he had sacrificed so much. 

The result of the inquiry was the trium- 
phant acquittal of Oglethorpe and the pun- 
ishment of his accuser for making false 
charges. Oglethorpe was promoted to the 
grade of major-general in the English army. 
He did not return to Georgia again, but he 
had the satisfaction of knowing that during 



250 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



his ten years of sacrifice and toil in America 
he had successfully laid the foundations of a 
vigorous state and had placed it far beyond 
the possibility of failure, and that his name 
was honored and loved by the people for 
whom he had given his best efforts without 
any personal reward. He died at the age of 
ninety years. After the departure of Ogle- 
thorpe many improvements were made in 
the government of Georgia, which was 
changed from a military rule to a civil 
establishment. The forms and customs of 
the English law were introduced and the 
usual magistrates appointed. 

Human Cargoes from Africa. 

Slavery had been forbidden by the trus- 
tees, but the majority of the people were 
dissatisfied with this prohibition. The Ger- 
mans and the Scotch were opposed to the 
introduction of slave labor, but the greater 
number of the English, many of whom had 
been reduced to poverty by their idleness 
and wastefulness, were of the opinion that 
the agricultural wealth of the colony could 
not be properly developed by white labor 
alone. " They were unwilling to labor, but 
were clamorous for privileges to which they 
had no right." They declared that the use 
of strong liquors was rendered absolutely 
necessary by the climate and demanded the 
repeal of the laws against their introduction. 
Negro slaves were hired from the Carolina 
planters at first for a few years, and finally 
for a term of one hundred years, which was a 
practical establishment of slavery in the 
colony. 

Within seven years after Oglethorpe's 
departure slave-ships from Africa brought 
their cargoes direct to Savannah and sold 
them there. The scruples of the Germans 
were at length overcome, and they were 



induced to believe that negroes might be led 
into the Christian fold by their proper treat- 
ment by Christian masters, and that in this 
way their change of country might result in 
benefit to them. " If you take slaves in 
faith," wrote their friends from Germany, 
" and with the intent of conducting them to 
Christ, the action will not be a sin, but may 
prove a benediction." Even the pious White- 
field took this view of the subject and urged 
the trustees to grant permission to the colo- 
nists to hold slaves, as indispensable to the 
prosperity of Georgia. 

The trustees were so strongly urged to this 
step by all classes of the colony, and so 
overrun with complaints, that the twenty-one 
years of their guardianship having expired, 
they were glad to surrender their trust, which 
they did in 1752, and Georgia became a royal 
province. Privileges similar to those granted 
the other colonies were allowed it. The 
king appointed the governor and some of the 
other higher officials, and the assembly dis- 
charged the duties, and enjoyed the rights 
appertaining to similar bodies in the other 
provinces. 

Georgia was always a favored colony. 
Among the most important privileges be- 
stowed upon it was the right to import and 
hold negro slaves, which was conferred upon 
it by Parliament after a careful examination 
into the matter. After this the colony grew 
rapidly, and cotton and rice were largely 
cultivated. In 1752, at the time of the re- 
linquishment of the colony to the crown, 
Georgia contained a population less than 
twenty-five hundred whites and about 
four hundred negroes. In 1775, at the 
outbreak of the Revolution, the popu- 
lation numbered about seventy-five thousand 
souls, and its exports were valued at over 
half a million of dollars. 



CHAPTER XX 
The French in the Valley of the Mississippi 

Origin of the Hostility of the Iroquois to the French — Settlement of Canada— Plans of the French Respecting the Indians 
—The Jesuits — Their Work in America — Success of their Missions — The Early Missionaries— Foundation of a College 
at Quebec — Efforts of the Jesuits to Convert the Iroquois — Father Jogues — Death of Ahasistari — Father Allouez — The 
Missions on the Upper Lakes — Father Marquette — His Exploration of the Upper Mississippi — Death of Marquette — 
La Salle — Efforts of France to Secure the Valley of the Mississippi — La Salle Descends the Mississippi to its Mouth 

His Effort to Colonize the Lower Mississippi — The First Colony in Texas— lis Failure — Death of La Salle — 

Lemoine d'lbberville — Settlement of Louisiana — Colony of Biloxi — Settlement of Mobile — Crozat's Monopoly — 
FoundiHg of New Orleans — Detroit Founded — Slow Growth of the French Colonies — Occupation of the Ohio Valley 
by the French — Wars with the Indians — Extermination of the Natchez Tribe — War with the Chickasaws. 



WE have already spoken of the 
explorations of Samuel Cham- 
plain in Canada and in the 
northern part of New York. 
It is necessary now, in order to obtain a 
proper comprehension of the period at which 
we have arrived, to go back to the time of his 
discoveries and trace the efforts of France 
to extend her dominion over the great valley 
of the Mississippi. We have seen Cham- 
plain in one of his last expeditions accom- 
panying a war party of the Hurons and Al- 
gonquins against their inveterate enemies, 
the Iroquois or Five Nations. By his aid 
the former were enabled to defeat the Iro- 
quois, and that great confederacy thus be- 
came the bitter and uncompromising enemies 
of the French nation. They cherished this 
hostility to the latest period of the dominion 
of France in Canada, and no effort of the 
French governors was ever able to over- 
come it. 

The efforts of Champlain established the 
settlement of Canada upon a sure basis of 
success, and after his death settlers came 
over to Canada from France in considerable 
numbers. Quebec became an important place, 
and other settlements were founded. It was 
apparent from the first that the French colo- 
nies must occupy a very different footing 



from those of England. The soil and the 
climate were both unfavorable to agriculture, 
and the French settlements were of necessity 
organized chiefly as trading-posts. The 
trade in furs was immensely valuable, and 
the French sought to secure the exclusive 
possession of it. To this end it was indis- 
pensable to secure the friendship of the In- 
dians, especially of those tribes inhabiting 
the country to the north and west of the 
great lakes. 

In 1634, three years before the death of 
Champlain, Louis XIII. granted a charter 
to a company of French nobles and mer- 
chants, bestowing upon them the entire 
region embraced in the valley of the St. 
Lawrence, then known as New France. 
Richelieu and Champlain, who were mem- 
bers of this company, were wise enough to 
understand that their countrymen were not 
suited to the task of colonization, and that 
if France was to found an empire in the new 
world, it must be by civilizing and Chris- 
tianizing the Indians and bringing them 
under the rule of her king, and not by seek- 
ing to people Canada with Frenchmen. 
From this time it became the policy of 
France to bring the savages under her sway. 
The efforts of the settlers in Canada were 
mainly devoted to trading with the Indians, 

251 



252 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



and no attempt was made to found an agri- 
cultural state. 

Champlain had conceived a sincere desire 
for the conversion of the savages to Chris- 
tianity, and had employed several priests of 
the order of St. Francis as his companions, 
and these had gained sufficient success among 
the savages to give ground for the hope that 
the red men might yet be brought into the 
fold of Christ. Father Le Caron, one of this 
order, had penetrated far up the St. Law- 
rence, had explored the southern coast of 
Lake Ontario, and had even entered Lake 
Huron. He brought back tidings of thou- 
sands of the sons of the forest living in 
darkness and superstition, ignorant of the 
gospel, and dying " in the bondage of their 
sins." In France a sudden enthusiasm was 
awakened in behalf of the savages, and at 
court zeal for the conversion of the Indians 
became the sure road to distinction. Much 
of this was the result of genuine disinterested 
regard for the welfare of the red men, but 
much also was due to the conviction that by 
such a course the power of France would be 
most surely established in Canada. 

Work of the Jesuits. 

The missions were placed entirely in the 
hands of the Jesuits, an order well suited to 
the task demanded of it. It had been estab- 
lished by its founder for the express design 
of defeating the influences and the work of 
the Reformation, and its members were 
chosen with especial regard to their fitness 
for the duties required of them. They were 
to meet and refute the arguments by which 
the Reformers justified their withdrawal from 
the Roman church, to beat back the advanc- 
ing wave of Protestantism, and bring all 
Christendom once more in humble submis- 
sion to the feet of the Roman pontiff. 

The Reformers had made a most successful 
use of education in winning men from Rome ; 



tlie Jesuits would take their own weapons 
against the Protestants. They would no 
longer command absolute and unquestioning 
submission to their church ; but would edu- 
cate the people to accept the faith of Rome 
as the result of study and investigation ; and 
in order that study and investigation should 
lead to this desired result, the control of 
these processes should be placed exclusively 
in the hands of the members of the Jesuit 
order, who should direct them as they deemed 
best. Such a task required a band of de- 
voted men, carefully trained for their special 
work ; and such an order the Jesuits became. 
Surrendering his conscience and will to the 
direction of his superiors, and sinking his 
personality in that of his order, the Jesuit 
became a mere intellectual machine in the 
hands of his superior. 

A Solemn Oath. 

Bound by a most solemn oath to obey 
without inquiry or hesitation the commands 
of the Pope, or the superiors of the order, the 
Jesuit holds himself in readiness to execute 
instantly, and to the best of his ability, any 
task imposed upon him. Neither fatigue, 
danger, hunger nor suffering was to stand in 
his way of perfect and unhesitating obedi- 
ence. No distance was to be considered an 
obstacle, and no lack of ordinary facilities of 
travel was to prevent him from attempting to 
reach the fields in which he was ordered to 
labor. The merit of obedience in his eyes 
atoned for every other short-coming ; devo- 
tion to the church, the glory of making 
proselytes, made even suffering pleasure and 
death a triumph, if met in the discharge of 
duty. 

Such an order was in every way qualified 
for the work of Christianizing the savages, 
and America offered the noblest field to 
which its energies had yet been invited. 
There, cut off from the ambitious schemes 



THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 



253 



and corrupt influences which had enlisted 
their powers in Europe, the Jesuits could 
achieve and did achieve their noblest and 
most useful triumphs. There, their influ- 
ence was for good alone, and their labors 
stand in striking contrast with those which 
won for the order the universal execration of 
Europe. Not only did they win the honor 
of gaining many converts to the Christian 
faith, but they were the means of extending 
the dominion of their country far beyond the 
boundaries of Canada, and of bringing the 
great valley of the Mississippi under the 
authority of France. 

Marriage of Whites and Indians. 

By the year 1536 there were thirteen 
Jesuit missionaries in Canada laboring 
among the Indians. Not content with re- 
maining around the posts, they pushed out 
beyond the frontier settlements into the 
boundless forest, making new converts and 
important discoveries. Each convert was 
regarded as a subject of France, and the 
equal of the whites, and the kindliest rela- 
tions were established between the French 
and the natives. Many of the traders took 
them Indian wives, and from these marriages 
sprang the class of half-breeds afterwards so 
numerous in Canada. 

The limits of Canada were too narrow for 
the ambition of the Jesuits ; they burned to 
carry Christianity to the tribes in the more 
distant regions beyond the lakes. In the 
autumn of 1634 Fathers Brabeuf and Daniel 
accompanied a party of Hurons, who had 
come to Quebec on a trading expedition, to 
their home on the shores of the lake which 
bears their name. It was a long and difficult 
journey of nine hundred miles, and it taxed 
the endurance of the missionaries to the ut- 
most, but they persevered, and finally gained 
a resting-place at the Huron villages on 
Georgian Bay and Lake Simcoe There 



they erected a rude chapel in a little grove, 
and celebrated the mysteries of their religion 
in the midst of the wondering red men, who 
looked on with awe and not without interest. 

Nev^ Missions. 

Six missions were soon established among 
the Indian villages in this part of the lake, 
and converts began to reward the labors of 
the devoted priests. Father Brabeuf had not 
an idle monient. The first four hours of the 
day were passed in prayer and in the flagel- 
lation of his body ; he wore a shirt of hair, 
and his fasts were frequent and severe. The 
remainder of the day was given to catechis- 
ing and teaching the Indians. As he passed 
along the streets of the village he would ring 
his little bell, and in this way summon the 
warriors to converse with him upon the 
mysteries of the Christian faith. He spent 
fifteen years in his labors among the Indians, 
and hundreds of converts were by means of 
him gained to Christ among the dusky chil- 
dren of the forest. 

The great Huron chief, Ahasistari, was 
among the converts of Father Brabeuf. 
" Before you came to this country," he said 
to the missionary, " when I have incurred the 
greatest perils and have alone escaped, I have 
said to myself, ' Some powerful Spirit has the 
guardianship of my days.' " That Spirit he 
now declared was Jesus Christ, and as he 
had before adored him in ignorance, he now 
became his acknowledged servant. Being 
satisfied of his sincerity, Father Brabeuf 
baptized him, and the chief, in the enthusi- 
asm of his new belief, exclaimed, " Let us 
strive to make the whole world embrace the 
faith in Jesus." 

The report of the successful efforts of the 
missionaries gave great satisfaction in France, 
and the king and queen and the nobles made 
liberal donations in support of the missions 
and for the assistance of the converts. A 




254 UNIVERSITY AND NORMAL SCHOOL BUILDINGS AT TORONTO, IN 1 892. 



THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSLSSIPPL 



255 



college for the education of missionaries was 
founded at Quebec in 1635. This was the 
first institution of learning established in 
America, and preceded the founding of Har- 
vard College by two years. Madame de la 
Peltrie, a wealthy young widow of Alencon, 
with the aid of three nuns, established in 1639 
the Ursuline Convent for the education of 
Indian girls. The three nuns came out from 
France to take charge of it, and were received 
with enthusiasm, especially by the Indians. 
Montreal being regarded as a more suit- 
able place, the institution was removed to 
that island and permanently established 
there. 

The Powerful Mohawks. 

The labors of the missionaries had thus 
far been confined to the Huron and Algon- 
quin tribes, whom they found very willing to 
listen to them, and among whom they 
counted their converts by thousands. They 
had encountered but little hostility from 
them, and the dangers of the enterprise were 
merely those inseparable from the unsettled 
condition of the country. They were 
anxious to extend their efforts to the fiercer 
and more powerful Iroquois, as the conver- 
sion of the tribes of this confederacy would 
not only swell the number of their converts, 
but would extend the influence of France to 
the very borders of the English settlements 
on the Atlantic coast. 

The Iroquois, or Five Nations, consisted, 
as has been said, of the Seneca, Cayuga, 
Onondaga, Oneida and Mohawk tribes. 
They occupied almost all that part of Canada 
south of the Ottawa, and between Lakes 
Ontario, Erie and Huron, the greater part of 
New York and the country lying along the 
south shore of Lake Erie, now included in 
the states of Ohio and Pennsylvania. They 
were generally called by the English the 
Mohawks. They were the most intelligent, 



as well as the most powerful, of the tribes 
with whom the French missionaries came in 
contact. 

Their traditions related that their confed- 
eracy had been formed in accordance with 
the instructions of Hiawatha, the greatest 
and wisest of their chiefs, who had been 
blessed by the Great Spirit with more than 
human beauty and wisdom and courage. 
He had made his people great, united and 
prosperous ; had then taken a solemn leave of 
them, and had sailed out into the distant 
sunset in a snow-white canoe, amid the 
sweetest music from the spirit land. They 
were regarded with dread by the sur- 
rounding tribes, many of which were tribu- 
tary to them. Their influence extended 
eastward as far as New England, and west- 
ward as far as the countries of the Illinois and 
the Miamis. They regarded the Hurons as 
their hereditary enemies, and the French, as 
allies of the Hurons, now shared this hos- 
tility. The savages long remembered, and 
never forgave, the alliance of Champlain 
with the Hurons and Algonquins, to which 
reference has been made. 

Enmity of the Red Men. 

The Jesuit missionaries vainly endeavored 
to add the tribes of the Five Nations to their 
converts. The latter, regarding the French 
as enemies, could never be made to look 
upon 'the missionaries of that race as friends, 
and considered the efforts of the good fathers 
in their behalf as a species of incantation 
designed for their destruction. They closed 
the region south of Lake Ontario to the 
French traders and priests and kept a vigilant 
watch over the passes of the St. Lawrence 
for the purpose of breaking up the trade of 
the French at Montreal with the tribes on the 
lakes. 

The only route by which the lakes could 
be reached in safety was by the Ottawa and 



256 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



through the wilderness beyond. Yet occa- 
sionally a trading party would slip through 
the blockade established by the Iroquois, 
and, descending the lakes and the St. Law- 
rence, reach Montreal and Quebec in safety. 
These expeditions constituted the only 
means by which the Jesuit missionaries in 
the remote regions could communicate with 
their principal establishment at Montreal. 

In the summer of 1642, Father Jogues, 
who had labored with great success in the 
country now embraced in the state of Michi- 
gan, left the Sault Sainte Marie under the 
escort of the great Huron war chief Ahasis- 
tari and a number of his braves, and, descend- 
ing the Ottawa and the St. Lawrence, reached 
Montreal and Quebec in safety. On the 
first of August he set out on his return, ac- 
companied by a larger fleet of Huron canoes. 
Before the mouth of the Ottawa was reached 
the party was attacked by a band of Mo- 
hawks, and the canoes were so much dam- 
aged that the occupants were forced to make 
for the opposite shore. The greater number 
escaped, but a few, among whom were Father 
Jogues and Father Goupil, a fellow-priest, 
were taken prisoners. 

Died at the Stake. 

Ahasistari had succeeded in reaching aplace 
of safety, and from his concealment saw the 
missionaries prisoners in the hands of their 
enemies. He knew the fate that awaited 
them, and resolved to share it with them. 
Father Jogues might have escaped, but as 
there were among the prisoners several con- 
verts who had not yet received baptism, he 
decided to remain with them in the hope of 
being able to administer the sacred rite to 
them before their execution. Ahasistari 
strode through the midst of the astonished 
Mohawks to the side of the priest. " My 
brother," said the chief, " I made oath to thee 
that I would share thy fortune, whether 



death or life ; here am I to keep my vow." 
He received absolution from the hands of his 
teacher, and died at the stake with the firm- 
ness of a Christian and a hero. Jogues and 
Goupil were carried to the Mohawk, and in 
each village through which they were led 
were compelled to run the gauntlet. On an 
ear of corn which was thrown to them for 
food a few drops of the dew had remained, 
and with these Father Jogues baptized two 
of his converts. 

Peace with the Five Nations. 

Goupil was not so fortunate. He was seen 
in the act of making the sign of the 
cross over an Indian child, and was 
struck dead by a blow from the toma- 
hawk of the child's father, who sup- 
posed he was working a spell for the little 
one's harm. Father Jogues had expected 
the same fate, but he was spared, and even 
allowed to erect a large cross near the village 
at which he was detained, and to worship 
before it at pleasure. He escaped at length 
and reached Albany, where he was kindly 
received by the Dutch, who enabled him to 
return to France, from which country he 
sailed again for Canada. He went boldly 
into the Mohawk country and began again 
the efforts which he had made during his 
captivity to convert his enemies to the true 
faith, but his labors were soon cut short by 
his murder by a Mohawk warrior. Other 
missionaries sought the country of these 
tribes, but only to meet torture and death at 
their hands. 

In 1645, the French, who desired to secure 
their possessions, made a treaty of peace 
with the Five Nations. The latter professed 
to forget and bury the wrongs of the past, 
and agreed to be the true friends of the 
French. The Algonquins joined in the 
peace, but neither tribe was sincere in its 
professions of friendship. 



THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPL 



257 



The Abenakis of Maine, who had heard 
of the good deeds of the Jesuit fathers, sent 
messengers to Montreal asking that mission- 
aries might be sent to dwell among them. 
Their appeal was favorably considered, and 
Father Dreuilettes made his way across the 
wilderness to the head of the Kennebec, and 
descended that stream to a point within a 
few miles of its mouth, where he established 
his mission. Large numbers of the savages 
came to him for religious instruction, and he 
found them ready to embrace the truths he 
taught them. He entered heartily into all 
the modes of Indian life, hunting and fishing 
with them, and winning their confidence and 
affection. After remaining with them about 
a year he returned to Quebec, escorted by a 
band of his converts. He gave such favora- 
ble accounts of the disposition of the Maine 
Indians that a permanent mission was estab- 
lished among them. 

Uncivilized Wild Men. 

By the close of the year 1646 the French 
had established a line of missions extending 
across the continent from Lake Superior to 
Nova Scotia, and between sixty and seventy 
missionaries were actively engaged in in- 
structing and preaching to the savages. 
How far the labors of these devoted men 
were actually successful will never be known, 
as their work was of a character which can- 
not be submitted to any human test. They 
did not succeed, however, in changing either 
the character or the habits of their converts. 
They were still wild men, who scorned to 
engage in the labor of cultivating their lands, 
and lived by hunting and fishing. They 
learned to engage in the religious services of 
the missionaries, to chant matins and ves- 
pers, but they made no approach to civiliza- 
tion. When, in after years, the zeal of the 
whites for their conversion became less act- 
ive, and the missionaries less numerous, they 
fell back into their old ways. 
17 



In 1648 the peace between the Mohawks 
and the Hurons was broken, and the war 
blazed up again fiercer than ever. Bands of 
Mohawk warriors invaded the territory of 
the Hurons, and both the savage and the 
missionary fell victims to their fury. On 
the morning of the fourth of July the village 
of St. Joseph, on Lake Simcoe, was attacked 
by a war party of the Mohawks. 

Pierced With Arrows. 

The Huron braves were absent on a hunt- 
ing expedition, and only the old men and 
the women and children of the tribe were 
left in the village. This was the village 
founded by the missionaries Brabeuf and 
Daniel, the latter of whom, now an old m'an,. 
was still dwelling with his converts. At the 
opening of the attack the good priest has- 
tened to baptize such as he could, and to- 
give absolution to all whom he could reach.. 
Then, as the Mohawks forced the stockade 
which protected the village and swarmed in 
among the wigwams, he advanced calmly 
from the chapel to meet them, and fell 
pierced with numerous arrows. 

During the next year the Jesuit missions 
in Upper Canada were broken up. At the 
capture of the village Father Brabeuf and 
his companion, Gabriel Lallemand, were 
made prisoners, and were subsequently put 
to death with the crudest tortures. They 
bore their sufferings with a firmness which 
astonished their persecutors. The Hurons 
were scattered and their country was added 
to the dominion of the Five Nations. Many 
of the captive Hurons were adopted into the 
conquering tribes. A large number of these- 
had embraced Christianity — so many, indeed, 
that the Jesuits, who had been in nowise 
discouraged by the terrible scenes which had; 
marked the war, began to cherish the hope 
that the presence of these converts would 
induce the Iroquois to receive a missionary 



258 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



among- them. It was decided to make the 
attempt among the Onondagas, and Oswego, 
which was their principal village, was chosen 
as the site of the mission. 

Useless Efforts. 

The Iroquois made no effort to disturb the 
missionaries, and priests were sent among 
the other tribes of the confederacy. Encour- 
aged by this reception, the French undertook 
to secure a firm footing in this inviting 
region by establishing a colony at the mouth 
of the Oswego, and fifty persons were des- 
patched to that point to begin a settlement 
there. This aroused the alarm of the 
Indians, who compelled the colonists to 
withdraw and forced the missionaries to de- 
'part with them. This was the last effort of 
•the French to obtain possession of New 
York. The Five Nations were not to be 
reconciled with them on any terms, and their 
hostility made it useless to attempt the col- 
onization of that fertile region. 

Defeated in their hope of obtaining a 
footing in the country of the Five Nations, 
the Jesuit fathers turned their attention more 
energetically to the vast region beyond the 
lakes. In 1654 two young fur-traders had 
penetrated into the country beyond Lake 
Superior, and after an absence of two years 
had returned to Quebec, bringing with them 
accounts of the powerful and numerous 
tribes occupying that region. They brought 
with them a number of Indians, who urged 
the French to open commercial relations 
with and send missionaries among these 
ti*ibes. Their request was promptly granted, 
and missionaries were soon on the ground. 
One of these, the aged Father Mesnard, 
while journeying through the forests, wan- 
dered off from his attendants and was never 
seen again. His cassock and breviary were 
found by the Sioux, and were long retained 
.by them as a protection against evil. 



In 1665 Father Claude Alloiiez ascended 
the Ottawa and crossed the wilderness to the 
Sault Ste-Marie, on a mission to the tribes of 
the far west. In October he reached the 
principal town of the Chippewas at the head 
of Lake Superior. He found the tribe in 
great excitement ; the young warriors were 
eager to engage in a war against the formid- 
able Sioux, and the old men were seeking to 
restrain them. A grand council was in 
progress, which was attended by the chiefs 
of ten or twelve of the neighboring tribes 
for the purpose of preserving peace if 
possible. Father Alloiiez was admitted to 
this assembly and exhorted the warriors to 
abandon their hostile intentions, and urged 
them to join the French in an alliance against 
the Five Nations. 

His appeal was successful ; the war against 
the Sioux was abandoned, and the savages 
came in from all parts of the surrounding 
country to listen to the words of the mis- 
sionary. A chapel was built on the shore of 
the lake and the mission of the Holy Spirit 
was founded. The fame of the missionary 
spread far to the west and north, and the 
tribes dwelling north of Lake Superior, the 
Pottawatomies from Lake Michigan, who 
worshiped the sun, and the Sioux and the 
Illinois from the distant prairies of the west, 
came to the mission to hear the teachings of 
the missionary. They told him of their 
country, an unbroken expanse of level land, 
without trees, but covered with long rich 
grass, upon which grazed innumerable herds 
of buffalo and deer ; of the rice which grew 
wild in their distant homes ; of the rich 
yield of maize which their fields produced ; 
of the copper mines of which they but dimly 
comprehended the value ; and of the great 
river which flowed through their country 
from the far north to the unknown regions 
of the south, and which Alloiiez understood 
them to call the " Messipi." 



THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPL 



259 



After remaining at his mission for two 
years, Alloiiez returned to Quebec to ask for 
other laborers in the great field around him, 
and to urge the French to establish per- 
manent settlements of emigrants or traders 
in the Lake Superior country. He remained 
at Quebec two days, was given an assistant, 
and at once returned to his post, where he 
continued his labors for many years. " Dur- 
ing his long sojourn he lighted the torch of 
faith for more than twenty different nations." 

In 1668 the French West India Company, 
under whose auspices the settlement of 
Canada had been conducted, relinquished 
their monopoly of the fur trade, and a great 
improvement in the condition and prospects 
of Canada ensued. In the same year Fathers 
Claude Dablon and James Marquette estab- 
lished the mission ofSte-Marie at the rapids 
through which the waters of Lake Superior 
rush into those of Huron. " For the suc- 
ceeding years," says Bancroft, " the illus- 
trious triumvirate, Alloiiez, Dablon and 
Marquette, were employed in confirming the 
influence of France in the vast regions that 
extend from Green Bay to the head of Lake 
Superior, mingling happiness with suffering, 
and winning enduring glory by their fearless 
perseverance." 

Wonderful Scene. 

In 1669, Father Alloiiez went to establish 
a mission at Green Bay, and Father Mar- 
quette took his place at the mission of the 
Holy Spirit. Marquette had heard so much 
of the Mississippi that he resolved to under- 
take the discovery of the upper waters of 
that stream. He employed a young Illinois 
warrior as his companion, and from him 
learned the dialect of that tribe. In 1673, 
accompanied by a fellow-priest named Joliet, 
five French boatmen, and some Indian guides 
and interpreters, bearing their canoes on their 
backs, Marquette set out from his mission, 



and crossing the narrow portage which 
divides the Fox River from the Wisconsin, 
reached the headwaters of the latter stream. 
There the guides left them, wondering at 
their rashness in seeking to venture into a 
region which the simple imagination of the 
savages filled with vague terrors. The 
adventurers floated down the Wisconsin, and 
in seven days entered the Mississippi, " with 
a joy that could not be expressed." Raising 
the sails of their canoes they glided down 
the mighty father of waters, gazing with 
wonder upon the magnificent forests which 
lined its shores, and which swarmed with 
game, and admiring the boundless prairies 
which stretched away from either bank to the 
horizon. 

The Pipe of Peace. 

One hundred and eighty miles below the 
mouth of the Wisconsin the voyagers for the 
first time discovered signs of human beings. 
They landed, and found an Indian village a 
few miles distant from the river. They were 
kindly received by the inhabitants, who spoke 
the language of the Indians who had come 
with Marquette, and a week was passed at 
this hospitable village. The villagers told 
the travellers that the lower river extended 
far to the south, where the heat was deadly, 
and that in those latitudes the stream 
abounded with monsters which destroyed 
both men and canoes. At the departure of 
the whites the chief of the tribe hung around 
Marquette's neck the peace-pipe, and ex- 
plained to him that it would prove a safe- 
guard to him among the tribes into whose 
territory his journey would lead him. 

Continuing their voyage the explorers 
reached the mouth of the Missouri, and 
noticed the strong, muddy stream which it 
poured into the Mississippi. "When I 
return," said Marquette, " I will ascend that 
river and pass beyond its headwaters, and 



26o 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



proclaim the gospel." One hundred and 
twenty miles farther south they passed the 
mouth of the Ohio, of which river they had 
heard from the Illinois at the village they 
had visited. As they proceeded farther south 
the heat became more intense, for it was the 
month of July. They met with Indians, 
whose hostility was disarmed by the peace- 
pipe which Marquette bore. Some of these 
Indians were armed with axes of European 
manufacture, which they had obtained either 
from the Spaniards in the far south, or from 
the English in Virginia. The voyage was 
continued to the mouth of the Arkansas. 
Marquette was now satisfied that the great 
river flowed into the Gulf of Mexico, and as 
he was fearful of falling into the hands of the 
Spaniards in that region, he decided to bring 
his voyage to an end, and return to the 
lakes. 

The Dying Missionary. 

The task of ascending the river was accom- 
plished with great difficulty, and at length 
the mouth of the Illinois was reached. As 
they supposed this stream would lead them 
to the lakes the voyagers ascended it to its 
headwaters, and then crossed the country to 
the site of Chicago, from which they con- 
tinued the voyage by way of Lake Michigan 
to Green Bay. 

Marquette despatched JoHet to Quebec to 
report the results of the voyage, but himself 
remained at Green Bay. It was his purpose 
to preach the gospel among the Illinois, who 
had begged him during his voyage to come 
back to them. He was detained at Green 
Bay for some time by feeble health, but in 
1675 went back to the Illinois, and began his 
labors among them. Feeling that his end 
was near he undertook to return to the mis- 
sion of St. Mary's, but fell ill on the way. 
He gave absolution to all his companions, 
and retired to pray. An hour afterwards, 



uneasy at his absence, his people went to 
seek him, and found him kneeling, but pray- 
ing no longer, for his spirit had gone to 
receive its reward. He was buried on the 
banks of the river that bears his name, and 
his memory was long cherished with affec- 
tion by the Indians. 

The work of exploration which Marquette 
had begun was taken up by a bolder and 
firmer hand. Robert Cavalier de la Salle, a 
man of good family, had been educated for 
the service of the Jesuits, but had abandoned 
his design of entering that order after com- 
pleting his education. In 1667 he had emi- 
grated to Canada to seek his fortune, and 
had established himself as a fur-trader on 
Lake Ontario. Encouraged by the governor 
of Canada he had explored Lake Ontario, 
and had ascended to Lake Erie. When the 
French governor a few years later built Fort 
Frontenac to guard the outlet of Lake 
Ontario, La Salle was granted an extensive 
domain, including Fort Frontenac, now the 
town of Kingston, on condition that he 
would maintain the fort. He thus obtained 
the monopoly of the fur-trade with the Five 
Nations. Here he was residing at the time 
of the death of Marquette. 

On the Road to Fortune. 

The news of Marquette's discoveries filled 
him with the deepest interest, and he was 
eager to continue the exploration of the 
river at the point at which Marquette had 
discontinued it, and to trace it to its mouth. 
He was already on the road to fortune, but 
the prospect of winning greater fame was too 
tempting to be resisted, and, leaving his pos- 
sessions on Lake Ontario, he sailed for 
France and laid before Colbert, the minister, 
the schemes he had for the exploration and 
colonization of the valley of the Mississippi. 
He obtained a grant of valuable privileges 
and received permission to attempt the task 



THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 



261 



of adding that vast region to the dominions 
of France. He returned to Fort Frontenac 
in the autumn of 1678, bringing with him as 
his lieutenant aft Italian veteran named Tonti 
and a number of mechanics and seamen, to- 
gether with the materials for rigging a ship. 
Before the winter had set in he ascended 
Lake Ontario to the Niagara River, where he 
built a trading-post. Then passing around 
the falls he constructed a vessel of sixty tons 
at the foot of Lake Erie. Tonti and Father 
Hennepin, a Franciscan, 
went among the Senecas 
during the construction 
of the ship and estab- 
lished friendly relations 
with them, and La Salle 
exerted himself to pro- 
cure furs with which to 
freight his vessel. The 
vessel completed, he as- 
cended Lake Erie, passed 
through the straits into 
Lakes Huron and Michi- 
gan, and entered Green 
Bay. Then loading his 
vessel with a cargo of 
valuable furs, he sent 
her to the Niagara, with 
orders to return with 
supplies as soon as pos- 
sible. 

During her absence 
La Salle and his com- 
panions ascended Lake Michigan in canoes 
as far as the mouth of the St. Joseph's, where 
they built a fort. Then crossing over to the 
valley of the Illinois, he built a fort on a bluff 
near the site of Peoria, and awaited the re- 
turn of the " Griffin." The vessel had been 
wrecked on the voyage to Niagara, and when 
it became evident that she would not return. 
La Salle named his fort Crevecoeur (" Heart- 
break.") 



Supplies were necessary to the exploration 
of the Mississippi, and La Salle being deter- 
mined to obtain them, took with him three 
companions and crossed the wilderness to 
Fort Frontenac, which he reached in the 
spring of 1680. During his absenqe, Father 
Hennepin, by his orders, explored the Upper 
Mississippi as far as the falls, which he named 
in honor of St. Anthony, the patron saint of 
the expedition. In the summer of 1680 
La Salle returned to the Illinois, but various 




FALLS OF ST. ANTHONY. 

causes intervening to delay him, he was not 
able to undertake his exploration of the 
Mississippi until 1682. In that year he built 
a barge on the upper Illinois, and embarking 
with his companions, floated down that 
stream to the Mississippi, which he descended 
to the Gulf of Mexico. He named the 
country along the banks of the river Louis- 
iana, in honor of Louis XIV., King of France. 
Then ascending the Mississippi, he returned 



262 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



by the Lakes to Quebec, and in 1683 sailed 
for France to enlist the government and peo- 
ple in his project for colonizing the country 
along the lower Mississippi. 

An Unfortunate Wreck. 

His design was encouraged by the king, 
and emigrants were readily found. In 
1684, he sailed from France with four 
ships and two . hundred and eighty per- 
sons to plant a colony at the mouth of 
the Mississippi. Unhappily the command- 
er of the fleet was not in sympathy with La 
Salle, and being jealous of his authority, man- 
ifested a degree of stubbornness which was 
fatal to the expedition. One hundred of the 
colonists were soldiers ; of the rest, some 
were volunteers, some mechanics, some 
women, and some priests. After a long voy- 
age they entered the Gulf of Mexico in Jan- 
uary, 1685. They sailed past the mouth of 
the Mississippi, and when La Salle perceived 
his error, Beaujeu, the commander of the 
fleet, refused to return, but continued his 
western course until the bay of Matagorda 
was reached. There La Salle, weary of his 
disputes with Beaujeu, resolved to land, 
hoping that he might yet find the mouth of 
the Mississippi. A careless pilot, in attempt- 
ing to get the store-ship into the harbor, 
wrecked her, and all the supplies which Louis 
XIV. had provided with a lavish hand were 
lost. 

The colony, which was named Fort St. 
Louis, was from the first doomed to misfor- 
tune, and in a little more than two years was 
reduced by disease and suffering to thirty- 
six persons. In January, 1687, La Salle, 
leaving twenty men at Fort St. Louis, set out 
with sixteen men to march across the conti- 
nent to Canada to obtain aid for the settle- 
ment. His remarkable courage and deter- 
mination would doubtless have accomplished 
this feat, but on the way he was murdered by 



two of his men, who regarded him as the 
author of their sufferings. Of the rest of his 
companions, five who kept together reached 
a small French post near the mouth of the 
Arkansas, after a journey of six months. 
The twenty men left at Fort St. Louis were 
never heard of again. The effort to colonize 
Texas completely failed, and all that was 
accomplished by La Salle's enterprise was 
the establishment of the claim of France to 
this region. 

Searching for La Salle. 

To La Salle is due the credit of having 
been the first to comprehend the importance 
of securing to France the great region 
watered by the Mississippi and its tributaries, 
and it was through his efforts that the atten- 
tion of France was seriously directed to its 
colonization. His remarkable qualities must 
always command the admiration and his sad 
fate elicit the sympathy of all generous 
hearts. 

While La Salle was vainly striving to ac- 
complish some good result with the Texas 
colony, his friend and lieutenant, Tonti, in 
obedience to his instructions, started from 
the Illinois and descended the Mississippi 
almost to its mouth, hoping to meet him. 
At length, despairing of seeing him, Tonti 
engraved a cross and the arms of France 
upon a tree on the banks of the river, and 
returned to the Illinois. 

In 1699, twelve years after the death of La 
Salle, another and this time a successful effort 
was made to secure Louisiana to France. 
Lemoine d'lbberville, a native of Canada and 
a man of ability and courage, resolved to 
plant a colony near the mouth of the Missis- 
sippi. With four vessels and two hundred 
emigrants, some of whom were women and 
children, he sailed from Canada for the mouth 
of the Mississippi. He landed at the mouth 
of the river Pascagoula, and with two barges 




MURDER OF LA SALLE 



264 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



manned by forty-eight men searched the 
coast for the mouth of the Mississippi. He 
found it and ascended as high as the mouth 
of the Red River. Here he was met by the 
Indians, who, to his astonishment, gave him 
a letter which had been placed in their charge 
fourteen years before. It was from Tonti, 
and was addressed to La Salle. He had 
given it to the Indians, and had charged 
them to deliver it to the first Frenchman 
they met. 

Shiftless Colonists. 

D'Ibberville returned to the gulf by 
way of Lakes Maurepas and Pontchartrain, 
which he named after two of the ministers 
of Louis XIV. Deeming the shores of the 
Mississippi too marshy for colonization, 
D'Ibberville formed a settlement at Biloxi, at 
the mouth of the Pascagoula, within the limits 
of the present state of Mississippi, and soon 
afterwards sailed for France to obtain rein- 
forcements and supplies, leaving one of his 
brothers, Sauville by name, as governor, and 
the other, Bienville, to explore the Missis- 
sippi and the country along its banks. 

Early in 1700 D'Ibberville returned from 
France, and about the same time Tonti, La 
Salle's former lieutenant, now an aged man, 
arrived from the country of the Illinois. 
Acting upon Tonti's advice, D'Ibberville 
ascended the Mississippi for four hundred 
miles, and on the site of the present city of 
Natchez built a fort which he named Rosalie, 
in honor of the Duchess of Pontchartrain. 
Neither the settlement at Biloxi nor Rosalie 
prospered, however. The colonists were a 
shiftless set, and instead of seeking to culti- 
vate the soil and establish homes for them- 
selves, went farther west to seek for gold. 
In 1702 D'Ibberville removed the colony 
from Biloxi to Mobile, which was founded in 
that year, and became the capital of Louis- 
iana and the centre of the French influence 



in the south. This settlement languished, 
however, and in ten years only two hundred 
emigrants were added to its population. 
It was forced to depend upon the French 
colonies in the West Indies for subsistence. 

New Orleans Founded. 

In 1 7 14 the French government, becoming 
convinced that it was necessary to make a 
more vigorous effort to colonize Louisiana 
if it meant to hold that country, granted a 
monopoly of trade to Arthur Crozat, who 
agreed to send over every year two ships 
laden with emigrants 'and supplies, and also 
a cargo of African slaves. The king, on his 
part, agreed to furnish the sum of ten thou- 
sand dollars annually for the protection of 
the colony. In the same year a trading- 
house was established at Natchitoches on the 
Red River, and another on the Alabama, 
near the present site of Montgomery. Fort 
Rosalie was made the centre of an important 
trade, and matters bep^an to wear a new 
aspect in Louisiana. 

In 17 1 8 Bienville, who had become satis- 
fied of the propriety of removing the seat of 
government from Mobile to the more produc- 
tive region of the lower Mississippi, put the 
convicts to work to clear up the thicket of 
cane which covered the site on which he 
meant to locate his new city, and upon the 
ground thus prepared erected a few huts, the 
germ of the great city of New Orleans. It 
grew more rapidly than any of the settlements 
in Louisiana. In 1722 it contained about 
one hundred log huts, and a population of 
seven hundred. In 1723 the seat of govern- 
ment was removed from Mobile to New 
Orleans; and 1727 the construction of the 
levee was begun. 

While these efforts were in progress in the 
lower Mississippi, the French were even 
more active in the west. Detroit was founded 
in 1 70 1, and the villages of Kaskaskin and 




c5 

tD 
pq 

CO 

I— I 



o 

Hq 

o 
w 

H 

m 
m 

Eh 

Fh 
<1 

y^ 

Ph 
Ph 

pL, 



THE FRENCH IN THE VALLEY OF THE MISSISSIPPL 



265 



Cabokia were formed around the stations of 
the missionaries on the east bank of the Mis- 
sissippi, above the mouth of the Ohio. The 
French population in America grew very 
slowly, however. In 1690 the population of 
Canada was only twelve hundred ; that, of 
Acadia, or Nova Scotia, less than one thou- 
sand ; and that of Louisiana less than five 
hundred. 

France had formed a deliberate and mag- 
nificent plan with respect to her American 
possessions. She meant to build up a mighty 
empire in the valley of the Mississippi, 
extending from the great lakes to the Gulf 
of Mexico, and touching Canada. Her efforts 
to accomplish this were lavish and persistent, 
but the unhealthiness of the climate, and the 
almost constant wars with the Natchez and 
Chickasaw Indians disheartened the settlers, 
and the French population grew so slowly 
that it could not accomplish the destiny 
demanded of it by the government at home. 
As late as 1740 Louisiana contained only 
about five thousand whites and less than two 
thousand five hundred negroes. The slow 
increase of the population made it necessary 
to hold the country by a series of military 
posts. By the year 1750 more than sixty of 
these posts had been built between Lake 
Ontario and the Gulf of Mexico, by way of 
Green Bay, the Illinois, the Wabash, and the 
Maumee rivers, and along the Mississippi to 
New Orleans. 

French Claims in America. 

The most important of these forts were 
held by garrisons of regular troops, who 
were relieved once in six years. They 
accomplished this in the face of the constant 
hostility of their old enemies, the tribes of 
the Five Nations, and the Natchez and 
Chickasaws. In 1748 the French extended 
their claim to the country south of Lake 
Erie, as far east as the mountains, which they 



explored, and took formal possession of by 
burying at the most important points leaden 
plates engraved with the arms of France. 
According to the ideas of the times, their 
claim was a valid one. 

In the meantime the settlements of Louis- 
iana had been obliged to struggle against the 
constant hostility of the Natchez Indians, 
who occupied the country around the present 
city which bears their name. They were not 
very numerous, but were more intelligent 
and civilized than the tribes among whom 
they dwelt. They worshiped the sun, from 
which deity their principal chief claimed 
to be descended. They watched the growing 
power of the French with alarm, and at 
length resolved to put a stop to the progress 
of the whites by a general massacre. 

Seven Hundred Murders. 

On the twenty-eighth of November, 1729, 
they fell upon the settlement at Fort Rosalie 
and massacred the garrison and settlers, 
seven hundred in number. They were not 
long permitted to exult over their success. 
When the news of the massacre reached 
New Orleans, Bienville resolved to retaliate 
severely upon the aggressors. He applied 
to the Choctaws, the hereditary enemies of 
the Natchez, for assistance, and was furnished 
by them with sixteen hundred warriors. 
With these and his own troops Bienville 
besieged the Natchez in their fort ; but they 
escaped under the cover of the night and fled 
west of the Mississippi. They were followed 
by the French and forced to surrender, 
after which they were taken to New Or- 
leans and sent to St. Domingo, where they 
were sold as slaves. The Great Sun was 
among the captives, and the tribe of the 
Natchez was completely destroyed. 

It was well known to the French that the 
Chickasaws,a powerful tribe dwelling between 
the territory of the Natchez and the Ohio on 



266 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



the north, and as far as the country of the 
Cherokees on the east, had incited the 
Natchez against them. Bienville therefore 
resolved to turn his arms against them. 
They had also given great trouble to the 
French by attacking and plundering their 
trading-boats descending the Mississippi 
from the posts on the Illinois. Bienville con- 
certed measures for a combined attack upon 
the Chickasaws with D'Artaguette, governor 
of the Illinois country, and two expeditions 
were despatched against the Indians. 

Bienville, with a strong force of French 
troops and twelve hundred Choctaw warriors, 
sailed in boats from New Orleans to Mobile 



and ascended the Tombigbee five hundred 
miles, to the place now known as Cotton 
Gin point. He landed here and marched 
twenty-five miles overland to the principal 
fort of the Chickasaws, which he at once 
attacked. He was repulsed with the loss of 
one hundred men, and was so discouraged 
that he returned to New Orleans. DArta- 
guette entered the Chickasaw country with 
fifty Frenchmen and one thousand Indians. 
He was defeated and taken prisoner, and was 
burned at the stake in May, 1735. In 1740 
another effort was made by the French to 
crush the Chickasaws, but was equally un- 
successful. 




CHAPTER XXI. 



Conflicts Between the Enorlish and French. 

Relations Between the English and the Five Nations — The Hostility of the Latter to the French — King William's War 
— Destruction of Dover— The Jesuit Missionaries Incite the Indians to Attack the English — Expedition Against Que- 
bec — Attack on Dustin's Farm — Peace of Ryswick — Hostility of the English to Roman Catholics — Queen Anne's 
War — Burning of Deerfield — Eunice Williams — Cruelties to the French — Effort of New England to Conquer Acadia — 
Capture of Port Royal — Failure of the Expedition Against Quebec — King George's War — Expedition Against Louis- 
burg — Its Composition — Arrival of the Fleet at Cape Breton — Good Conduct of the Provincials — Capture of Louis- 
burg— Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle— Unjust Treatment of the Colonies by England— Sentiment of the Americans 
Towards England. 



THE territory of the Five Nations lay 
between the English and French 
colonies. The friendship which 
these tribes had borne to the Dutch 
was transferred to the English upon the con- 
quest of New Netherlands by the latter, and 
they remained the faithful and devoted allies 
of Great Britain until after the Revolution. 
Though they remained at peace with the 
French for some years after the treaty, which 
has been mentioned in the preceding chap- 
ter, they regarded a renewal of hostilities 
with them as certain, and were on the whole 
anxious to resume the struggle at the earliest 
mom'^nt. 

James II., eager to establish the Roman 
Catholic religion in America, instructed the 
governor of New York to cultivate friendly 
relations with the French, and to exert all 
his influence to induce the Five Nations to 
receive Jesuit missionaries. The governor, 
however, saw that the French were rapidly 
monopolizing the fur trade, and he encour- 
aged the Five Nations to regard them with 
suspicion and dislike. The French by their 
own bad treatment of the Mohawks put an 
end to the hope of a lasting peace with them. 
Upon the escape of James II. to France, 
Louis XIV. warmly espoused the cause of 
the dethroned king, which he declared was 



the cause of legitimate monarchy as opposed 
to the right of the people to self-government ; 
and the war which was thus begun in Europe 
spread to the possessions of the rival powers 
in America. The objects of the two parties 
in America were very different. That of the 
people of New England, who were princi- 
pally interested in the struggle, was to secure 
their northern frontier against invasion from 
Canada, and to get possession of the fisheries. 
The French, on the other hand, wished to 
obtain entire control of the valley of the 
Mississippi, which would make them sole 
masters of the fur trade, and to extend their 
power over the valley of the St. Lawrence, 
and thus obtain control of the fisheries also. 
To accomplish their first object the friend- 
ship of the Indian tribes in the valley the of 
Mississippi was indispensable, and they 
exerted every means of which they were 
possessed to gain it. They renewed their 
efforts to win over the Five Nations, but 
without success. The war between these 
tribes and the French was soon renewed, as 
has been related, and on the twenty-fifth of 
August, 1689, a band of fifteen hundred Mo- 
hawk warriors surprised and captured Mon- 
treal, and put two hundred of the inhabitants 
to death with horrible cruelty. An equal 
number of whites were made prisoners. 

267 



268 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



In the same year Count Frontenac was 
appointed governor of Canada for the second 
time. He came resolved to break the power 
-of the English, and reached Canada just in 
time to hear of the capture of Montreal. He 
at once set to work to incite the Indians to a 
series of incursions against the English set- 
tlements which should thoroughly establish 
his influence over the savage warriors, who 
would obey none but a successful chief, and 
at the same time strike terror to the enemies 
of France. 




VIEW OF MONTREAL FROM MOUNT ROYAL. 



The first blow was struck at Dover, in 
New Hampshire. The commander of the 
garrison at this place was Major Richard 
Waldron. Thirteen years before, during 
King Philip's war, two hundred eastern 
Indians came to Dover to treat of peace. 
Waldron treacherously seized them and sent 
them to Boston, where some of them were 
hanged, and the remainder sold into slavery. 
The savages had neither forgotten nor for- 
given the wrongs of their brothers, and now 
they resolved to meet the whites with their 
•own weapons of deceit and treachery. 



On the evening of the twenty-seventh of 
June, 1689, two Indian squaws came to Dover 
and asked for a night's lodging. Waldron, 
now an old man of eighty, was unsuspicious of 
harm. Their request was granted and the 
squaws were lodged in his house. In the dead 
of the night the women arose, unbarred the 
gates and admitted the warriors, who had 
lain in ambush near the town. Waldron's 
house was first entered, the first duty of the 
savages being to discharge their debt of 
vengeance by a cold-blooded murder. 

The brave old man 
seized his sword and 
defended himself un- 
til he was felled to the 
floor by a blow which 
stunned him. He was 
then seated in a chair 
and placed on a table, 
and the savages sa- 
luted him with jeers. 
" Who will judge In- 
dians now?" they 
asked. "Who will 
hang our brothers? 
Will the pale-face 
Waldron give us life 
for life ?" As they 
spoke they gashed 
him across the breast 
with their knives, inflicting wounds equal in 
number to their friends whom he had be- 
trayed. The old man bore his tortures 
firmly until he died ; the Indians then set 
fire to the house and burned the rest of the 
settlement. Nearly half the inhabitants were 
murdered and the remainder were carried 
into captivity. 

The other frontier towns suffered severely 
from Maine to New York. A band of 
French and Indians, in February, 1690^ 
toiled across the wilderness from Montreal 
to central New York on snow-shoes and 



CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 



269 



surprised Schenectady. The place was 
burned, the majority of the settlers were 
killed, and many women and children were 
carried into captivity. A few escaped 
through the snow to Albany. Deerfield and 
Haverhill in Massachusetts, Salmon Falls in 
New Hampshire, and Casco in Maine met a 
similar fate. The French had resolved to 
make the war one of extermination, and 
neither they nor their savage allies showed 
any mercy to the English in their hour of 
triumph. 

Failure to Capture Montreal. 

The savages were incited to their bloody 
task by the Jesuit missionaries. The first 
race of missionaries, whose good deeds we 
have chronicled in the last chapter, had died 
out, and their successors could conceive of 
no higher standard of duty than the exter- 
mination of the English heretics. They 
roused the fury of their dusky converts 
against the English as the enemies of the 
Roman religion, and then confessing and 
absolving the savage warriors, sent them forth 
to murder and destroy, with the solemn 
assurance that such acts on their part would 
win them the favor of their Father in 
Heaven. When peace was made two Jesuit 
priests, Thury and Bigot, induced the Eastern 
Indians to break the treaty and renew the 
war, and even took pride in acknowledging 
themselves the instigators of the atrocities of 
the savages. These things were well under- 
stood among the English, and they came to 
regard the Jesuit missionaries as the enemies 
of mankind. 

In May, 1690, a congress of delegates 
from Massachusetts, Connecticut and New 
York was held at New York for the purpose 
of concerting a plan for an invasion of Can- 
ada. It was resolved to send an army against 
Montreal by way of Lake Champlain, while 
Massachusetts should despatch a fleet to 



attack Quebec. The first expedition, com- 
posed of the troops of New York and Con- 
necticut, advanced to Lake Champlain, 
attended by a strong force of Mohawk allies. 
Frontenac promptly assembled his French 
and Indians for the defence of Montreal, and 
succeeded in inflicting a sharp defeat upon 
the Mohawks, under Colonel Philip Schuyler, 
who led the advance of the English army. 
The Mohawks were unable to regain their 
lost ground and the provincial troops were 
delayed by the dissensions of their leaders 
until the provisions ran short and the small- 
pox broke out among the men. It then 
became necessary to abandon the attempt. 

Death and Desolation. 

In the meantime Massachusetts equipped 
a fleet of thirty-two vessels and two thou- 
sand men and despatched it to the St. Law- 
rence under the command of the governor. 
Sir William Phipps, whose incompetency 
produced the failure of the expedition. 
Frontenac was promptly informed of the 
departure of the fleet by an Indian runner 
from the Piscataqua, who reached Montreal 
in twelve days. Frontenac at once set out 
for Quebec and arrived there three days in 
advance of the English fleet, which was 
obliged to feel its way cautiously up the St. 
Lawrence. When the hostile vessels arrived 
off the city, Quebec was prepared to offer a 
determined resistance. After a few harmless 
demonstrations, Sir William Phipps withdrew 
and returned to Boston, to the great disap- 
pointment of the colony. A large debt had 
been incurred in this enterprise and a num- 
ber of valuable lives had been lost, but noth- 
ing had been gained. 

The Eastern Indians continued their ag- 
gressions, but were severely punished by 
Captain Samuel Church, who had served 
with distinction in King Philip's war. On 
one occasion he was so exasperated by the 



2/0 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



cruelties of the savages that he put a number 
of his prisoners, including some women and 
children, to death. The savages mercilessly 
avenged the murder of their friends and car- 
ried death and desolation along the borders 
of New England. Nearly every settlement 
in Maine was destroyed by them or aban- 
doned by the inhabitants, who fled to the 
other colonies for protection. The Indians 
prowled around the frontier, posts. They 
had been well armed by the French, and 
shot down the men without mercy. The 
women and children were generally spared 
and carried to Canada, where they were sold 
to the French as slaves. In 1693 peace was 
made with the Abenakis, or Eastern Indians, 
but within a year the Jesuits had succeeded 
in inducing the savages to resume hostilities. 

A Daring Escape. 

A party of Indians attacked the house of a 
farmer named Dustin, residing near Haver- 
hill. He was at work in the field when the 
shouts of the savages warned him of the 
danger of his wife and children. Throwing 
himself on his horse, he hastened to their 
rescue, and on the way met his children fly- 
ing for safety pursued by the savages. He 
threw himself in front of the little ones, and 
by a few well-aimed shots kept the pursuers 
back until the children reached a place of 
safety. Hannah Dustin, her youngest child 
— only a few days old — her nurse, and a boy 
from Worcester, unable to fly, were made 
prisoners by the Indians. The little one was 
killed, and the two women and the boy were 
carried away by the savages to their village, 
situated on an island in the Merrimac, just 
above Concord. 

Hannah Dustin resolved to escape, and 
communicated her plan to her companions. 
Each secured a tomahawk, and at night be- 
gan the destruction of their captors, twelve 
in number. Ten Indians were killed and one 



squaw was wounded. The twelfth, a child, 
was purposely spared. Then collecting the 
gun and tomahawk of the murderer of her 
infant, and a bag full of scalps, the heroic 
women secured a canoe, and embarking in it 
with her companions, floated down the Mer- 
rimac and soon reached Haverhill, where 
they were received with astonishment and 
delight by their friends. 

This struggle, which is known in Ameri- 
can history as "King William's War," was 
brought to a close in September, 1697, by the 
Peace of Ryswick. It had lasted seven years, 
and had caused severe suffering to the 
northern colonies, without yielding them any 
compensating advantages. 

The Five Nations were also severe suffer- 
ers. Failing to win them from their alliance 
with the English, Frontenac several times 
invaded their country with an army of French 
troops and Indians, and ravaged it with great 
cruelty. Frontenac led these expeditions in 
person, though he was seventy-four years 
old. 

The people of New York, regarding the 
Jesuits as the true authors of the miseries 
endured by the English and their allies, en- 
acted a law in 1700, that every Romish priest 
who voluntarily came into the province 
should be hanged. 

Butchery at Deerfield. 

Five years after the Peace of Ryswick, the 
War of the Spanish Succession, or, as it is 
known in American history, " Queen Anne's 
War," began in Europe. It soon extended 
to America, and embroiled the English and 
French in this country. The English settle- 
ments on the western frontier of New Eng- 
land were almost annihilated by the Indians, 
and the French were unusually active. 

The people of Deerfield were warned by 
the friendly Mohawks that the French and 
Indians were meditating an attack upon their 



CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 



271 



settlements and through the winter of 1703-4 
a vigilant watch was kept by night and day. 
The winter was very severe; the snow lay 
four feet deep, and the clear, cold atmosphere 
made it almost' as hard as ice. Profiting by 
this, a war party of about two hundred 
French and one hundred and forty-two In- 
dians, under the command of Hertel de Rou- 
ville, set out from Canada, and by the aid of 
snow-shoes crossed the country on the snow 
and reached the vicinity of Deerfield on the 
last night of February, 1704. Towards day- 
break on the first of March the sentinels, 
supposing that all was safe, left their posts at 
Deerfield, and the enemy at once silently 
mounted on the snow-drifts to the top of the 
palisades and entered the enclosure, which 
had an area of twenty acres. A general 
massacre followed. The town was destroyed, 
forty persons were killed, and one hundred 
and twelve were carried away into Canada. 

Fate of Eunice Williams. 

Among the captives were the minister 
Williams, his wife Eunice, and their five chil- 
dren. The sufferings of the prisoners on the 
inarch to Canada were fearful. Two men 
starved to death. The infant, whose cries 
disturbed the captors, was tossed out into the 
snow to die ; and the mother who faltered 
from fatigue or anguish was despatched by a 
blow from the tomahawk. Eunice Williams 
had brought her Bible along with her, and in 
the brief intervals afforded by the halts of the 
savages for rest, drew from its sacred pages 
the consolations she so sorely needed. Her 
strength soon failed, as she had but recently 
recovered from her confinement. Her hus- 
band sought to cheer her by pointing her to 
" the house not made with hands," and she 
assured him that she was satisfied to endure 
any suffering, counting it gain for Christ's 
sake. Perceiving that her end was near, she 
commended her children to God and to their 



father's care, and was immediately killed by 
the savages, as she could go no farther. 

The Williams family were taken to Can- 
ada, and a few years later were ransomed, 
with the exception of the youngest daughter, 
with whom the savages refused to part. She 
was adopted into a village of Christian In- 
dians near Montreal, and became a convert 
to the Roman Catholic faith, and subse- 
quently married a Mohawk chief. Years 
afterwards she appeared at Deerfield clad in 
the dress of her tribe. She had come to 
visit her relatives; but no entreaties could 
induce her to remain with them, and she 
went back to her adopted people and to her 
children. 

Slaughter of the Helpless. 

The war was conducted with brutal ferocity 
by the French. Hertel de Rouville gained 
eternal infamy by his butcheries of helpless 
women and children. Vaudreuil, the gov- 
ernor of Canada, urged on his forces to deeds 
of fresh atrocity, but at length the savages 
became disgusted with their bloody work 
and refused to murder any more English. 
The French succeeded, however, in inducing 
some of them to continue their assistance, 
and in 1708 Haverhill was surprised by the 
French and Indians under Rouville, and its 
inhabitants massacred with the most fiendish 
cruelty. None of them escaped death or 
captivity. 

Filled with horror and indignation, Colonel 
Peter' Schuyler, of New York, wrote to the 
Marquis de Vaudreuil : " I hold it my duty 
towards God and my neighbor, to prevent, if 
possible, these barbarous and heathen cruel- 
ties. My heart swells with indignation when 
I think that a war between Christian princes, 
bound to the exactest laws of honor and gen- 
erosity, which their noble ancestors have 
illustrated by brilliant examples, is degene- 
rating into a savage and boundless butchery. 



2/2 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



These are not the methods for terminating 
the war." 

"Such fruitless cruelties," says Bancroft, 
" inspired our fathers with a deep hatred of 
the French missionaries ; they compelled the 
employment of a large part of the inhabitants 
as soldiers, so that there was one year during 
this war when even a fifth part of all who 
were capable of bearing arms were in active 
service. They gave birth also to a willing- 
ness to exterminate the natives. The Indians 




RETURN OF THE DAUGHTER OF EUNICE WILLIAMS. 



vanished when their homes were invaded ; 
they could not be reduced by usual methods 
of warfare ; hence a bounty was offered for 
every Indian scalp ; to regular forces under 
pay the grant was ten pounds — to volunteers 
in actual service, twice that sum ; but if men 
would, of themselves, without pay, make up 
parties and patrol the forests in search of 
Indians, as of old the woods Avere scoured 
for wild beasts, the chase was invigorated by 



the promised ' encourgement of fifty pounds 
per scalp. ' " 

In 1707 Massachusetts, New Hampshire 
and Rhode Island made a combined attempt 
to conquer Acadia. A fleet was despatched 
against Port Royal, but without success. In 
1 7 10 a second expedition was sent from 
Boston against Port Royal, aided this time 
by an English fleet. Port Royal was taken, 
the French were driven out of the greater 
part of Acadia, and that province was an- 
nexed to the English do- 
minions and called Nova 
Scotia. The name of Port 
Royal was changed to An- 
napolis, in honor of the 
Queen of England. 

Encouraged by this suc- 
cess, the English Govern- 
ment the next year at- 
tempted the conquest of 
Canada by two expeditions, 
one by land and the other 
by sea. A powerful fleet 
and a strong army was des- 
patched from England to 
co-operate with the colo- 
nists. The effort was un- 
successful. The fleet, which 
was badly handled by the 
admiral in attempting to 
ascend the St. Lawrence, 
was wrecked with the loss 
of eight vessels and eight 
eighty-four men, and was 
The failure of 



hundred and 

obliged to return to Boston. 

the fleet to accomplish anything compelled 

the abandonment of the land expedition 

against Montreal. In 171 3 the war was 

brought to an end by the treaty of Utrecht, 

by which Acadia was ceded permanently to 

Great Britain and became a province of the 

English crown. 

The third Indian war broke out in 1722 



CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 



275 



in the northern colonies, and spread from 
the disputed border on the east to Maine 
and New Hampshire, where the scenes 
which we have so often described were 
enacted over again. The crack of the rifle, 
the war-whoop of the Indian, the crash of 
the tomahawk, and the smoke of the cabin 
played their dreadful part, as they had done 
so many times before, and have done so 
often since. 

Father Sebastien Rasle had dwelt among 
Indians for nearly forty years, living so thor- 
oughly their life, while he preached and 
ministered to them, that his influence was un- 
bounded. He possessed great learning, and, 
being a French Jesuit, sympathized so strongly 
with the views of the governor of Canada that 
he was worth a whole regiment of troops. 
The Indian settlement at Norridgewock, 
where it may be said this French chief was 
sole ruler, was highly prosperous. Two 
attempts were made to break it by capturing 
Rasle, but he escaped each time. 

Peace at Last. 

In August, 1724, however, it was attacked 
by a force of two hundred men, when most 
of the warriors were gone from home. 
Those who escaped fled to the woods, and 
Father Rasle was killed while trying to divert 
attention from the flying fugitives. When 
the assailants departed and the Indians re- 
turned, they found the dead body of Rasle, 
scalped, hacked and mutilated. They gave 
it tender burial under the altar of the pil- 
laged chapel, and uttered many a wild vow 
of vengeance on those who had robbed them 
of their beloved leader. 

In the hope of checking the shocking 

brutalities, the provinces sent representatives 

to Governor Vaudreuil at Montreal. He 

treated them with much courtesy, but it took 

a long time to bring him to terms. He 

finally promised to advise the Indians to 
i8 



stop hostilities. The eastern tribe learned 
shortly after that preparations were on foot 
to press them more than ever, and they con- 
sented to make peace, which, with now and 
then a slight interruption, continued down to 
the French and Indian war. 

In 1744 the disputes in Europe concerning 
the succession of the Austrian throne cul- 
minated in a war, which is known in Euro- 
pean history as the War of the Austrian 
Succession, and in America as King George's 
war. As usual, England and France were 
arrayed on opposite sides, and their colonies 
in America soon became involved in hostili- 
ties. The French were the first to receive 
information from Europe of the existence of 
war, and began the struggle by attacking 
and capturing the English fort at Canso and 
carrying the garrison prisoners to Louisburg. 

Louisburg, the principal port of the island 
of Cape Breton, was at this time the strongest 
fortress in America, and from its secure har- 
bor the French were constantly despatching 
privateers against the merchant vessels and 
fishermen of New England. These depre- 
dations caused such serious loss to the 
eastern colonies that at length Governor 
Shirley proposed to the general court of 
Massachusetts to undertake the capture of 
Louisburg as the only means of putting a 
stop to them, and this measure was laid by 
the general court before the other colonies. 

Another Appeal to Arms. 

It was understood that no aid was to be 
expected from the mother country, which 
was too busily engaged in conducting the 
war in Europe, and that the colonies would 
be obliged to depend entirely upon their 
own resources for their success. Neverthe- 
less, the measure was popular, and the enthu- 
siasm of the colonists was aroused to the 
highest point. Nearly all the northern col- 
onies had suffered severely at the hands of 




274 



CRUET. MURDER OF RASLE. 



CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 



275 



the French and Indians, and in every ship- 
ping port were to be found scores of men 
who had been robbed and otherwise mal- 
treated by the French privateers. Pennsyl- 
vania and New Jersey, under the influence 
of the Quaker dislike of war, declined to 
send troops, but furnished a fair supply of 
money to defray their share of the expenses 
of the expedition ; New York made a con- 
tribution of money and of a number of 
pieces of artillery; Connecticut gave five 
hundred men, and New Hampshire and 
Rhode Island each contributed a regiment. 

Moving Against the Enemy. 

Massachusetts, being the most interested 
in the success of the expedition by reason of 
being the largest owner of shipping, under- 
took the principal part of the expense and 
agreed to furnish a majority of the troops 
and the vessels. There was no difficulty in 
procuring volunteers, but those who offered 
themselves were civilians, ignorant of military 
discipline, and utterly unprepared to attempt 
the reduction of such a fortress as that 
against which the expedition was directed. 
These disadvantages, however, were lost sight 
of in the enthusiasm aroused by the hope of 
destroying the ability of the French to prey 
upon the commerce of the colonies. 

Sir William Pepperell,a wealthy merchant 
of Maine, was elected commander of the ex- 
pedition, which rendezvoused at Boston in 
the early spring of 1745. One hundred 
vessels and a force of over three thousand 
men were assembled, and about the first of 
April sailed for Canso, which was reached 
on the seventh. The ice was drifting in such 
quantities that the fleet could not enter the 
harbor of Louisburg, and was obliged to 
remain at Canso for more than two weeks. 
Admiral Warren, commanding the West 
India squadron, had been invited to join the 
expedition, but in the absence of instructions 



from. England had declined to do so. Al- 
most immediately afterwards he received 
orders from home to render Massachusetts 
every aid in his power, and at once joined the 
New England fleet at Canso with four ships 
of war and a detachment of regular troops. 
At length, the ice having moved south- 
ward, the New England fleet entered the 
harbor of Louisburg on the thirtieth of April. 
The fortress was built on a neck of land on 
the south side of the harbor, and its walls 
were from twenty to thirty feet high and forty 
feet thick at the base, and were surrounded 
with a ditch eighty feet in width. Outlying 
forts protected the main work, and there was 
not a foot of the walls that was not swept by 
the fire of the artillery. Nearly two hundred 
and fifty cannon of all sizes constituted the 
armament of the fortress, and the principal 
outwork, the " royal battery," was deemed 
capable of withstanding an attack of five 
thousand men. The garrison numbered six- 
teen hundred men. To attack this fortress 
the New England troops brought with them 
eighteen cannon and three mortars. 

The French Driven to the ^Voods. 

As the fleet drew near the town the 
French marched down to the beach to op- 
pose the landing of the troops. Immediately 
the whale-boats of the ships were lowered 
and manned, and at a signal from the flag- 
ship darted for the shore with a speed which 
astonished and struck terror to the French, 
who were quickly driven to the woods. The 
landing was secured, and the next day a de- 
tachment of four hundred men marched by 
the town, giving it three cheers as they 
passed, and took position near the northeast 
harbor, completely cutting off the fortress 
from communication with the country in its 
rear. This completed the investment, as the 
fleet closed the harbor, and prevented the 
approach of relief by sea. 



276 



SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA. 



That night the troops in the royal battery 
spiked the guns of that work, abandoned it, 
and retreated into the town. It was imme- 
diately occupied by the New Englanders, 
who drilled the spikes out of the vent-holes 
of the guns, and turned them against the 
town. Batteries were erected by the colonial 
troops, and their fire opened upon Louis- 
burg. The volunteers proved admirable 
soldiers, exciting the surprise of the English 
naval officers by the readiness and facility 
with which they discharged the various 
duties required of them. Numbers of them 
were mechanics by profession, and their skill 
was of the greatest service in this emergency. 

A New Hampshire colonel, who was a 
carpenter, constructed sledges with which to 
drag the artillery across a morass to the 
positions assigned the batteries. The 
weather was mild and singularly dry, and 
the men were healthy. " All day long the 
men, if not on duty, were busy with amuse- 
ments — firing at marks, fishing, fowling, 
wrestling, racing or running after balls shot 
from the enemy's guns." 

An Important Capture. 

In the meantime the ships of Admiral 
Warren blockaded the harbor, and not only 
prevented French vessels from entering the 
port, but succeeded in decoying into the 
midst of the English fleet the French frigate 
" Vigilante," of sixty guns, which was cap- 
tured after a sharp engagement of several 
hours. She was loaded with stores for the 
fortress, and these fell into the hands of the 
victors. 

The French commander, who had shown 
but little energy during the siege, was now 
so thoroughly disheartened that on the sev- 
enteenth of June, just seven weeks after the 
commencement of the investment, he surren- 
dered the town and fortifications. As the 
colonial troops entered the place to take pos- 



session of it they were astonished at the 
strength of the works. " God has gone out 
of the way of His common providence, in a 
remarkable and miraculous manner," they 
said, " to incline the hearts of the French to 
give up, and deliver this strong city into our 
hands." The capture of Louisburg by the 
undisciplined volunteers of America was the 
greatest success achieved by England during 
the war. The colonists were justly proud of 
it. Bells were rung and bonfires lighted in 
all the colonies, and the people rejoiced 
greatly at the success of their brethren and 
friends. England, with characteristic selfish- 
ness, claimed the glory exclusively for the 
squadron of Admiral Warren. 

Humiliating Treaty. 

France was greatly alarmed at the capture 
of Louisburg, which seriously threatened her 
dominion in America, and measures were at 
once begun for its recovery, and for the de- 
struction of the English colonies. In 1746, 
a large fleet was despatched to America 
under the Duke d'Anville, but many of the 
vessels were lost at sea, and the fleet was 
greatly weakened by pestilence. In the 
midst of these misfortunes the Duke d'An- 
ville suddenly died, and his successor lost his 
mind, and committed suicide. The expedi- 
tion made no serious demonstration against 
the English, and resulted in total failure. In 
1 747, another fleet was sent out from France 
for the same purpose, but was captured after 
a severe fight by an English fleet under 
Admirals Anson and Warren. 

In spite of these successes, however, the 
frontiers of the northern colonies suffered 
considerably, and the English government 
resolved to attempt once more the conquest 
of Canada. All the colonies were required 
to furnish men or money to this enterprise, 
and eight thousand men were enlisted. The 
British governqjent delayed, however, and 



CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH. 



277 



finally abandoned the enterprise. On the 
eighteenth of October, 1748, the treaty of 
Aix-la-Chapelle closed the war. 

The treaty required that all places taken 
by either party during the war should be 
restored, and Louisburg was delivered up to 
the French, to the great disgust of the New 
England colonies, who saw all the results of 
their sacrifices thrown away, and their com- 
merce and fisheries once more placed at the 
mercy of the French. England had never 
regarded the interests of her colonies as 
worth considering, however, and it was not 
to be expected that she should manifest any 
concern for them now. 

Dangerous Neighbors. 
It was commonly believed in America, and 
with good reason, that the king did not desire 
that New England should enjoy the security 
necessary to her prosperity. His majesty 
was beginning to be jealous of his American 
subjects, who had, as Admiral Warren ex- 
pressed it, " the highest notion of the rights 
and liberties of an Englishman," and he was 
resolved to keep them so weak that they 
should not forget their dependence upon 
him. Peter Kalm, a Swedish traveller, who 
visited New York in 1748, thus records the 
prevailing sentiment in America at this 
period : " The English colonies in this part 
of the world have increased so much in 
wealth and population that they will vie 
with European England. But to maintain 
the commerce and the power of the metropo- 
lis they are forbid to establish new manufac- 
tures, which might compete with the English ; 
they may dig for gold and silver only on con- 
dition of shipping them immediately to Eng- 
land ; they have, with the exception of a few 
fixed places, no liberty to trade to any ports 
not belonging to the English dominions, and 
foreigners are not allowed the least com- 
merce with these American colonies. And 
there are many similar restrictions. 



" These oppressions have made the inhab- 
itants of the English colonies less tender to 
their motherland. This coldness is increased 
by the many foreigners who are settled among 
them ; for Dutch, Germans and French are 
here blended with England, and have no 
special love for old England. Besides, some 
people are always discontented and love 
change; and exceeding freedom and pros- 
perity nurse an untamable spirit. I have 
been told, not only by native Americans, 
but by English emigrants, publicly, that 
within thirty or fifty years the English colo- 
nies in North America may constitute a 
separate state entirely independent of Eng- 
land. But as this whole country is towards 
the sea unguarded, and on the frontier is 
kept uneasy by the French, these dangerous 
neighbors are the reason why the love of 
these colonies for their metropolis does not 
utterly decline. The English government 
has, therefore, reason to regard the French 
in North America as the chief power that 
urges their colonies to submission." 

During the last year of the war an incident 
occurred at Boston which might have opened 
the eyes of the ministry to the growing de- 
termination of the Americans to resist any 
interference with their liberties. Desertions 
from the English ships-of-war in Boston har- 
bor had become so frequent that Sir Charles 
Knowles, the commanding officer, sent his 
boats up to Boston one morning and seized 
a number of seamen in the vessels at the 
wharves, and a number of mechanics and 
laborers engaged in work on shore. The 
people of Boston indignantly demanded of 
the governor the release of the impressed 
men. As his excellency declined to inter- 
fere in the matter, the people seized the com- 
manders and officers of the ships who hap- 
pened to be in the town, and kept them pris- 
oners until they agreed to release the men 
they had unlawfully seized. 



BOOK III 

The French and Indian War 

CHAPTER XXri 
Outbreak of Hostilities 



England Claims the Valley of the Ohio — Organization of the Ohio Company — The French Extend Their Posts Into the- 
Ohio Country — Washington's Mission to the French at Fort Duquesne — His Journey — Reception by the French — His. 
Journey Home — A Perilous Undertaking — Organization of the Virginia Forces — Washington Made Second in Com- 
mand — The French Drive the English from the Head of the Ohio — Fort Duquesne Built by Them — Washington 
CroGses the Mountains — The Fight at Great Meadows — Beginning of the French and Indian War — Surrender of Fort 
Necessity to the French — Unjust Treatment of the Colonial Officers — Congress of the Colonies at New York — Frank- 
hn's Plan of a Union of the Colonies — Its Failure— Reasons ot the British Government for Rejecting It — England 
Assumes the Direction of the War — Amval of General Braddock — Plan of Campaign — Obstinacy of Braddock — He 
Passes the Mountains — Defeat of Braddock — Heroism of Washington — Retreat of Dunbar Beyond the Mountains — 
Vigorous Action of Pennsylvania — Armstrong Defeats the Indians and Burns the Town of Kittanning. 



THE wars between the English and 
French in America which we have 
just considered were but a prelude 
to the great struggle which was to 
decide which of these powers should con- 
trol the destinies of the new world. The 
English, as we have seen, were growing 
stronger and more numerous along the At- 
lantic coast, and were directing their new 
settlements farther into the interior with 
each succeeding year. The French held 
Canada and the valley of the Mississippi, 
but their tenure was that of a military occu- 
pation rather than a colonization. 

Between the possessions of these hostile 
nations lay the valley of the Ohio, a beauti- 
ful and fertile region, claimed by both, but 
occupied as yet by neither. The French had 
explored the country, and had caused leaden 
plates engraved with the arms of France to 
be deposited at its principal points to attest 
their claim ; and had opened friendly rela- 
tions with the Indians. 
278 



The region had been frequently visited by 
the traders, who brought back reports of its 
remarkable beauty and fertility and of its 
excellent climate. The British government 
regarded this region as a portion of Virginia, 
and one of the chief desires of the Earl of 
Halifax, the prime minister of England, was 
to secure the Ohio valley by planting an 
English colony in it. A company was or- 
ganized in Virginia and Maryland for this 
purpose and for the purpose of trading with 
the Indians, and was warmly supported by 
the Earl of Halifax. It was named the Ohio 
Company, and at length succeeded in obtain- 
ing a favorable charter from the king, who, 
in March, 1749, ordered the governor of 
Virginia to assign to the Ohio Company five 
hundred thousand acres of land lying be- 
tween the Monongahela and Kanawha 
rivers, and along the Ohio 

The company were required to despatch, 
within seven years at least, one hundred fam- 
ilies to the territory granted them, to locate 



OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 



279 



without delay at least two-fifths of the lands 
they desired to occupy, and to build and gar- 
rison a fort at their own cost. They were 
granted an exemption from quit-rents and 
other dues for ten years, and this freedom 



needed for their traffic with the Indians, the 
Ohio Company built a trading-post at Wills' 
Creek, within the limits of Maryland, on the 
site of the present city of Cumberland. Here 
one of the easiest of the passes over the 




FRENCH EXPLORERS BURYING LEADEN PLATES. 



from taxation was extended by the company 
to all who would settle in their domain. 

A number of Indian traders had located 
themselves west of the Alleghanies, and in 
order to supply these with the articles 



Alleghanies began, and by means of it the 
traders could easily transport their goods to 
the Indian country west of the mountains and 
return with the furs their traffic enabled them 
to collect. 



28o 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



Being anxious to explore the countrywest 
of the mountains, the company employed 
Christopher Gist, one of the most experi- 
enced Indian traders, and instructed him " to 
examine the western country as far as the 
falls of the Ohio, to look for a large tract of 
good level land to mark the passes in the 
mountains, to trace the courses of the rivers, 
to count the falls, to observe the strength and 
numbers of the Indian nations." 

A Land of Beauty. 

Gist set out on his perilous mission on the 
last day of October, 1750, and crossing the 
mountains reached the Delaware towns on 
the Alleghany River, from which he passed 
down to Logstown, a short distance below 
the head of the Ohio. " You are come to 
rsettle the Indians' lands ; you shall never go 
home safe," said the jealous people ; but in 
spite of their threats they suffered him to 
proceed without molestation. He traversed 
the country to the Muskingum and the 
Scioto, and then crossing the Ohio explored 
the Kentucky to its source, and returned to 
Wills' Creek in safety. He reported that the 
region he had traversed merited all the praise 
that had been bestowed upon it ; that it pos- 
sessed a pleasant and healthy climate, and 
was a land of great beauty. The soil was 
fertile and the streams abundant and excel- 
lent. The land was covered with a rich 
growth of the most valuable and beautiful 
trees, and abounded in small level districts 
and meadows covered with long grass and 
white clover, on which the elk, the deer, and 
the buffalo grazed in herds. Wild turkeys 
and other game abounded, and the country 
offered every attraction to settlers who were 
willing to improve it. 

Gist also reported that the agents of the 
French were actively engaged in seeking to 
induce the western tribes to make war upon 
the English and prevent them from obtain- 



ing a footing west of the mountains. The 
purposes of the English were well known to 
the French, who viewed them with alarm, as 
the successful occupation of the Ohio valley 
by the English would cut off the communi- 
cation established by the French between 
Canada and the Mississippi. This the French 
were resolved to prevent at any cost. The 
Indiarts regarded both of the white nations 
as intruders in their country. They were 
willing to trade with both, but were averse 
to giving up their lands to either. " If the 
French," said they, " take possession of the 
north side of the Ohio, and the English of 
the south, where is the Indian's land ? " 

A Line of Forts. 

The possession of the Ohio valley was 
thus of the highest importance to the 
French, Their fortified post of Fort Front- 
enac gave them the command of Lake On- 
tario, which they further secured by con- 
structing armed vessels for the navigation of 
the lake. They retained their hold upon 
Lake Erie by strengthening Fort Niagara, 
which La Salle had built at the foot of that 
lake. They entered into treaties with the 
Shawnees, the Delawares and other powerful 
tribes between the lake and the Ohio, and 
steadily pushed their way eastward towards 
the mountains. They began their advance 
into the valley of the Ohio by building a 
fort at Presque Isle, now the city of Erie; in 
Pennsylvania, another on French Creek, on 
the site of the present town of Waterford, 
and a third on the site of the present town of 
Franklin, at the confluence of French Creek 
with the Alleghany. 

These rapid advances eastward alarmed the 
English government, which instructed the 
governor of Virginia to address a remon- 
strance to the French authorities and to 
warn them of the consequences which mus' 
result from their intrusion into the territory 




SCENE IN THE ALLEGHENY MOUNTAINS. 



281 



282 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



of the English. To do this it was necessary 
for the governor to despatch his communica- 
tion to the nearest French post by the hands 
of some messenger of sufficient resolution to 
overcome .the natural dangers of such an 
undertaking, and of sufficient intelligence to 
gain information respecting the designs and 
strength of the French ; and Governor Din- 
widdle was somewhat at loss to find such a 
person. Fortunately the man needed was at 
hand, and the attention of the governor 
being called to him, his excellency decided 
to intrust him with the delicate and danger- 
ous mission. 

The Coming Hero. 

The person selected for this task was a 
young man in the twenty-second year of his 
age, George Washington by name. He was 
a native of Westmoreland County, Virginia, 
where he was born on the twenty-second of 
February, 1732. He was a great-grandson 
of the Colonel John Washington, whom we 
have noticed as the leader of an expedition 
against the Indians in the time of Sir 
William Berkeley. His father, Augustine 
Washington, was a wealthy planter, but his 
death, when George was eleven years old, 
deprived his son of his care, and also of the 
means of acquiring an education. He soon 
acquired all the learning that it was possible 
to gain at a country school, from which he 
passed to an academy of somewhat higher 
grade, where he devoted himself principally 
to the study of mathematics. His half- 
brother, Lawrence, who was fourteen years 
older than himself, had received a careful 
education and directed the studies of his 
younger brother, to whom he was devotedly 
attached. 

Though deprived of the care of his father 
at such an early age, it was the good fortune 
of George Washington to possess in his 
mother a guide well qualified to fill the 



place of both parents to her fatherless child- 
ren. She was a woman of rare good sense,, 
of great decision of character, and one whose- 
life was guided by the most earnest Chris- 
tian principle. Her tenderness and sweet 
womanly qualities won the devoted love of 
her children, and her firmness enforced their 
obedience. From her George inherited a 
quick and ardent temper, and from her he 
learned the lesson of self-control which en- 
abled him to govern it. 

Washington's BOsVhood. 

As a boy, Washington was noted for his 
truthfulness, his courage and his generosity. 
He was both liked and respected by his 
schoolmates, and such was their confidence 
in his fairness and good judgment that he 
was usually chosen the arbiter of their boy- 
ish disputes. He joined heartily in their 
sports and was noted for his skill in athletic 
exercises. He was a fearless rider and a 
f^ood hunter, and by his fondness for manly 
sports developed his naturally vigorous body 
to a high degree of strength. He was cheer- 
ful and genial in temper, though reserved and 
grave m manner. He early acquired habits 
of industry and order, and there are still 
existing many evidences of the careful and 
systematic manner in which he discharged 
every duty assigned him at this early age. 

At the age of fourteen it was decided that 
he should enter the navy, and his brother 
Lawrence, who had served with credit in that 
branch of the royal service, had no difficulty 
in obtaining for him a midshipman's war- 
rant. The ship he was to join lay in the Po- 
tomac, and his trunk was sent on board; but 
at the last moment his mother, dreading the 
effect of the temptations of a seaman's life 
upon a boy so young, appealed to him by 
his affection for her to remain with her 
Washington was sorely disappointed, but he 
yielded cheerfully to his mother's wish. 



OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 



283 



The marriage of his brother Lawrence 
gave to the young man a second home at 
Mount Vernon, where he passed a large part 
of his time. Here he was brought into con- 
stant contact with the most cultivated and 
refined society of Virginia, an association 
which had a happy influence upon the forma- 
tion of his character. There also he formed 
the acquaintance and won the friendship of 
Lord Fairfax, the grandson of Lord Culpep- 
per, and the inheritor of Culpepper's vast 
estates in Virginia, which comprised about 
one-seventh of the area of the state of Vir- 
ginia as it existed prior to the separation of 
West Virginia in 1861. Lord Fairfax con- 
ceived a great fondness for the young man, 
and took a deep interest in his future welfare. 

Industry and Diligence. 

Washington, upon leaving school, had 
chosen the profession of a surveyor as his 
future avocation, and soon after his first 
meeting with Lord Fairfax was employed by 
that nobleman to survey the lands belonging 
to him, many of which had been occupied 
by settlers without right or title. It was an 
arduous and responsible task, and Washing- 
ton, who was just entering his seventeenth 
year, seemed almost too young for it; but 
" Lord Thomas " had satisfied himself of his 
young friend's capability for it, and the result 
justified the opinion he had formed. His 
work was done with care and accuracy, and 
his measurements were so exact that they 
are still relied upon. 

His life as a surveyor was in many respects 
a hard one, but he enjoyed it. It gave new 
vigor to his naturally robust constitution 
and his splendid figure, and while yet a 
youth he acquired the appearance and habits 
of mature manhood. He also learned forest 
life in all its various phases, and by his 
constant intercourse with the hunters and 
Indians, gained a knowledge of the character 



and habits of these wild men which in after 
years was of infinite value to him. 

During his surveying expeditions Wash- 
ington was a frequent visitor at Greenway 
Court, the seat of Lord Fairfax, where, in 
addition to the other attractions, there was a 
well-selected library, of which the young 
man regularly availed himself His reading 
was of a serious and useful nature ; " Addi- 
son's Spectator " and the " History of Eng- 
land " were among his favorite works. 

Though the heir to a considerable estate, 
Washington supported himself during this 
period by his earnings as a surveyor. " His 
father had bequeathed to the eldest son, 
Lawrence, the estate afterwards called Mount 
Vernon. To Augustine, the second son, he 
had given the old homstead in Westmoreland 
County. And George, at the age of twenty- 
one years, was to inherit the house and lands 
in Suffolk County. As yet, however, he 
derived no benefit from this landed property. 
But his industry and diligence in 'his labor- 
ious occupation supplied him with abundant 
pecuniary means. His habits of life were 
simple and economical ; he indulged in no 
gay and expensive pleasures." 

Military Education. 

In 1 75 1, in order to prepare for any 
emergency to which the hostility of the 
French and Indians might give rise, the col- 
ony of Virginia was divided into military 
districts, each of which was placed in charge 
of an adjutant and inspector, with the rank 
of major, whose duty it was to keep the 
militia in readiness for instant service. 
Washington had at an early day evinced a 
great fondness for military exercises, and as 
a boy had often drilled his school-fellows in 
the simplest manoeuvres of the troops. 

As he advanced towards manhood, his 
brother Lawrence, Adjutant Muse, of West- 
moreland, and Jacob Vanbraam, a fencing- 
master, and others, had given him numerous 



284 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



lessons in the art of war. Though but nine- 
teen years old, he was regarded by his 
acquaintance as one of the best-informed 
persons upon military matters in the colony, 
and at the general desire of those who knew 
him he was commissioned a major in the 
colonial forces, and placed in command of 
one of the military districts. He discharged 
his duties with ability and zeal, and gave 
such satisfaction that when Governor Din- 
widdle, in 1752, divided the province into 
four military districts, Major Washington 
was placed in command of the northern dis- 
trict. " The counties comprehended in this 
division he promptly and statedly traversed, 
and he soon effected the thorough discipline 
of their militia for warlike operations." He 
was discharging the duties of this position 
when selected by the governor of Virginia to 
bear his message to the commander of the 
French forces on the Ohio. 

Governor Dinwiddle intrusted to his young 
envoy a letter addressed to the commander 
of the French forces on the Ohio, in which 
he demanded of him his reasons for invading 
the territory of England while Great Britain 
and France were at peace with each other. 
Washington was instructed to observe care- 
fully the numbers and positions of the 
French, the strength of their forts, the na- 
ture of their communications with Canada 
and with their various posts, and to endeavor 
to ascertain the real designs of the French in 
occupying the Ohio valley, and the proba- 
bilities of their being vigorously supported 
from Canada. 

Perilous Journey. 

" Ye're a braw lad," said the governor, as 
he delivered his instructions to the young 
major, " and gin you play your cards weel, 
my boy, ye shall hae nae cause to rue your 
bargain." 

Washington received his instructions on 
the thirtieth of October, 1753, and on the 



same day set out for Winchester, then a 
frontier post, from which he proceeded to 
Wills' Creek, where he was to cross the 
mountains. Having secured the services of 
Christopher Gist as guide, and of two inter- 
preters and four others, Washington set out 
on his journey about the middle of Novem- 
ber. . They crossed the mountains and jour- 
neyed through an unbroken country, with no 
paths save the Indian trails to serve as 
guides, across rugged ravines, over steep 
hills, and across streams swollen with the 
recent rains, until in nine days they reached 
the point where the Alleghany and Monon- 
gahela unite and form the Ohio. Washing- 
ton carefully examined the place and was 
greatly impressed with the advantages offered 
for the location of a fort by the point of land 
at the junction of the two rivers. The judg- 
ment expressed by him at the time was sub- 
sequently confirmed by the choice of this 
spot by the French for one of their most 
important posts — Fort Duquesne. 

Interview With " Half-King." 

Washington had been ordered by the gov- 
ernor to proceed direct to Logstown, where 
he was to hold an interview with the Dela- 
ware chief known as the Half King, to 
acquaint the Indians with the nature of his 
mission and ascertain their disposition to- 
wards the English. While he was at this 
place he met several French deserters from 
the posts on the lower Ohio, Vv^ho told him 
the location, number and strength of the 
French posts between Quebec and New 
Orleans by way of the Wabash and the 
Maumee, and informed him of the intention 
of the French to occupy the Ohio from its 
head to its mouth with a similar chain of 
forts. 

The Half King confirmed the story of the 
deserters. He had heard that the French 
were coming with a strong force to drive the 



OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 



285 



English out of the land. A " grand talk " 
was held with the chiefs in council by Wash- 
ington, and they answered him, by the Half 
King, that what he had said was true ; they 
were brothers, and would guard him on 
his way to the nearest French post. They 
wished neither the English nor the French 
to settle in their country ; but as the French 
were the first intruders, they were willing to 
aid the English in their efforts to expel 
them. They agreed to break off friendly 
relations with the French ; but Washington, 
who knew the Indian character well, was not 
altogether satisfied with their promises. 

On the thirtieth of November he set out 
from Logstown with his companions, at- 
tended by the Half King and three other 
Indians, and on the fourth arrived at the 
French post at Venango. The officer in 
command of this fort had no authority to 
receive his letter and referred him to the 
Chevalier St. Pierre, the commander of the 
next post. They treated the English with 
courtesy and invited Washington to sup 
with them. When the wine was passed 
around they drank deeply and soon lost 
their discretion. 

Loud Boasting. 

The sober and vigilant Washington noted 
their words with great attention and recorded 
them in his diary. " They told me," he 
writes, " that it was their absolute design to 
take possession of the Ohio, and, by G — d, 
they would do it; for, that although they 
were sensible the English could raise two 
men for their one, they knew their motions 
were too slow and dilatory to prevent any 
undertaking of theirs. They pretend to 
have an undoubted right to the river, from a 
discovery made by one La Salle sixty years 
ago; and the rise of this expedition is to 
prevent our settling on the river or waters of 
it, as they heard of some families moving 



out in order thereto." The French officers 
then informed Washington of their strength 
south of the lakes, and of the number and 
location of their posts between Montreal and 
Venango. 

The French exerted every stratagem to 
detach the Indians from Washington's party, 
and they met with enough success to justify 
Washington's distrust of them. All had 
come to deliver up the French speech-belts, 
or, in other words, to break off friendly rela- 
tions with the French. The Delaware chiefs 
wavered and failed to fulfill their promise; 




THE HALF KING. 

" but the Half King clung to Washington 
like a brother, and delivered up his belt as- 
he had promised." 

The party left Venango on the seventh of 
December, and reached Fort Le Boeuf, the 
next post, on the eleventh. It was a strong 
work, defended by cannon, and near by 
Washington saw a number of canoes and 
boats, and the materials for building others, 
sure indications that an expedition down the 
river was about to be attempted. He ob- 
tained an interview ^^'ith St. Pierre, the com- 
mander, an officer of experience and integri- 
ty, greatly beloved as well as feared by the 
Indians. He received the young envoy with 



286 



THE ^FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



courtesy, but refused to discuss questions 
of right with him. " I am here," he said, 
" by the orders of my general, to which I 
shall conform with exactness and resolu- 
tion." 

On the fourteenth, St. Pierre delivered to 
Washington his answer to the letter of Gov- 
ernor Dinwiddle, and next day the party set 
out on its return. They descended French 
Creek in canoes, at no little risk, as the 
stream was full of ice. At Venango, which 
was reached on the twenty-second, they 
found their horses, which were so feeble that 
it was doubtful whether they would be able 
to make the journey home. 

" I put myself in an Indian walking-dress," 
says Washington, " and continued with them 
three days, until I found there was no possi- 
bility of their getting home in any reason- 
able time. The horses became less able to 
travel every day ; the cold increased very 
fast, and the roads were becoming much 
worse by a deep snow continually freezing ; 
therefore, as I was uneasy to get back to 
make report of my proceedings to his honor 
the governor, I determined to prosecute my 
journey the nearest way through the woods 

on foot." 

A Shot that Missed. 

Taking Gist as his only companion, and 
directing their way by the compass, Wash- 
ington set out on the twenty-sixth, by the 
nearest way across the country, for the head 
of the Ohio. The next day an Indian who 
had lain in wait for them fired at Washington 
at a distance of only fifteen steps, but missed 
him, and was made a prisoner by him. Gist 
was anxious to kill the savage on the spot, 
but Washington would not allow this, and 
they kept the fellow until dark, and then 
released him. They travelled all night and 
all the next day in order to make sure of 
escaping from the enemies they felt certain 
their freed captive would set upon their trail. 



At dark on the twenty-eighth they reached 
the Alleghany, and spent the night on the 
banks of that stream. The next morning 
they set to work with one poor hatchet to 
construct a raft, on which to pass the river, , 
which was full of floating ice. They com- 
pleted their raft about sunset and launched it 
upon the stream. It was caught in the 
floating ice, and Washington was hurled off 
into the water and nearly drowned. Unable 
to reach the opposite shore, they made for 
an island in mid-stream and passed the night 
there. The cold was intense, and Gist had 
all his fingers and several of his toes frozen. 
The next morning the river was a solid mass 
of ice, hard enough to bear their weight. 
They at once crossed to the opposite bank 
and continued their journey, and on the 
sixteenth of January, 1754, were at Williams- 
burg, where Washington delivered to the 
governor of Virginia the reply of the French 
commander, and reported the results of his 
journey. 

Eager for New Territory. 

The French commander returned a cour- 
teous but evasive answer to Governor Din- 
widdle's communication, and referred him 
for a definite settlement of the matter to the 
Marquis Duquesne, the governor of Canada. 
It was clear from the tone of his letter that 
he meant to hold on to the territory he had 
occupied, and the governor of Virginia was 
satisfied from Major Washington's report of 
his observations that St. Pierre was about to 
extend the line of French posts down the 
Ohio. The authorities of Virginia resolved 
to anticipate him, and in the spring of 1754 
the Ohio Company stnt a force of about 
forty men to build a fort at the head of the 
Ohio, on the site to which Washington had 
called attention. 

In the meantime, measures were set on 
foot" in Virginia for the protection of the 



OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 



287 



frontiers. A regiment of troops was ordered 
to be raised, and it was the general wish that 
Major Washington should be appointed to 
the command. He declined the commission 
when tendered him, on the ground of his 
youth and inexperience, and was made lieu- 
tenant-colonel, the command of the regiment 
being conferred upon Colonel Joshua Fry. 
Washington was ordered to repair to the 
west to take charge of the defence of the 
frontiers, and in April, 1754, reached Wills' 
Creek with three companies of his regiment. 

Washington Pushes Forward. 

Just at this moment news arrived that the 
party sent to build a fort at the head of the 
Ohio had been driven away by the French. 
A force of one thousand men, with artillery, 
under Captain Coutrecoeur, had descended 
the Alleghany and had surrounded the Eng- 
lish. One hour was given them to surren- 
der, and being utterly unable to offer any 
resistance, they capitulated upon condition of 
being ailowed to retire to Virginia. Imme- 
diately upon the withdrawal of the English, 
the French forces occupied the unfinished 
work, completed it, and named it Fort Du- 
quesne. This was a more important act 
than either party believed it at the time. It 
was the beginning of the final struggle by 
which the power of France in America was 
broken. In the history of Europe this 
struggle is known as the " Seven Years' 
War;" in our own history as the " French 
and Indian War." 

Hostilities were now inevitable, and Wash- 
ington, who was on his march to the Ohio 
when the news of the aggression of the 
French was received, resolved to push for- 
ward without delay. Colonel Fry had fallen 
sick, and the direction of affairs on the bor- 
der had passed entirely intot he hands of the 
young lieutenant-colonel. He intended to 
proceed to the junction of Red Stone Creek 



and the Monongahela, the site occupied by 
the present town of Brownsville, to erect a 
fort there and hold it until he could be rein- 
forced. His force was poorly provided with 
clothing and tents, and was deficient in mili- 
tary supplies of all kinds. The country to 
be traversed was a wild, unbroken region, 
without roads or bridges, and through it the 
artillery and wagons were to be transported. 
The little force moved slowly and with diffi- 
culty, and Washington pushed on in ad- 
vance with a small detachment, intending to 
secure the position on the Monongahela and 
await the arrival of the main body, when the 
whole force could descend the river in flat- 
boats to Fort Duquesne. 

On the twentieth of May he reached the 
Youghiogheny and there received a message 
from his ally, the Half King, telling him that 
the French were in heavy force at Fort 
Duquesne, This report was confirmed at 
the Little Meadows by the traders, and by 
another message from the Half King on the 
twenty-fifth of May, warning Washington 
that a force of French and Indians had left 
Fort Duquesne on a secret expedition. 
Washington was sure that this expedition 
was destined to attack him, and advanced to 
the Great Meadows and took position there. 

The First Blood Shed. 

On the morning of the twenty-seventh 
Gist arrived and reported that he had seen 
the trail of the French within five miles of 
the Great Meadows. In the evening of the 
same day a runner came in from the Half 
King-, and with a message that the French 
were close at hand. Taking with him forty 
men, Washington set off for the Half King's 
camp, and by a difficult night march through 
a tangled forest, in the midst of a driving 
rain, reached it about daylight. The runners 
of the Half King found the French encamped 
in a deep glen not far distant, and it was 



288 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



decided to attack them at once. The Half 
King and his warriors placed themselves 
under Washington's orders, and the march 
was resumed towards the French camp. The 
French were surprised, and an action of about 
a quarter of an hour ensued. The French 
lost ten men killed, among whom was their 
commander, Jumonville, and twenty-one 
prisoners. This was the first blood shed 
on the American continent in the long 
struggle which won America for the free 
institutions of the Anglo-Saxon race. 

Washington was very anxious to follow 
up the advantage he had gained, and had 
already appealed to the governors of Mary- 
land and Pennsylvania for assistance, but no 
aid reached him. Unable to advance in the 
face of the rapidly increasing forces of the 
French, he threw up a stockade fort at Great 
Meadows, which he named Fort Necessity, 
from the fact that the provisions of the troops 
were so nearly exhausted that the danger of 
a famine was imminent. 

A Dutchman's Blunder. 

On the third of July six hundred French 
and one hundred Indians suddenly appeared 
before the fort and occupied the hills sur- 
rounding it. The attacking party were able 
to shelter themselves behind trees and could 
command the fort from their safe position, 
while the English were greatly exposed, and 
it was evident to the most inexperienced that 
the fort was untenable. Nevertheless, the 
work was held for nine hours under a heavy 
fire, and amid the discomforts of a severe 
rain-storm. At length De Villiers, the 
French commander, fearing that his am- 
munition would be exhausted, proposed a 
parley and offered terms to Washington. 
The English had lost thirty killed, and the 
French but three. The terms of capitulation 
proposed by De Villiers were interpreted to 
Washington, who did not understand French, 



and in consequence of the interpretation, 
which was made by " a Dutchman little 
acquainted with the English tongue," Wash- 
ington and his officers " were betrayed into a 
pledge which they would never have con- 
sented to give, and an act of moral suicide 
which they could never have deliberately 
committed. 

" They understood from Vanbraam's inter- 
pretation, that no fort was to be built beyond 
the mountains on lands belo7iging to the 
King of France ; but the terms of the articles 
are, ' neither in this place or beyond the 
mountains.'" The Virginians were allowed 
to march out of the fort with the honors of 
war, retaining their arms and all their stores, 
but leaving their artillery. This they did on 
the next morning, July fourth, 1754. The 
march across the mountains was rendered 
painful by the lack of provisions, and after 
much suffering the troops arrived at Fort 
Cumberland in Maryland. Although the 
expedition had been unsuccessful, the con- 
duct of Washington had been marked by so 
much prudence and good judgment that he 
received the thanks of the general assembly 
of Virginia. 

Washington's Cutting Reply. 

Governor Dinwiddle had already thrown 
many obstacles in the way of the defence of 
the colony, and he now refused to reward the 
provincial officers with the promotions they 
had so well earned. In order to avoid this 
he dissolved the Virginia regiment, and re- 
organized it into independent companies, no 
officer of which was to have a higher rank 
than that of captain. It was also ordered 
that officers holding commissions from the 
king should take precedence of those 
holding commissions from the colonial gov- 
ernment. 

Washington, feeling that he could no 
longer remain in the service with self-respect, 



OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 



289 



resigned his commission and withdrew to 
Mount Vernon. Soon afterwards Governor 
Sharpe, of Maryland, having been appointed 
by the king commander-in-chief of the forces 
of the southern colonies, proposed to Wash- 
ington, through a friend, to return to the 
army and accept the rank of colonel, but with 
the actual authority of captain. Washington 
declined the offer with characteristic dignity. 
" If you think me," he wrote, " capable of 
holding a commission that has neither rank 
nor emolument annexed to it, you must 
maintain a very contemptible opinion of my 
weakness, and believe me more empty than 
the commission itself." 

In the meantime, although peace still 
remained nominally unbroken between Eng- 
land and France, each nation was perfectly 
convinced of the certainty of a conflict in 
America, and each began to prepare for it. 
France sent large reinforcements to Canada, 
and the English went on rapidly with their 
plans for the conquest of that country. The 
British government was very anxious that 
the colonies should bear the brunt of the 
struggle, though it was fully determined to 
send a royal army to their assistance, and 
urged upon them to unite in some plan for 
their common defence. 

Alliance with the Six Nations. 

For the purpose of carrying out the wishes 
of the home government, a convention of 
delegates from seven of the colonies assem- 
bled at Albany, New York, on the nineteenth 
of June, 1754. " The Virginia government was 
represented by the presiding officer, Delan- 
cey, the lieutenant-governor of New York ; " 
but New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode 
Island, Connecticut, New York and Mary- 
land were represented by their own delegates. 
The first object of this convention was to 
secure the friendship of the powerful con- 
federacy of the Six Nations, on the northern 
19 



border, and this was successfully accom- 
plished. 

The leading man of this convention was 
Benjamin Franklin. He was a native of Bos- 
ton, and the son of a tallow chandler. While 
still a youth he had removed to Philadelphia, 
and by the force of his own genius had risen 
from poverty and obscurity to great prom- 
inence among the public men of Pennsylva- 
nia, and the literary and scientific men of his 
day. 




BEN'JAMIN FRANKLIN. 

He had chosen the avocation of a printer ; 
and by his industry, energy and integrity had 
accumulated property enough to make him 
independent. He was among the most active 
men in America in promoting the advance- 
ment of literary, scientific and benevolent 
institutions, and had already won a world- 
wide reputation by his discoveries in science, 
and especially by his investigations in elec- 
tricity and lightning. He was not inexperi- 
enced in public affairs. He had served as. 



290 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



clerk to the general assembly of Pennsylva- 
nia, as postmaster of Philadelphia, as a mem- 
ber of the provincial assembly of Pennsylvania, 
and in 1753 had been appointed by the king 
postmaster-general of the American colonies. 
In each of these positions he had served with 
distinction, and now, at the ripe age of forty- 
eight, he had come to take part in the most 
important convention ever held in America. 
Franklin had long been of the opinion that 
the true interests of the colonies required 
their union in all measures relating to their 
common welfare. Believing that the force of 
circumstances would soon drive them into 
such a union, he sought to accomplish that 
end through the medium of this convention. 
Accordingly he presented to the convention 
a plan for the union of all the American 
colonies, which union he intended should be 

perpetual. 

Proposed Confederacy. 

He proposed that while each colony should 
retain the separate and independent control 
of its own affairs, all should unite in a per- 
petual union for the management of their 
general affairs. This confederacy was to 
be controlled by a general government, to 
consist of a governor-general an J a council. 
The seat of the federal government was to be 
Philadelphia,which city he regarded as central 
to all the colonies. Th2 governor-general 
was to be appointed and paid by the king, 
and was to have thepower of vetoing all laws 
which should seem to him objectionable. 
The members of the council were to be 
elected triennially by the colonial legisla- 
tures, and were to be apportioned among the 
colonies according to their respective popula- 
tion. 

" The governor-general was to nominate 
military officers, subject to the advice of the 
council, which, in turn, was to nominate all 
civil officers. No money was to be issued 
but by their joint order. Each colony was 



to retain its domestic constitution ; the 
federal government was to regulate all rela- 
tions of peace or war with the Indians, affairs 
of trade, and purchases of lands not within 
the bounds of particular colonies ; to estab- 
lish, organize and temporarily to govern new 
settlements ; to raise soldiers, and equip ves- 
sels of force on the seas, rivers or lakes; to 
make laws, and lev^y just and equal taxes. 
The grand council were to meet once a year 
to choose their own speaker, and neither to be 
dissolved nor prorogued, nor continue sitting 
longer than six weeks at any one time, but 
by their own consent." 

The Union Opposed. 

This plan met with considerable opposi- 
tion, was thoroughly discussed, and was 
finally adopted by the convention. It was 
not altogether acceptable to the colonies, 
each of which dreaded that the establishment 
of a central government would result in the 
destruction of the liberties of the individual 
provinces. Connecticut promptly rejected 
it. New York received it with coldness, and 
Massachusetts showed a more active opposi- 
tion to it. Upon its reception in England it 
was at once thrown aside by the royal gov- 
ernment. The Union proposed by the plan 
was too perfect and would make America 
practically independent of Great Britain, and 
so the board of trade did not even bring it 
before the notice of the king. 

Franklin regarded the failure of his plan 
of union with great regret. In after years he 
wrote : " The colonies so united would have 
been sufficiently strong to defend themselves. 
There would then have been no need of 
troops from England; of course the subse- 
quent pretext for taxing America, and the 
bloody contest it occasioned, would have 
been avoided. But such mistakes are not 
new ; history is full of the errors of states 
and princes." 



OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 



291 



The plan for the union of the colonies 
having failed, the British government re- 
solved to take into its own hands the task of 
carrying on the war, with such assistance as 
the colonies might be willing to afford. A 
million of pounds was voted for the defence 
of the British possessions in America, and 
four strong fleets were sent to sea, together 
with numerous privateers, which nearly de- 
stroyed the French West Indian trade. 

In 1755, Major 
General Edw^ard 
Braddock was ap- 
pointed comman- 
der-in-chief of the 
English forces in 
America, He had 
served under the 
Duke of Cumber- 
land, in his expe- 
dition into Scot- 
land against the 
Pretender Charles 
^Edward, in 1746, 
and was regarded 
as one of the most 
promising officers 
in his majesty's 
service. Braddock 
sailed from Cork, 
in Ireland, early in 
January, 1755, and 
on the twentieth of 

February arrived at Alexandria, in Virginia. 
He was soon followed by two regiments of 
infantry, consisting of five hundred men each, 
the largest force of regulars Great Britain 
had ever assembled in America. 

A conference of the colonial governors with 
the new commander-in-chief was held at 
Alexandria, and a plan of campaign was 
decided upon. Four expeditions were to be 
despatched against the French. The first, 
under Braddock in person, was to advance 



upon Fort Duquesne ; the second, under 
Governor Shirley of Massachusetts, was to 
attempt the capture of Fort Niagara; the 
third, under William John, the Indian agent 
among the Mohawks, and a man of great 
influence over them, was to be directed 
against Crown Point ; and the fourth was to 
capture the French posts near the head of 
the Bay of Fundy, and expel the French 
from Acadia. 




WILLS CREEK NARROWS, MD. 



It was now evident that the war was about 
to commence in good earnest, and the colo- 
nies exerted themselves to support the efforts 
of the mother country to the extent of their 
ability. 

General Braddock was thoroughly pro- 
ficient in the theory of his profession, but 
his experience of actual warfare had been 
limited to a single campaign, and that a brief 
one. He possessed the entire confidence of 
his superiors in England, and his faith in 



292 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



himself was boundless. He believed that the 
regulars of the British army were capable of 
accomplishing any task assigned them, and 
entertained a thorough contempt for the pro- 
vincial troops that were to form a part of his 
command. Soon after his arrival in Virginia 
he offered Washington a position on his staff 
as aid-de-camp, with the rank of colonel, 
which was promptly accepted. 

Had General Braddock been a different 
man the presence of Washington in his mili 
tary family might have been of the greatest 
service to him, for the experience of the 
young colonel would have made him an in- 
valuable counselor. Braddock was in a 
strange country, and was charged with the 
conduct of a campaign in which the ordinary 
rules of warfare as practiced in Europe could 
not be adhered to. He knew nothing of the 
difficulties of marching his army through a 
tangled wilderness and over a mountain range 
of the first magnitude. Unfortunately for 
him, he was not aware of his ignorance, and 
would neither ask for nor listen to advice or 
information upon the subject. 

Franklin's Opinion of Braddock. 

" He was, I think, a brave man," says 
Franklin, " and might probably have made a 
figure as a good officer in some European 
war. But he had too much self-confidence, 
too high an opinion of the validity of regular 
troops, and too mean a one of both Ameri- 
cans and Indians." During one of his inter- 
views with him Franklin undertook to im- 
press upon him the necessity of guarding 
against the danger of Indian ambuscades. 
" He smiled at my ignorance," says Frank- 
lin, " and replied : ' These savages may in- 
deed be a formidable enemy to your raw 
American militia; but upon the king's 
regular and disciplined troops, sir, it is 
impossible they should make any impres- 
sion.' " 



The army assembled at Wills' Creek, to 
which place General Braddock repaired in 
his coach. The bad roads had put him in a 
passion, and had broken his coach, and he 
was in no mood upon his arrival to pursue a 
sensible course. He was advised to employ 
Indians' as scouts on the march, or to use 
them to protect a force of Pennsylvanians 
who were making a road over the mountains 
for the passage of the army, but he refused to 
do either. Washington urged him to aban- 
don his wagon-train, to use pack-horses 
in place of these vehicles, and to move with 
as little baggage as possible. Braddock 
ridiculed this suggestion. Neither he nor 
any of his officers would consent to be 
separated from their cumbrous baggage, or 
to dispense with any of the luxuries they had 
been used to. 

Famous " Captain Jack." 

A month was lost at Wills' Creek, and in 
June the army began its march. It was 
greatly impeded by the difficulty of drag- 
ging the wagons and artillery over roads 
filled with the stumps of trees and with 
rocks. Such little progress was made that 
Braddock, greatly disheartened, privately 
asked Washington to advise him what to do. 
As it was known that the garrison at Fort 
Duquesne was small, Washington advised 
him to hasten forward with a division of the 
army, in light marching order, and seize the 
fort before reinforcements could arrive from 
Canada. 

Braddock accordingly detached a division 
of twelve hundred men and ten pieces of 
cannon, with a train of pack-horses to carry 
the baggage, and pushed on in advance with 
them, leaving Colonel Dunbar to bring up 
the main division as promptly as possible. 
A famous hunter and Indian fighter named 
Captain Jack, who was regarded as the most 
experienced man in savage warfare in the 



OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 



293 



colonies, now offered his services and those 
of his men to Braddock to act as scouts. 
Braddock received him with frigid courtesy, 
and refused his offer, saying that he " had 
experienced troops upon whom he could 
rely for all purposes." 

Braddock's Blunder. 

Instead of pushing on with energy with 
his advance division, Braddock moved very 
slowly, gaining but a little more than three 
miles a day. " They halt," wrote Washing- 
ton, " to level every mole hill and to erect a 
bridge over every brook." On the eighth of 
July the army reached the east bank of the 
Monongahela, about fifteen miles above Fort 
Duquesne, having taken about double the 
necessary time in the march from Wills' 
Creek. On the same day Washington, who 
had been ill for some days, and was still un- 
well, rejoined Braddock. 

Early on the morning of the ninth of July 
the march was resumed. The Monongahela 
was forded a short distance below the mouth 
of the Youghiogheny, and the advance con- 
tinued along the southern bank of that river. 
About noon the Monongahela was forded 
again, and the army was planted upon the 
strip of land between the rivers which form 
the Ohio. Washington was well convinced 
that the French and Indians were informed of 
the movements of the army and would seek 
to interfere with it before its arrival before 
the fort, which was only ten miles distant, 
and urged Braddock to throw in advance the 
Virginia Rangers, three hundred strong, as 
they were experienced Indian fighters. 

Braddock angrily rebuked his aide, and as 
if to make the rebuke more pointed, ordered 
the Virginia troops and other provincials to 
take position in the rear of the regulars. 
The general was fully convinced of the ability 
of his trained troops to take care of them- 
selves. They made a gallant show as they 



marched along with their gay uniforms, 
their burnished arms and flying colors, and 
their drums beating a lively march. Wash- 
ington could not repress his admiration at 
the brilliant sight, nor his anxiety for the 
result. 

In the meantime the French at Fort Du- 
quesne had been informed by their scouts of 
Braddock's movements, and had resolved to 
ambuscade him on his march. Early on the 
morning of the ninth a force of about two 
hundred and thirty French and Canadians 
and six hundred and thirty-seven Indians, 
under De Beaujeu, the commandant at Fort 
Duquesne, was despatched with orders to 
occupy a designated spot and attack the 
enemy upon their approach. Before reach- 
ing it, about two o'clock in the afternoon, 
they encountered the advanced force of the 
English army, under Lieutenant-Colonel 
Thomas Gage, and at once attacked them 
with spirit. 

Galling Fire. 

The English army at this moment was 
moving along a narrow road, about twelve 
feet in width, with scarcely a scout thrown 
out in advance or upon the flanks. The 
engineer wh© was locating the road was the 
first to discover the enemy, and called out : 
" French and Indians ! " Instantly a heavy 
fire was opened upon Gage's force, and his 
indecision allowed the French and Indians 
to seize a commanding ridge, from which 
they maintained their attack with spirit. 
There, concealed among the trees, they were 
almost invisible to the English, who were 
fully exposed to their fire, as they occupied a 
broad ravine, covered with low shrubs, im- 
mediately below the eminence held by the 
French. 

The regulars were quickly thrown into 
confusion by the heavy fire and the fierce 
yells of the Indians, who could nowhere be 



294 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



seen, and their losses were so severe and 
sudden that they became panic-stricken. 
They were ordered to charge up the hill and 
drive the French from their cgver, but re- 
fused to move, and in their terror fired at 
random into the woods. In the meantime 
the Indians were rapidly spreading along the 
sides of the ravine and continuing their fire 
from their cover among the trees with fear- 
ful accuracy. 



that not one of his commands was obeyed, 
and his defeat was complete. 

The only semblance of resistance main- 
tained by the English was by the Virginia 
Rangers, whom Braddock had insulted at 
the beginning of the day's march. Immedi- 
ately upon the commencement of the battle, 
they had adopted the tactics of the Indians, 
and had thrown themselves behind trees, 
from which shelter they were rapidly picking 




DISASTROUS DEFEAT OF GENERAL BRADDOCK. 



The advance of the English was driven 
back, and it crowded upon the second divi- 
sion in utter disorder. A reinforcement of 
eight hundred men, under Colonel Burton, 
arrived at this moment, but only to add to 
the confusion. The French pushed their 
lines forward now and increased the disorder 
of the English, who had by this time lost 
nearly all their officers. Braddock now came 
up and gallantly exerted himself to restore 
order, but " the king's regulars and discip- 
lined troops " were so utterly demoralized 



off the Indians. Washington entreated 
Braddock to allow the regulars to follow the 
example of the Virginians, but he refused, 
and stubbornly endeavored to form them in 
platoons under the fatal fire that was being 
poured upon them by their hidden assailants. 
Thus through his obstinacy many useful 
lives were needlessly thrown away before he 
would admit his defeat. 

The officers did not share the panic of the 
men, but behaved with the greatest gallantry. 
They were the especial marks of the Indian 



OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 



295 



sharpshooters, and many of them were killed [ 
or wounded. Two of Braddock's aides were 
seriously wounded, and their duties devolved 
upon Washington in addition to his own. 
He passed repeatedly over the field, carrying 
the orders of the commander and encourag- 
ing the men. When sent to bring up the 
artillery, he found it surrounded by Indians, 
its commander, Sir Peter Halket, killed, and 
the men standing helpless from fear. Spring- 
ing from his horse, he appealed to the men 
to save the guns, pointed a field-piece and 
discharged it at the savages, and entreated 
the gunners to rally. He could accomplish 
nothing by either his words or example. 
The men deserted the guns and fled. In a 
letter to his brother, Washington wrote : " I 
had four bullets through my coat, two horses 
shot under me,- yet escaped unhurt, though 
death was levelling my companions on every 
side around me." * 

Braddock had five horses shot under him, 
and at length himself received a mortal 
wound. As he fell, Captain Stewart, of the 
Virginia troops, caught him in his arms. 
He was borne from the field, though he 
begged to be left to die on the scene of his 
defeat. His fall was fortunate for the army, 
which it saved from destruction. 

A Fatal Rout. 

The order was given to fall back, and the 
" regulars fled like sheep before the hounds." 
The French and Indians pressed forward in 
pursuit, and all would have been lost had 
not the Virginia Rangers themselves been in 
the rear, and covered the flight of the regu- 
lars with a determination which checked the 
pursuers. The artillery, wagons, and all the 
camp train was abandoned, and the savages, 



stopping to plunder these, allowed the fugi- 
tives to recross the river in safety. 

Having seen the general as comfortable as 
circumstances would permit, Washington 
rode all that night and the next day to Dun- 
bar's camp to procure wagons for the 
wounded and soldiers to guard them. 
With these he hastened back to the fugi- 
tives. 

The Engl sh General's Death. 

Braddock, Enable to ride or to endure the 
jolting of a wagon, was carried m a litter as 
far as the Great Meadows. He seemed to 
be heart-broken and rarely spoke. Occa- 
sionally he would say, as if speaking to him- 
self, with a deep sigh, " Who would have 
thought it?" It is said that he warmly 
thanked Captain Stewart for his care and 
kindness, and apologized to Washington for 
the manner in which he had received his 
advice. He had no wish to live, and he died 
at Fort Necessity on the night of the thir- 
teenth of July. He was buried the next 
morning before daybreak as secretly as pos- 
sible for fear that the savages might find and 
violate his grave. Close by the national 
road, about a mile west of Fort Necessity, 
a pile of stones still marks his resting- 
place. 

The losses of the English in the battle 
were terrible. Out of eighty-six officers, 
twenty-six were killed and thirty-six 
wounded. Upward of seven hundred of the 
regulars were killed and wounded. The 
Virginia Rangers had suffered terrible losses, 
for they had not only borne the brunt of the 
battle, but had lost many of their number by 
the random fire of the frightened regulars. 
Dunbar, who succeeded Braddock in the com- 
mand, still had fifteen hundred effective men 



* Washington attributed his wonderful escape from even a wound to the overruling providence of God. The Indians 
regarded the matter in the same light. About fifteen years after the battle, while examining some lands near the mouth 
of the Great Kanawha River, Washington was visited by an old chief. The chief told hmi " he was present at the 



296 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



left to him ; but he was too badly frightened to 
attempt to retrieve the disaster, which a com- 
petent officer might have done with such a 
force. He broke up his camp, destroyed his 
stores, and retreated beyond the mountains. 
Disregarding the entreaties of the colonists 
not to leave the frontiers exposed to the 
savages, he continued his retreat to Phila- 
delphia, and went into winter quarters 
there, to get ready for future operations. 




BURNING OF KITTANNING BY GENERAL ARMSTRONG 



The effect of these reverses upon the 
colonists was most marked. When they 
understood that Braddock's splendid force 
of disciplined regulars had been routed by a 
mere handful of French and Indians, their 
respect for the invincibility of British troops 
was destroyed ; and their confidence in their 
own prowess was greatly increased by the 



proud reflection that the only thing that had 
been done to save the army of Braddock 
from total destruction had been accomp- 
lished by the provincials. Washington's 
conduct was a subject of praise in all the 
colonies and brought his name conspicuously 
before the whole people of America. In a 
sermon preached a few months after Brad- 
dock's defeat, the Rev. Samuel Davies, a 
learned clergyman, spoke of him as " that 
heroic youth, Colonel Wash- 
ington, whom I cannot but 
hope Providence has hitherto 
preserved in so signal a man- 
ner for some important service 
to his country." 

The retreat of Dunbar left 
the frontiers of Virginia and 
Pennsylvania at the mercy of 
the savages, who maintained 
a desultory but destructive 
warfare along the entire bor- 
der. The defence of this ex- 
posed region was intrusted to 
Colonel Washington ; but he 
had so few men as to make 
his undertaking a hopeless 
one. The frontier settlements 
of Virginia were destroyed; 
the beautiful valley of the 
Shenandoah was ravaged with 
merciless fury, and the more 
protected regions were kept in a state of 
constant uneasiness and alarm. Governor 
Dinwiddle was repeatedly appealed to to 
furnish more men, but refused, and endea- 
vored to excuse his delinquency by saying : 
" We dare not part with any of our white 
men to any distance, as we must have a 
watchful eye over our negro slaves." 



battle, and among the Indian allies of the French; that he singled him out and repeatedly fired his rifle at him ; that he 
also ordered his young warriors to make him their only mark ; but that on finding all their bullets turned aside by some 
invisible and inscrutable interposition, he was convinced that the hero at whom he had so often and so truly aimed must 
be, for some wise purpose, specially protected by the Great Spirit. He now came, therefore, to testify his veneration." 



OUTBREAK OF HOSTILITIES. 



297 



Pennsylvania met the troubles with greater 
-vigor and resolution. About thirty miles 
-above Fort Duquesne, on the Alleghany 
River, was the Indian village of Kittanning, 
the home of a noted chief named Captain 
Jacobs. Together with the Delaware chief 
Shingis, he had, at the instigation of the 
French, kept up a continual warfare upon the 
frontier settlements. A military force for 
the defence of the frontier was raised by the 
colony and placed under the command of 
Benjamin Franklin as colonel. He soon 
resigned, and was succeeded by Colonel John 
Armstrong, a man better suited to the posi- 
tion, and who subsequently became a major 
general in the war of the Revolution. 

Armstrong resolved to destroy Kittanning 
and the tribe inhabiting- it as the best means 



of putting a stop to their outrages, and called 
for volunteers for the enterprise. Three 
hundred men responded. Toward the last 
of September, 1756, they crossed the moun- 
tains on horseback, and in a few days reached 
the vicinity of Kittanning. Dismounting and 
leaving their horses in charge of a guard, they 
silently surrounded the village. The Indians 
spent the night in carousing within hearing 
of the whites, and retired to rest at a 
very late hour. Just before daybreak the 
whites attacked the village and set it on 
fire. It was completely destroyed, and 
Jacobs and all but a handful of his men 
were slain. The few survivors fled farther 
west, and the Pennsylvania frontier was re- 
lieved of the sufferings it had so long 
endured. 




CHAPTER XXIII 



Sanguinary Struggles on the Frontier 

Expedition Against Acadia — Brutal Treatment of the Acadians — They Are Expelled from Their Country — A Sad Story — 
Fate of the Acadians — Johnson at Lake George — March of Dieskau — Battle of Lake George — Failure of Shirley's 
Expedition — Arrival of the Earl of Loudon — Montcalm in Canada — Capture of Oswego by the French — Outrages of 
the Earl of Loudon Upon New York and Philadelphia— Expedition Against Louisburg — How the Earl of Loudon Beat 
the French — Capture of Fort William Henry by Montcalm — Massacre of the Prisoners by the Indians — Efforts of 
Montcalm to Save Them — The Royal Officers Attempt to Cover Their Failures by Outraging the Colonies. 



WHILE the events we have re- 
lated were transpiring in the 
Ohio valley other expeditions 
were despatched against the 
French. One of these was directed against 
that part of Acadia, or Nova Scotia, which 
still remained in the hands of the French. It 
lay at the head of the Bay of Fundy, and 
was defended by two French , forts. This 
region was the oldest French colony in North 
America, having been settled sixteen years 
before the landing of the Pilgrims, but was 
regarded by the English as within their 
jurisdiction. 

In May, 1755, an expedition of three thou- 
sand New England troops was despatched 
from Boston, under Colonel John Winslow, 
to attack these forts and establish the Eng- 
lish authority over the French settlements. 
Upon reaching the Bay of Fundy Winslow 
was joined by three hundred English regulars 
under Colonel Monckton, who assumed the 
command. The forts were taken with com- 
paratively little effort, and the authority of 
England was extended over the whole of 
Nova Scotia. The Acadians agreed to 
acknowledge the authority of their new 
masters, and to observe a strict neutrality 
between France and England in the war ; 
and the English on their part promised not 
to require of them the usual oaths of allegi- 
ance, to excuse them from bearing arms 
298 



against France, and to protect them in the 
exercise of the Catholic religion. 
- The Acadians numbered about seventeen 
thousand souls. They were a simple and 
harmless people, and were enjoying in a 
marked degree the blessings of industry and 
thrift. They had begun their settlements by 
depending upon the fur trade and the fish- 
eries for their support, but had abandoned 
these pursuits for that of agriculture, which 
was already yielding them rich rewards for 
their skill and labor. They were proud of 
their farms, and took but little interest in 
public affairs, scarcely knowing what was 
transpiring in the world around them. It is 
hard to imagine a more peaceful or a happier 
community than this one at the time they 
passed under the baleful rule of England. 
Crime was unknown among them, and they 
seldom carried their disputes before the Eng- 
lish magistrates, but settled them by the 
arbitration of their old men. They en- 
couraged early marriages as the best means 
of preserving the morality of their people ; 
and when a young man married, his neigh- 
bors turned out in force and built him a 
house, and for the first year of his marriage 
aided him to establish himself firmly, while 
the bride's relatives helped her to furnish the 
home thus prepared. 

Thus the people were taught to regard and 
practice neighborly kindness as one of the 



SANGUINARY STRUGGLES ON THE FRONTIER. 



299 



cardinal Christian virtues. They were de- 
voted Catholics, and practiced their relitjion 
without bigotry. They were attached to the 
rule of France by language and religion, and 
would have been glad to see her authority 
re-established over them ; but they submitted 
peacefully to the rule of the English and 
faithfully observed the terms of their sur- 
render. 

Unfortunately for the Acadians their pos- 
sessions soon began to excite the envy of the 
English. Lawrence, the governor of Nova 
Scotia, expressed this feeling in his letter to 
Lord Halifax, the English premier. ".They 
possess the best and largest tract of land in 
this province," he wrote ; " if they refuse the 
oaths, it would be much better that they 
were away." The English authorities had 
prepared a cunningly devised scheme for dis- 
possessing these simplepeople of their homes, 
and they now proceeded to put it in execu- 
tion. The usual oaths of allegiance had not 
been tendered to the Acadians upon their 
surrender, as it was known that as French- 
men and Catholics they could not take them, 
as they required them to bear arms against 
their own brethren in Canada, and to make 
war upon their religion. 

Cruel Treatment. 

It was resolved now to offer the oaths to 
them, and thus either drive them into rebel- 
lion or force them to abandon their homes. 
When this intention was known, the priests 
urged them to refuse the oaths. " Better 
surrender your meadows to the sea," they 
declared, " and your houses to the flames, 
than, at the peril of your souls, take the oath 
of allegiance to the British government." As 
for the Acadians themselves, " they, from 
their very simplicity and anxious sincerity, 
were uncertain in their resolves ; now gath- 
ering courage to flee beyond the isthmus, for 
ether homes in New France, and now yearn- 



ing for their own houses and fields, their 
herds and pastures." 

The officers sent by the English authori- 
ties to enforce their demands conducted 
themselves with a haughtiness and cruelty 
which added greatly to the sorrows of the 
Acadians. Their titles to their lands were 
declared null and void, and all their papers 
and title-deeds were taken from them. Their 
property was taken for the public service 
without compensation, and if they failed to 
furnish wood at the times required, the Eng- 
lish soldiers " might take their houses for 
fuel." Their guns were seized, and they 
were deprived of their boats on the pretext 
that they might be used to communicate 
with the French in Canada. At last, wearied 
out with these oppressions, the Acadians 
offered to swear allegiance to Great Britain. 
This, however, formed no part of the plan of 
their persecutors, and they were answered 
that by a British statute persons who had 
been once offered the oaths, and who had 
refused them, could not be permitted to take 
them, but must be treated as Popish recu- 
sants. 

This brought matters to a crisis, and the 
English now resolved to strike the decisive 
blow. A proclamation was issued, requiring 
" the old men, and young men, as well as all 
lads over ten years of age," to assemble on 
the fifth of September, 1755, at a certain 
hour, at designated places in their respective 
districts, to hear the " wishes of the king." 
In the greater number of places the order 
was obeyed. What happened at the village 
of Grand Pre, the principal settlement, will 
show the course pursued by the English in 
all the districts. Four hundred and eighteen 
of the men of the place assembled. They 
were unarmed, and were marched into the 
church, which was securely guarded. 

Winslow, the New England commander, 
then addressed them as follows : " You are 



300 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



convened together to manifest to you his 
majesty's final resolution to the French in- 
habitants of this his province. Your lands 
and tenements, cattle of all kinds, and live 
stock of all sorts, are forfeited to the crown, 
and you yourselves are to be removed from 
this his province. I am, through his majes- 
ty's goodness, directed to allow you liberty 
to carry off your money and household 
goods, as many as you can, without discom- 
moding the vessels you go in." He then 
declared them, together with their wives and 
children, a total of nineteen hundred and 
twenty-three souls, the king's prisoners, 

English Barbarity. 

The announcement took the unfortunate 
men by surprise, and filled them with the 
deepest indignation ; but they were unarmed 
and unable to resist. They were held close 
prisoners in the church, and their homes, 
which they had left in the morning full of 
hope, were to see them no' more. They 
were kept without food for themselves or 
their children that day, and were poorly fed 
during the remainder of their captivity. 
They were held in confinement until the 
tenth of September, when it was announced 
that the vessels were in readiness to carry 
them away. They were not to be allowed 
to join their brethren in Canada lest they 
should serve as a reinforcement to the French 
in that province, but were to be scattered as 
paupers through the English colonies, among 
people of another race and a different faith. 

On the morning of the tenth the captives 
were drawn up six deep. The English, in- 
tending to make their trial as bitter and as 
painful as possible, had resolved upon the 
barbarous measure of separating the families 
of their victims. The young men and boys 
were driven at the point of the bayonet from 
the church to the ship and compelled to 
embark. They passed amid the rows of 



their mothers and sisters, who, kneeling, 
prayed Heaven to bless and keep them. Then 
the fathers and husbands were forced by the 
bayonet on board of another ship, and as the 
vessels were now full, the women and* child- 
ren were left behind until more ships could 
come for them. They were kept for weeks 
near the sea, suffering greatly from lack of 
proper shelter and food, and it was December 
before the last of them were removed. 
Those who tried to escape were ruthlessly 
shot down by the sentinels. " Our soldiers 
hate them," wrote an English officer, " and 
if they can but find a pretext to kill them, 
they will." 

In some of the settlements the designs of 
the English were suspected and the procla- 
mation was not heeded. Some of the people 
fled to Canada; others sought shelter with 
the Indians, who received them with kind- 
ness ; others still fled to the woods, hoping 
to hide there till the storm was over. The 
English at once proceeded to lay waste their 
homes ; the country was made desolate in 
order that the fugitives might be compelled 
through starvation to surrender themselves. 

Families Scattered. 

Seven thousand Acadians were torn from 
their homes and scattered among the Eng- 
lish colonies on the Atlantic coast, from New 
Hampshire to Georgia. Families were ut- 
terly broken up, never to be reunited. The 
colonial newspapers for many years were 
filled with mournful advertisements, inquir- 
ing for a lo-st husband or wife; parents 
sought their missing children, and children 
their parents in this way. But of all these 
inquiries few were answered. The exiles 
were doomed to a parting worse than death, 
and their captors had done their work so 
well that human ingenuity could not undo it. 
Some of those who had been carried to 
Georgia attempted to return to their homes. 



SANGUINARY STRUGGLES ON THE FRONTIER. 



301 



They escaped to sea in boats, and coasted 
from point to point northward until they 
reached New England, when they were 
sternly ordered back. Their homes were 
their own no longer. 

More than three thousand Acadians fled 
to Canada, and of these about fifteen hundred 
settled south of the Ristigouche. Upon the 
surrender of Canada they were again sub- 
jected to the persecutions of the English, 
" Once those who dwelt in Pennsylvania 
presented a humble petition to the Earl of 
Loudon, then the British commander-in- 
chief in America, and the cold-hearted peer, 
offended that the prayer was made in French, 
seized their five principal men, who in their 
own land had been persons of dignity and 
substance, and shipped them to England, 
with the request that they might be kept 
from ever again becoming troublesome by 
being consigned to service as common sailors 
on board ships of war. 

Unparalleled Oppression. 

" No doubt existed of the king's approba- 
tion. The lords of trade, more merciless 
than the savages and than the wilderness in 
Avinter, wished very much that every one of 
the Acadians should be driven out; and 
when it seemed that the work was done, 
congratulated the king that ' the zealous 
endeavors of Lawrence had been crowned 
with an entire success.' I know not if the 
annals of the human race keep the record of 
sorrows so wantonly inflicted, so bitter and 
so perennial, as fell upon the French inhab- 
itants of Acadia. ' We have been true,' 
they said of themselves, * to our religion, and 
true to ourselves ; yet nature appears to con- 
sider us only as the objects of public ven- 
geance.' The hand of the English official 
seemed under a spell with regard to them ; 
and was never uplifted but to curse them." * 



* Bancroft's History of the United State', vol. iv., p. 206. 



While these sorrows were being heaped 
upon the helpless Acadians by England, the 
provincial forces were serving the cause else- 
where with more credit to their manhood. 
As has been stated, the expedition against 
the French fort at Crown Point, on Lake 
Champlain, had been intrusted to General 
William Johnson. His army consisted prin- 
cipally of troops from Massachusetts and 
Connecticut. They were joined at Albany 
by a regiment from New Hampshire. The 
troops rendezvoused at the head of boat 
navigation, on the Hudson, in July, 1755, 
under the command of General Lyman. 
They numbered about six thousand men. A 
fort was built and named by the troops, in 
honor of their commander, Fort Lyman. 
Johnson's Expedition. 

In August Johnson arrived with the stores 
and artillery, and assumed the command of 
the expedition. He ungenerously changed 
the name of the fort to Fort Edward. Leav- 
ing a strong force to garrison it, he moved 
with five thousand men to the head of Lake 
George, from which he intended to descend 
the lake in boats. 

The French had been informed of John- 
son's movements by their scouts. Baron 
Dieskau, the governor of Canada, placed the 
entire arms-bearing population of the Mon- 
treal district in the field and resolved to 
prevent Johnson from reaching Crown Point 
by attackmg him in his own country. With 
a force of two hundred French regulars and 
about one thousand two hundred Indians, he 
set out across the country to attack Fort 
Edward. Upon arriving in the vicinity of 
the fort the Indians learned that it was de- 
fended by artillery, of which they were 
greatly afraid, and refused to attack it. Dies- 
kau was, therefore, compelled to change his 
plan, and resolved to strike a blow at John- 
son's camp, which he was informed was 
without cannon. 



302 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



In the meantime the scouts of the English 
had detected the movement against Fort 
Edward. Ignorant of the change in Dies- 
kau's plans Johnson sent a force of one 
thousand men, under Colonel Ephraim Will- 
iams of Massachusetts, and two hundred 
Mohawks, under their famous chief Hen- 
drick, to the relief of the fort. Their march 
was reported to the French, who placed 




THE PALISADES OF THE HUDSON. 

themselves in ambush along the road they 
were pursuing, and attacked them as soon as 
they had fairly entered the defile. The Eng- 
lish were at once thrown into confusion. 
Hendrick was shot down at the first fire, and 
Williams fell a few moments later. The 
English and Mohawks then began a rapid 
retreat to their camp, closely pursued by 
their assailants. 

The sound of the firlncr was soon heard in 



Johnson's camp, and as it drew nearer it 
became apparent that the detachment was 
retreating. The troops were gotten under 
arms, and the trees in front of the camp were 
hurriedly felled to form a rude breastwork. 
A few cannon had just arrived from the 
Hudson, and these were placed to command 
the road by which the French Avere ap- 
proaching. These arrangements were just 
completed when the fugitives of Williams' 
command appeared in full retreat, with the 
French and Indians but a few hundred yards 
behind them. Dieskau urged his men for- 
ward with the greatest energy, intending to 
force his way into the English camp along 
with the fugitives. The artillery was care- 
fully trained upon the road by which he was 
advancing, and the moment the fugitives 
were past the guns they opened with a ter- 
rific fire of grape, which caused the Canadians 
and Indians to break in confusion, and take 
to the woods for shelter. 

Stolen Honors. 

The regulars held their ground, and main- 
tained a determined contest of five hours, in 
which they were nearly all slain. The In- 
dians and Canadians did little execution, as 
they stood in dread of the artillery. At 
lencfth Dieskau, seeing that his effort had 
failed, drew off his men, and retreated. He 
was pursued for some distance by the Eng- 
lish. Towards evening he was suddenly at- 
tacked by the New Hampshire regiment, 
which was marching from Fort Edward to 
Johnson's assistance. The French were 
seized with a panic at this new attack, and 
abandoning their brave commander fled for 
their lives. Dieskau, who had been severely 
wounded several times, was taken prisoner. 
He was kindly treated, and was subsequently 
sent to England, where he died. 

General Johnson was slightly wounded at 
the commencement of the battle, and with- 



SANGUINARY STRUGGLES ON THE FRONTIER. 



303 



drew from the field, leaving the command to 
General Lyman, to whom the victory was 
really due. Notwithstanding this Johnson 
did not even mention Lyman's name in his 
report of the battle, but claimed all the honor 
for himself He was rewarded by the king 
with a baronetcy, and the gift of twenty-five 
thousand dollars. General Lyman was not 
even thanked for his services. 

Great Military Preparations. 

Johnson made no effort to improve his 
victory. The expedition against Crown 
Point, which might now have been under- 
taken with a better prospect of success, was 
abandoned, and Johnson contented himself 
with building a useless log fort at the head 
of Lake George, which he named Fort Will- 
iam Henry. Late in the fall he placed a 
garrison in this fort, and then returned to 
Albany, where he disbanded his army. 

The expedition under Governor Shirley, 
against Fort Niagara, was equally unsuccess- 
ful. By the month of August Shirley had 
advanced no farther than Oswego. Here he 
received the news of Braddock's defeat, which 
so disheartened him that, after building and 
garrisoning two forts at Oswego, he returned 
to Albany. By the death of Braddock Shir- 
ley succeeded to the chief command of all 
the royal forces in America. 

In December, 1755, Shirley held a con- 
ference with the colonial governors, at New 
York, to decide upon the campaign for the 
next year. It was agreed that three expedi- 
tions should be undertaken in 1756: one 
against Niagara ; a second against Fort Du- 
quesne, and a third against Crown Point. In 
the meantime Lord Loudon was appointed 
by the king commander-in-chief of the forces 
in America. He sent over General Aber- 
crombie as his lieutenant. Abercrombie ar- 
rived in June with several regiments of 
British regulars. He relieved General Shir- 



ley from command, but nothing was to be 
done until the arrival of the commander-in- 
chief, who did not reach America until July. 

Lord Loudon was a more pompous and a 
slower man than Braddock, and more incom- 
petent. A force of seven thousand men was 
assembled at Albany for the expedition 
against Ticonderoga and Crown Point, and 
Loudon at once repaired thither, and as- 
sumed the command. The colonists were 
confident that something of importance 
would now be accomplished ; but they were 
destined to disappointment. The com- 
mander-in-chief and his subordinates spent 
their time in settling the relative rank of the 
royal and provincial officers. 

Notwithstanding the fact that all that had 
been accomplished during the war had been 
gained by the colonial forces, there was an 
iniquitous regulation which gave the pre- 
cedence to the lowest ofificer holding a royal 
commission over one holding a higher rank 
from any of the colonies. This led to many 
disputes, and the colonists saw themselves 
robbed of the honors they had so fairly won. 
This was only one of the many wrongs by 
which Great Britain succeeded in alienating 
the people of America from their attachment 
to her. 

Successes of Montcalm. 

In the meantime Dieskau had been suc- 
ceeded as governor of Canada by the 
Marquis de Montcalm, the ablest of the 
rulers of New France. He was a man of 
genuine ability and of indomitable energy. 
He reached Quebec in 1756, and at once set 
out for Ticonderoga, which he placed in a 
state of defence. Perceiving the exposed 
condition of the English forts at Oswego he 
resolved to capture them. Collecting a force 
of five thousand Frenchmen, Canadians and 
Indians, he crossed the lake from Frontenac, 
and reached Oswego on the fifth of August. 



304 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



He soon drove the English out of Fort 
Oswego ; but Fort Ontario, the second 
work, opposed a more vigorous resistance 
to him. 

The garrison held out until their com- 
mander, Colonel Mercer, was killed, and they 
had lost all hope of receiving aid from 
Albany, when they capitulated. An immense 
amount of military stores, one hundred and 
thirty-five pieces of cannon, and all the boats 
and vessels Shirley had prepared for the ex- 
pedition against Niagara fell into the hands 
of Montcalm. The Iroquois had viewed the 
erection of the forts at Oswego by the Eng- 
lish with great jealousy, and in order to con- 
ciliate them Montcalm wisely destroyed the 
works, and withdrew into Canada. 

Master of Twenty Legions. 

Loudon had detached a force under 
Colonel Webb to the assistance of the 
Oswego forts, but it was sent so late that it 
was met on the way by the news of the cap- 
ture of the forts. Colonel Webb, in dismay, 
fell back rapidly, and obstructed the road to 
Albany. 

Having failed to accomplish anything 
against the enemy Lord Loudon now under- 
took to subjugate the colonies of New York 
and Pennsylvania. He was firmly convinced 
that the colonists needed to be taught sub- 
mission to the will of the royal commander, 
and as he had been made a sort of viceroy of 
all the colonies, he thought the present a 
fitting occasion to teach them this lesson. 
He demanded of the cities of Albany, New 
York and Philadelphia free quarters for his 
troops during the winter. The mayor of 
New York refused the demand " as contrary 
to the laws of England and the liberties of 
America." " G — d d — n my blood," said the 
viceroy to the mayor ; " if you do not billet 
my officers upon free quarters this day, I'll 
order here all the troops in North America 



under my command, and billet them myself 
upon the city." 

There was no reasoning with " the master 
of twenty legions," and the magistrates were 
obliged to get up a subscription' for the free 
support, during the winter, of an army that 
had passed a whole campaign without com- 
ing in sight of the enemy. In Philadelphia 
the matter was settled very much in the 
same way. Albany was also obliged to sub- 
mit, but the magistrates took occasion to 
tell the royal officers that they did not want 
their services, as they could defend their 
frontiers themselves. " The frontier was left 
open to the French ; this quartering troops 
in the principal towns, at the expense of the 
inhabitants, by the illegal authority of a 
military chief, was the great result of the 
campaign." It was becoming clear to the 
colonists that their safety from the depreda- 
tions of the French and savages was not to 
be gained by the royal troops, but by their 
own efforts. 

Mock Battles and Sieges. 

A congress of governors was held at 
Boston in January, 1757, and it was resolved 
that there should be but one expedition this 
year, and that this should be sent under the 
Earl of Loudon against Louisburg. The 
frontier posts, especially Forts Edward and 
William Henry, were to be defended, and 
Washington, with the Virginia troops, was to 
guard the border of that colony against the 
expeditions of the French from Fort Du- 
quesne. The last was a difficult and almost 
impossible duty, for the French from Fort 
Duquesne could choose their point of attack 
anywhere on the long and exposed frontier, 
while the force under Washington was utterly 
inadequate to the task of watching the entire 
line. 

Leaving Bouquet to guard the frontier of 
Carolina against the Cherokees, and Webb to 



SANGUINARY STRUGGLES ON THE FRONTIER. 



305 



hold the country between Lake George and 
the Hudson, Lord Loudon, on the twentieth 
of June, 1757, sailed from New York with 
six thousand regulars to attack Louisburg. 
He proceeded to Halifax, where he was 
joined by a fleet of eleven ships of war and 
four thousand troops, bringing his whole 
force to ten thousand regulars and six- 
teen ships of the line and a number of 
frigates. 

The campaign of 
this redoubtable 
warrior is thus des- 
cribed by Bancroft: 
"He landed (at Ha- 
. lifax). levelled the 
uneven ground for 
a parade, planted 
a vegetable garden 
as a precaution 
against the scurvy, 
exercised the men 
in mock battles and 
sieges and storm- 
ings of fortresses, 
and when August 
came, and the spirit 
of the army was 
broken, and Hay, a 
major-general, ex- 
pressed contempt 
so loudly as to be 
arrested, the troops 
were embarked, as 
if for Louisburg. 
But ere the ships 
sailed, the reconnoitring vessels came with 
the news that the French at Cape Breton 
had one more ship than the English, and 
the plan of campaign was changed. Part of 
the soldiers landed again at Halifax, and the 
Earl of Loudon., leaving his garden to the 
weeds, and his place of arms to briars, sailed 
for New York. 
20 



The Marquis of Montcalm was a very 
different man from the Earl of Loudon. As 
a man he was superior to him in every way; 
as a commander he was active, quick and 
resolute ; while Loudon was incompetent, 
slow and pompous. Montcalm had stationed 
himself at Ticonderoga, in order to be able to 
watch the English, and he resolved to take 
advantage of Lord Loudon's absence to 
attack F'ort William Henry, at the head of 




SITE OF FORT WILLIAM HENRY ON LAKE GEORGE. 



Lake George. In the first place, previous to 
starting on this enterprise, he made his court 
to the Oneidas, the Senecas and other sav- 
age tribes, and gained them over to his 
interests. These native warriors crossed the 
waters of Lake Champlain in two hundred 
canoes with pennons flying, and all the pomp 
of savage warfare. Assembling beneath the 



3o6 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



battlements of Ticonderoga, in the midst of 
woods and mountains, they sang the war- 
song, danced the war-dance, and listened to 
the eloquence of their orators. On the sec- 
ond of August Montcalm appeared before 
the fort with a force of about six thousand 
French and Canadians and seventeen hun- 
dred Indians, and laid siege to it. The 




MONTCALM. 

garrison consisted of about three thousand 
men, under Colonel Monroe, a gallant offi- 
cer. Montcalm summoned him to surrender 
the fort, but Monroe returned an indignant 
refusal to this demand, and sent to General 
Webbe, at Fort Edward, fifteen miles dis- 
tant, to ask for assistance. Webbe might 
ei'^ily have saved the fort, as he had four 



thousand men under his command, but he 
made no effort to do so. 

Colonel Putnam, afterwards famous in the 
Revolution, eagerly sought ^nd at last re- 
ceived permission to march with his regi- 
ment to Monroe's assistance, but he had 
proceeded Only a few miles when Webbe 
commanded him to return to Fort Edward. 
In the place of assistance, the 
timid Webbe then sent to Mon- 
roe a letter greatly exaggerating 
the force of the French and ad- 
vising him to surrender. This 
letter was intercepted by Mont- 
calm, who was on the point of 
raising the siege, and he for- 
warded it to Monroe, with a 
renewed demand for his sur- 
render. The brave veteran held 
out, however, until nearly all his 
guns were disabled and his am- 
munition nearly exhausted. He 
then hung out a flag of truce, 
and Montcalm, who was too true 
a hero not to appreciate valor in 
a foe, granted him liberal terms. 
The garrison were allowed to 
march out with the honors of 
war upon giving their parole not 
to serve against France for eight- 
een months. They were to re- 
tain their private property and 
were to liberate all their pris- 
oners. On the ninth of August 
the fort was surrendered to the 
French. 
Montcalm had kept the savages from 
liquor, in order to be able to restrain them 
in the hour of victory. They now sought 
and obtained rum from the English, and 
spent the night in dancing and singing. The 
next morning, as the English marched out 
of their camp, the Indians fell upon them and 
began to plunder them. From robbery the 




307 



308 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



excited savages soon passed to murder, 
and many of the English were killed and 
others made prisoners. The French officers 
threw themselves into the melee and exerted 
themselves gallantly to control the Indians. 
Many of them were wounded in these efforts. 
Montcalm in an agony implored the Indians 
to respect the treaty. " Kill me," he cried, 
as he struggled to restrain the savages, "but 
spare the English, who are under my protec- 
tion." He called to the English soldiers to 
defend themselves. The retreat to Fort 
Edward became a disorderly fight. Only 
about six hundred men reached there in a 
body. More than four hundred had sought 
shelter in the French camp, and were sent 
by Montcalm to their friends under the pro- 
tection of a strong escort. He also sent one 
of his officers to ransom those who had been 
taken prisoners by the Indians. The vast 
stores accumulated at Fort William Henry 
were carried away by the French, and the 
work itself demolished. 

Triumph of the French. 

The loss of Fort William Henry greatly 
frightened General Webbe at Fort Edward. 
In spite of his forceof six thousand men, and 
the withdrawal of the French to Lake Cham- 
plain, he seriously contemplated a retreat to 
beyond Albany. Lord Loudon, who had 
arrived at New York, was equally impressed 
with the danger, and proposed to take posi- 
tion with his army on Long Island, for the 
defence of the continent. 

The campaign was over, and the French 
were everywhere triumphant. With the ex- 
ception of Acadia, they held all the country 
they had occupied at the beginning of the 
war. The English had lost the forts at 
Oswego and William Henry, and immense 
quantities of supplies. They had been en- 
tirely expelled from the valleys of the Ohio 
and the St. Lawrence, and the hostile parties 



of the Indians were enabled to extend their 
ravages far into the interior of the colonies. 
America was thoroughly disgusted with 
the incompetency and cowardice of the royal 
commanders. The old spell of British invin- 
cibility was broken, and the colonists were 
rapidly losing their respect for the troops 
sent over from England to protect them. 
Men were coming to the conclusion that 
their connection with Great Britain was sim- 
ply a curse to the colonies. They regarded 
the conduct of the war thus far by the royal 
officials as simply " a mixture of ignorance 
and cowardice," and were satisfied that they 
were amply able to defend themselves against 
the French and Indians without any assist- 
ance whatever from England. 

Attempts to Force Submission. 

The royal officials sought to cover their 
failures by complaints against the Ameri- 
cans. The hearty disgust and contempt 
with which the colonists regarded their 
pusillanimous conduct was reported by them 
to the home goverment as evidence of a 
mutinous spirit on the part of the Americans. 
Throughout the colonies they pursued one 
uniform system of seeking to force the prov- 
inces into submission to their own illegal 
acts, and to compel them to an acknowledg- 
ment of the arbitrary power of the crown. 
" Everywhere," says Bancroft, " the royal 
officers actively asserted the authority of the 
king and the British nation over America. 
Did the increase of population lead the leg- 
islature to enlarge the representative body? 
The right to do so was denied, and represen- 
tation was held to be a privilege conceded by 
the king as a boon, and limited by his will. 
Did the British commander believe that the 
French colonies through the neutral islands 
derived provisions from the continent ? By 
his own authority he proclaimed an embargo 
in every American port." 



CHAPTER XXIV • 
End of the French and Indian War 

A Change for the Better — William Pitt, Prime Minister — Vigorous Measures Adopted — Recall of the Earl of Loudon — 
Capture of i.ouisburg — Abercrombie on Lake George — Advances Against Ticonderoga — Death of Lord Howe — 
Failure of the English Attack Upon Ticonderoga — Disgraceful Conduct of Abercrombie — His Retreat — Capture of 
Fort Froritenac — Advance of General Forbes — Grant's Defeat — The Virginians Again Save the Regulars — Capture of 
Fort Duquesne — Washington Retires from the Army — Ticonderoga and Crown Point Occupied by the English — 
Capture of Fort Niagara — The Expedition Against Quebec — Failure of the First Operations — Despondency of 
Wolfe — He Discovers a Landing Place — The Army Scales the Heights of Abraham — Montcalm's Surprise — Battle of 
the Plains of Abraham — Death of Wolfe — Defeat of the French — Death of Montcalm — Surrender of Quebec — 
Capture of Montreal — Treaty of Paris — Canada Ceded to England — France Loses All Her American Possessions — 
The Cherokee War — Hostility of the Indians to the English — Pontiac's War — Death of Pontiac — Bouquet Relieves 
Fort Duquesne — Results of the War. 



THE gross mismanagement of affairs 
in America aroused a storm of in- 
dignation in England, and King 
George was obliged to yield to the 
popular sentiment and change his ministers. 
At the head of the new ministry he placed 
William Pitt, the leader of the popular party, 
who was destined to become one of the 
greatest of English statesmen. His great 
talents had raised him from the insignificant 
position of ensign in the guards to the lead- 
ership of the government of Great Britain, 
and were now to be the means of retrieving 
the disasters of his country and regaining 
for her her lost power and pi"estige. 

A truly great man, Pitt knew how to ad- 
mire and sympathize with merit in others, 
and was not blinded by the glitter of rank, 
nor hampered by an aristocratic faith in the 
divinity of royalty. He appreciated and 
sympathized with the Americans more per- 
fectly than any of his predecessors in office, 
and began his career with the wise determi- 
nation to encourage and develop their patri- 
otism by a generous and systematic assist- 
ance of their efforts. He caused the 
government of Great Britain to assume the 
expenses of the war, and announced that the 



sums expended by the colonies for the public 
defence, since the commencement of hostili- 
ties, would be refunded, and that henceforth 
the British government would provide the 
funds for the prosecution of the war. 

The colonies were each required to furnish 
troops, but Pitt " stipulated that the colonial 
troops raised for this purpose should be sup- 
plied with arms, ammunition, tents and provi- 
sions in the same manner as the regular troops 
and at the king's expense ; so that the only 
charge to the colonies would be that of levy- 
ing, clothing, and paying the men. The 
governors were also authorized to issue com- 
missions to provincial officers, from colonels 
downwards, and these officers were to hold 
rank in the united army according to their 
commissions. Had this liberal and just sys- 
tem been adopted at the outset, it would have 
put a very different face upon the affairs of 
the colonies."* These energetic and just 
measures were promptly responded to by the 
colonies, which placed a force of . twenty- 
eight thousand men in the field. To these 
Pitt added twenty-two thousand British reg- 
ulars, making a total of fifty thousand men, 



* Sparks' Writings of Washington, vol. ii., p. 289 — Note. 



3IO 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



the largest army that had ever been assem- 
bled in America, and exceeding in number 
the entire male population of Canada. 

The Earl of Loudon was recalled, and in- 
stead of a single supreme command three 
separate expeditions were organized under 
different officers. An expedition against 




WILLIAM PITT. 

Louisburg was placed under the orders of 
Lord Jeffrey Amherst, an able and upright 
soldier, assisted by Brigadier General James 
Wolfe ; who, though only thirty-one years 
old, had spent eighteen years in the army, 
and had served at Dettingen, Fontenoy and 



Laffeldt. He was considered* one of the 
ablest commanders in the English service, 
and Avas universally beloved. To General 
Forbes the task of conquering the Ohio val- 
ley was assigned ; and the expedition against 
Ticonderoga and Crown Point was intrusted 
to General Abercrombie. Pitt had little faith 
in Abercrombie, who 
had been Lord Loudon's 
most trusted lieutenant; 
but retained him to 
please Lord Bute, and 
associated with him, as 
his second in command, 
the young and gifted 
Lord George Howe, in 
the hope that Howe's 
genius would redeem 
Abercrombie's faults, 
and lead him to victory. 
The expedition against 
Louisburg consisted of 
a fleet of twenty ships of 
the line and eighteen 
frigates, under Admiral 
Boscawen, and an army 
of fou rteen thousand 
men, under General Am- 
herst. The fleet reached 
Cabarus Bay on the se- 
cond of June, 1758. The 
fortifications of Louis- 
burg were somewhat di- 
lapidated, but were held 
by a garrison of thirty- 
two hundred men, com- 
manded by Chevalier 
Drucour, an ofificer of 
experience and determination. These frigates 
were sunk across the mouth of the harbor to 
close it against the English, and within the 
basin lay five ships of the line, one fifty-gun 
ship and two frigates, which took part in the 
defence of the place. 



END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



311 



The surf was so heavy that Amherst was 
unable to land his troops until the eighth. 
The first division was led by Wolfe, under 
the cover of the fire of the fleet. He forbade 
a gun to be fired from his command, and, 
upon nearing the shore, leaped into the 
water, followed by his men, and in the face 
of a sharp resistance, drove the French from 
their outposts into the town. The place was 
now regularly invested, and, after a bombard- 
ment of fifty days, during which the shipping 
in the harbor was destroyed, the town and 
fortifications were surrendered to the English 
on the twenty-seventh of July. With Louis- 
burg the French gave up the islands of Cape : 
Breton and Prince Edward. Five thousand 
prisoners and an immense quantity of mili- 
tary supplies were secured by the English. 

Halifax being already the chief naval sta- 
tion of the English in these waters, Louis- 
burg was abandoned. Amherst, Wolfe and 
Boscawen were honored by the English gov- 
ernment for their victory. The season was 
too far advanced after the capture of Louis - 
burg to admit of the commencement of 
operations against Quebec, and Amherst was 
suddenly called away from the coast to take 
charge of the army on Lake George. 

Down Lake George. 

Abercrombie had assembled a force of 
seven thousand English regulars and nine 
thousand Americans at the head of Lake 
George. Among the American troops were 
Stark and Putnam, afterwards famous in the 
war for independence, the former serving as 
a captain in the New Hampshire regiment, 
the latter as a major of Connecticut troops, 
Abercrombie was commander-in-chief, but 
the troops had little confidence in him. They 
were devoted to Lord Howe, who was the 
real leader of the expedition. On the fifth 
of July the army broke up its camp, and 
embarking in ten hundred and thirty-five 



boats, with the artillery on rafts, descended 
the lake to its lower end, from which they 
were to advance overland upon Fort Carillon, 
which the French had erected on the pro- 
montory of Ticonderoga. The next morning 
Lord Howe pushed forward with the ad- 
vanced guard, and encountered a scouting 
party of the French. A sharp conflict en- 
sued. The French were easily driven back, 
but Lord Howe was killed almost at the first 
fire. His death cast a gloom over the army, 
which promisecj ill for the success of the 
undertaking. 

Gallant Attack. 

Abercrombie continued to advance, and 
on the morning of the ninth sent Clerk, his 
chief engineer, to reconnoitre the French 
position at Ticonderoga. Clerk reported 
that the French works were feeble, and im- 
perfectly armed. Stark, of New Hampshire, 
and some of the English officers saw that 
they were both strong and well provided 
with artillery. They so reported to Aber- 
crombie, but he accepted the statement of his 
engineer, and, without waiting for his artil- 
lery, ordered an assault upon the French 
lines that very day. 

The Marquis of Montcalm was command- 
ing in person at Ticonderoga, and had dis- 
posed his small force of thirty-six hundred 
and fifty men in a line of breastworks thrown 
up about half a mile beyond the fort, and 
extending across the promontory on ^^•hich 
that work stood. The death of Lord Howe 
had deprived the English of their only leader 
capable of contending against this accom- 
plished commander, and the incompetency 
of Abercrombie was to render easy what 
might have been, under other circumstances, 
a most difficult undertaking. 

Abercrombie could have brought up his 
artillery by the next day, but he was un- 
willing to wait for it, as he anticipated an 



312 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



easy victory. He stationed himself in a place 
of safety about two miles from the field, and 
ordered his troops to assail the French in- 
trenchments with the bayonet. The attack 
was made in gallant style, and was continued 
with energy during the afternoon. The 
English performed prodigies of valor, but 
were not able to overcome the strength of 
the French works, or the activity with which 
the defenders maintained their position. Un- 
like the English commander, Montcalm was 
everywhere along his line, (*heering his men 
with his presence and example, and distribut- 
ing refreshments to them with his own hands. 
Without a commander who dared place 
himself under fire, with no one on the spot 
to direct their movements, the valor of the 
English was thrown away. A volley from 
an advanced party of their own men com- 
pleted their confusion, and they broke help- 
lessly and fell back in disorder towards Lake 
George. Abercrombie made no effort to 
rally them ; he was too badly frightened for 
that; and led the army towards the landing- 
place, on Lake George, with such haste that 
but for the energetic action of Colonel Brad- 
street the troops would have rushed pell-mell 
into the boats, without any semblance of 
order, and with a still greater loss of life. 

The English Retreat. 

The English lost nearly two thousand men 
in the attack upon the French works, but 
they still had left a force of more than four 
times the strength of the French, and their 
artillery had not been engaged. With this 
force they might have taken Ticonderoga, 
but Abercrombie was too much terrified to 
attempt anything of the kind. On the morn- 
ing of the ninth he embarked his troops and 
hastened to the head of Lake George. 
Montcalm was astounded at his retreat, but 
as he had too small a force, and his men 
were exhausted, he made no effort at pur- 



suit. Arrived at the head of Lake George, 
the frightened Abercrombie sent the artillery 
and ammunition back to Albany for safety, 
and occupied his army with the erection of 
Fort George, liear the ruins of Fort William 
Henry. The news of this disaster caused 
General Amherst to hasten with four regi- 
ments and a battalion from Louisburg to 
Lake George. He reached the camp of 
Abercrombie on the fifth of October. In 
November orders arrived from England ap- 
pointing Amherst commander-in-chief of the 
royal forces in America, and recalling Aber- 
crombie, who returned to England to attempt 
to excuse his cowardice by villifying Amer- 
ica and the Americans. He could not de- 
ceive Pitt, however, whose indignation at his 
pusillanimous conduct was only restrained 
by the influence of Lord Bute in the royal 
councils. 

Sudden Flight. 

After Abercrombie's retreat. Colonel Brad- 
street, of New York, at his earnest solicita- 
tion, obtained leave from the council of war 
to undertake an expedition against Fort 
Frontenac, which, being situated at the foot 
of Lake Ontario, commanded both the lake 
and the St. Lawrence. Its possession was 
of the highest importance to the French, as 
it was their main depot for the supply of the 
posts on the upper lakes and the Ohio with 
military stores. Collecting a force of twenty- 
seven hundred men, all Americans, consist- 
ing chiefly of troops from New York and 
Massachusetts, Bradstreet hastened to Os- 
wego before his movements were known to 
the enemy. From Oswego he crossed the 
lake in open boats, and landed on the Can- 
ada side within a mile of Fort Frontenac. 

His sudden arrival struck terror to the 
garrison, and the greater part secured their 
safety by an instantaneous flight. The next 
day the fort surrendered. The victors cap- 



END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



313 



tured with it a vast quantity of military 
stores destined for the forts in the interior, 
and a fleet of nine armed vessels, with which 
the French controlled the lake. Two of the 
vessels were laden with a part of the stores 
and sent to Oswego, and the remainder of 
the vessels and stores, together with the 
fort, were destroyed. The English then re- 
crossed the lake to Oswego. The capture of 
Fort Frontenac was an event of great im- 
portance, as it led, as we shall see further 
on, to the abandonment by the French of 
their posts in the valley of the Ohio, 

For the reduction of Fort Duquesne a 
force of seven thousand men was assembled 
under General Forbes. Of these, five thou- 
sand were from Pennsylvania and Virginia, 
the troops from the latter colony being under 
the command of Colonel Washington. The 
Pennsylvania troops assembled at Raystown, 
on the Juniata, and the Virginians at Fort 
Cumberland. Washington urged upon 
Forbes the advantages of adopting the old 
road cut by Braddock's army in his advance 
to the Ohio, but Forbes, at the suggestion of 
some land-speculators, decided to construct 
a new and a better road farther to the north. 
As regarded the future settlement of the 
west this was an excellent plan, but as far as 
it concerned the immediate object of the 
campaign it was a mistake, as it involved a 
large expenditure of labor and a great waste 
of time. 

Whife this road was being constructed 
General Bouquet, with the advanced guard, 
crossed Laurel Hill and established a post at 
Loyal Hanna. The new road progressed 
very slowly, only forty-five miles being con- 
structed in six weeks. Bouquet had with 
him a force of about two thousand men, 
chiefly Highlanders and Virginians. Learn- 
ing from his scouts that Fort Duquesne was 
held by a garrison of only eight hundred 
men, of whom three hundred were Indians, 



Bouquet, without orders from General 
Forbes, resolved to attempt the capture of 
the fort by a sudden blow. 

He detached a force of eight hundred 
Highlanders and a company of Virginians, 
under Major Grant, to reconnoitre Fort 
Duquesne. The French were fully informed 
of all of Grant's movements, but they allowed 
him to approach unmolested, intending to 
disarm his vigilance and then attack him. 
Grant affected the usual contempt for the 
provincial troops, and upon arriving before 
the fort, placed Major Lewis with the Vir- 
ginians to guard the baggage, and sent his 
regulars forward to reconnoitre and make a 
sketch of the work. He was greatly en- 
couraged by the fact that the French allowed 
him to approach without firing a gun at him, 
and in his self-complacency marched right 
into an ambuscade which the enemy had 
prepared for him. 

The Regulars' Narrow Escape. 

The French commander had posted the 
Indians along the sides of the defile by which 
Grant was advancing, and at a given signal 
the garrison made a sudden sally from the 
fort against the Highlanders, while the In- 
dians opened a heavy fire upon them from 
their place of concealment. The regulars 
were quickly thrown into confusion, and 
their officers were found incapable of con- 
ducting such a mode of warfare. Attracted 
by the firing. Major Lewis, with a company 
of Virginians, hastened to the scene of the 
encounter, and by engaging the enemy hand- 
to-hand enabled the regulars to save them- 
selves from a general massacre. The de- 
tachment was routed with heavy loss, and 
both Grant and Lewis were taken prisoners. 
The fugitives retreated to the point where 
the baggage had been left. It was guarded 
by Captain Bullit, whom Lewis had left there 
with one company of Virginians. 



314 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



By the gallant and skillful resistance of 
this little force the French and Indians were 
checked, and finally driven back in confusion. 
The English then continued their retreat 
with all speed to Loyal Hanna. Again the 
provincials had saved the regulars from total 
destruction. General Forbes had the mag- 
nanimity to acknowledge and compliment 
the Virginians for their services, and Cap- 
tain BuUit was promoted to the rank of 
major. 

General Forbes was greatly disheartened 
by the news of Grant's disaster. A council 
of war was called to deliberate upon the 
future operations of the army, and decided 
that as it was now November, and they were 
still fifty miles from Fort Duquesne, with an 
unbroken forest between them and the fort, 
nothing more could be accomplished until 
the spring. The enterprise was on the point 
of being abandoned when fortunately three 
prisoners were brought in, from whom Wash- 
ington drew the information that the garri- 
son of Fort Duquesne was reduced to a very 
small force, that the Indians had all deserted 
the French, and that the expected reinforce- 
ments and supplies from Canada had not 
arrived. It was evident that a well-executed 
effort would result in the capture of the 
fort. 

The Fort Abandoned. 

This information decided General Forbes 
to continue the expedition. A force of 
twenty-five hundred picked troops was 
placed under Washington's command, and 
he was ordered to push forward as rapidly 
as possible, and prepare the road for the ad- 
vance of the main army. Washington was 
ably seconded in his movements by the en- 
ergetic Armstrong, and the march was 
pressed with such vigor that in ten days 
the army arrived in the vicinity of Fort 
Duquesne. 



The French now saw that the fall of the 
fort was inevitable. They had but five hun- 
dred men, and Bradstreet's capture of Fort 
Frontenac had cut them off from the rein- 
forcements and supplies they had expected 
from Canada. Unwilling to stand a siege, 
the result of which was certain, they aban- 
doned the fort on the night of the twenty- 
fourth of November, and embarking in flat 
boats, floated down the Ohio to join their 
countrymen in the valley of the Mississippi. 

On the morning of the twenty-fifth, Wash- 
ington, with his gallant band, entered the 
fort and planted the British flag on the ram- 
parts just abandoned by the French. 

At the universal desire of the army, Forbes 
named the place Fort Pitt, which has since 
been changed to Pittsburgh. The splendid 
city which occupies the site is the proudest 
monument that has been built to the memory 
of the " Great Commoner." 

Two regiments, composed of Pennsyl- 
vanians, Virginians and Marylanders, under 
Mercer, were left to garrison Fort Pitt, which 
was restored to its former strength. General 
Forbes then returned east of the mountains, 
and Washington resigned his commission 
and retired to private life. The object of the 
campaign was accomplished, and he could 
now enjoy the rest to which five years of 
constant service had entitled him. 

The capture of Fort Duquesne was the 
most important event of the war. It put an 
end to the French occupation of the valley 
of the Ohio and settled the claim of Great 
Britain to that valuable region. The Indians, 
having no longer the support and encour- 
agement which they had derived from the 
French at this post, ceased their hostile 
efforts, and during the remainder of the war 
the frontiers of Virginia and Pennsylvania 
were at peace. The capture of the fort was 
followed by a large emigration west of the 
mountains, which, beginning the next spring, 




WASHINGTON PLANTING THE FLAG ON FORT DUQUESNE. 



315 



3i6 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



soon placed a large and energetic population 
of Englishmen and their families in the val- 
ley of the Ohio. The Indians, disheartened 
by the defeat of the French, began to form 
treaties of peace or neutrality with the Eng- 
lish. 

Washington's Valor. 

Washington's services in this campaign 
were acknowledged with pride throughout 
the colonies, but the British government 
took no notice of them. Not even Pitt, 
with all his appreciation of America, thought 
it worth while to offer him any promotion or 
reward, as had been done in the case of 
other meritorious provincial commanders. 
Soon after his withdrawal from the army he 
took his seat in the house of burgesses, to 
which he had been elected. That body 
ordered its speaker to publicly thank Colonel 
Washington in the name of the house and of 
the people of Virginia for his services to his 
country. The speaker discharged this duty 
with ease and dignity, but when Washington 
attempted to reply he blushed and stam- 
mered and was unable to speak a word. The 
speaker relieved his confusion by coming to 
his assistance with the kind remark : " Sit 
down, Mr, Washington ; your modesty equals 
your valor, and that surpasses the power of 
any language I possess."' 

The English cause was now more success- 
ful than it had ever been, and Canada was 
exhausted by the efforts she had put forth 
for her defence. This was clear to Mont- 
calm, who had no hope of holding New 
France against the attacks of Great Britain, 
and it was also clear to the far-seeing mind 
ol Pitt. The British minister, therefore, re- 
solved that the next campaign should be 
decisive of the war. He promptly reim- 
bursed the colonies for the expenses incurred 
by them during the past year, and found no 
difficulty in enlisting them heartily in his 
schemes. 



Three expeditions were ordered for the 
year 1759. Amherst was to advance by 
way of Lake Champlain, and after capturing 
Ticonderoga and Crown Point, was to lay 
siege to Montreal ; Wolfe was to ascend the 
St. Lawrence and attack Quebec, and was to 
be joined by Amherst if the latter should be 
successful in his efforts against Montreal ; 
and General Prideaux was to proceed by 
way of Oswego to capture Fort Niagara, and 
then descend Lake Ontario and join Amherst 
at Montreal. 

Amherst moved promptly against Ticon- 
deroga, which post was abandoned by the 
French upon his approach. Crown Point 
fell into his hands in the same manner, but 
here the advance of the English was stayed. 
No boats had bejn provided to transport the 
army down Lake Champlain, and Amherst 
was forced to halt until these could be pro- 
cured. He was thus able to invest Mon- 
treal, or to co-operate with Wolfe in the 
movement against Quebec. 

The American Gibraltar. 

General Prideaux began his march to Os- 
wego about the same time, and proceeding 
from Oswego, laid siege to Fort Niagara. 
He was killed by the bursting of a gun soon 
after the commencement of the siege, and 
the command devolved upon Sir William 
Johnson, who pressed the attack with vigor. 
On the twenty-third of July, 1758, the fort 
capitulated ; but Johnson was obliged to 
abandon the attempt to descend the St. Law- 
rence to Wolfe's assistance from a lack of 
boats and provisions. 

The expedition against Quebec assembled 
in June, 1758, at Louisburg, under the com- 
mand of General Wolfe. It consisted of 
eight thousand troops and a fleet of twenty- 
two ships of the line, besides frigates and 
some smaller vessels. On the twenty-sixth of 
June the Isle of Orleans was reached, and 



END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



317 



the troops were imme- 
diately landed. A short 
distance up the riyer 
Quebec rose defiantly, 
its seemingly impregna- 
ble citadel of St. Louis 
crowning the lofty hills 
that rose from the river's 
brink. For the defence of 
the place Montcalm had 
six greatly reduced bat- 
talions of regulars and a 
force of Canadian militia. 
A few Indians remained 
faithful to him; but the 
majority of the tribes, 
doubtful of the issue of 
the contest, preferred to 
remain neutral. The 
French commander, see- 
ing the inferiority of his 
force to that of the Eng- 
lish, put his trust chiefly 
in the natural strength 
of his position, which he 
believed would enable 
him to hold it even with 
his small force. 

The situation of Que- 
bec was peculiar. It lay 
on a peninsula, between 
the river St. Charles on 
the north and the St. 
Lawrence on the south 
and east. On these sides 
it was perfectly protected 
by the river, leaving the 
west side alone exposed. 
The lower town was 
situated on the beach, while the upper 
stood on the cliffs two hundred feet above 
the water, and above this still rose the castle 
of St. Louis. Above the city the high pro- 
montory on which the upper town was built 




NIAGARA FALLS. 

stretched away for several miles in an 
elevated plain, and from the river to this 
plain the rocks rose almost perpendicularly. 
Every landing-place was carefully guard- 
ed, and the whole range of cliffs seemed 



3i8 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



bristling with cannon. The French com- 
mander did not believe it possible for an 
army to scale these cliffs. Montcalm located 
his camp below the city, between the St. 
Charles and the Montmorenci rivers, and 
covered the river front of his position with 
many floating batteries and ships of war, 
which presented a formidable appearance. 




GENERAL JAMES WOLFE. 

The naval superiority of the English at 
once gave them the command of the river. 
The French were driven from Point Levi, 
opposite the city, and upon it Wolfe erected 
batteries, from which he bombarded the 
lower town and soon laid it in ashes. The 
upper town and the citadel were beyond the 
range of his guns, and could not be injured 
by this fire. 



Wolfe now decided to storm the French 
camp on the opposite side of the St. Law- 
lence, and in the month of July attacked 
them from the direction of the Montmorenci, 
but owing to the haste of the first division, 
which advanced to the assault before it could 
be properly supported by the second, the 
attack was repulsed with a loss of five hun- 
dred men. This repulse greatly dis- 
heartened the English commander, 
whose sensitive spirit suffered keenly 
under the dread that his enterprise 
was doomed to failure. He obtained 
news of the capture of Fort Niagara 
and the occupation of Ticonder- 
oga and Crown Point, and eagerly 
watched for the approach of the 
promised assistance from Amherst. 
It never came, and Wolfe saw that 
he must take Quebec by his own 
efforts or not at all. He attempted 
several diversions above the city in 
the hope of drawing Montcalm from 
his intrenchments into the open 
field, but the latter merely sent De 
Bougainville with fifteen hundred 
men to watch the shore above 
Quebec and prevent a landing. 
Wolfe fell into a fever, caused by 
his anxiety, and his despatches to 
his government created the gravest 
uneasiness in England for the suc- 
cess of his enterprise. 

Though ill, Wolfe examined the 
river with eagle eyes to detect some 
place at which a landing could be attempted. 
His energy was rewarded by his discovery of 
the cove which now bears his name. From 
the shore at the head of this cove a steep and 
difficult pathway, along which two men could 
scarcely march abreast, wound up to the 
summit of the heights and was guarded by a 
small force of Canadians. Wolfe at once 
resolved to effect a landing here and ascend 



END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



319 



the heights by this path. The greatest 
secrecy was necessary to the success of the 
undertaking, and in order to deceive the 
French as to his real design. Captain Cook, 
afterwards famous as a great navigator, was 
sent to take soundings and place buoys 
opposite Montcalm's camp, as if that were 
to be the real point of attack. The morning 
of the thirteenth of September was chosen 
for the movement, and the day and night of 
the twelfth were spent in preparations for it. 

''To Conquer or Die." 

At one o'clock on the morning of the thir- 
teenth a force of about five thousand men 
under Wolfe, with Monckton and Murray, set 
off in boats from the fleet, which had ascended 
the river several days before, and dropped 
down to the point designated for the land- 
ing. Each officer was thoroughly informed 
of the duties required of him, and each 
shared the resolution of the gallant young 
commander, to conquer or die. As the 
boats floated down the stream, in the clear, 
cool starlight, Wolfe spoke to his officers of 
the poet Gray, and of his " Elegy in a 
Country Churchyard." " I would prefer," 
said he, " being the author of that poem to 
the glory of beating the French to-morrow." 
Then in a musing voice he repeated the 
lines : 

" The boast of heraldy, the pomp of power, 

And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave, 
Await alike the inexorable hour; 

The paths of glory lead but to the grave." 

In a short while the landing-place was 
reached, and the fleet, following silently, 
took position to cover the landing if neces- 
sary. Wolfe and his immediate command 
leaped ashore and secured the pathway. 
The light infantry, who were carried by the 
tide a little below the path, clambered up the 
side of the heights, sustaining themselves by 
clinging to the roots and shrubs which lined 



the precipitous face of the hill. They 
reached the summit and drove off the picket- 
guard after a slight skirmish. The rest of 
the troops ascended in safety by the path- 
way, and a battery of two guns was aban- 
doned on the left to Colonel Howe. Having 
gained the heights, Wolfe moved forward 
rapidly to clear the forest, and by daybreak 
his army was drawn up on the Heights of 
Abraham, in the rear of the city. 

Montcalm was speedily informed of the 
presence of the English. " It can be but a 
small party come to burn a few houses and 
retire," he answered incredulously. A brief 
examination satisfied him of his danger, and 
he exclaimed in amazement : " Then they 
have at last got to the weak side of this 
miserable garrison. We must give battle 
and crush them before mid-day." He at 
once despatched a messenger for De Bou- 
gainville, who was fifteen miles up the river, 
and marched from his camp opposite the 
city to the Heights of Abraham to drive the 
English from them. The opposing forces 
were about equal in numbers, though the 
English troops were superior to their adver- 
saries in steadiness and determination. 

Death of a Hero. 

The battle began about ten o'clock and 
was stubbornly contested. It was at length 
decided in favor of the English. Wolfe, 
though wounded several times, continued to 
direct his army until, as he was leading 
them to the final charge, he received a 
musket ball in the breast. He tottered and 
called to an officer near him : " Support 
me ; let not my brave fellows see me drop." 
He was borne tenderly to the rear, and 
water was brought him to quench his 
thirst. At this moment the officer upon 
whom he was leaning cried out: "They 
run! they run ! " "Who run?" asked the 
dying hero, eagerly. " The French," said 



320 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



the officer, " give way everywhere." " What ?" 
said Wolfe, summoning up his remaining 
strength, " do they run already ? Go, one of 
you, to Colonel Burton; bid him march 
Webb's regiment with all speed to Charles 
River to cut off the fugitives." Then, a 
smile of contentment overspreading his pale 
features, he murmured : " Now, God be 
praised, I die happy,"' and expired. He had 



De Bougainville arrived with his division, 
but Townshend declined to renew the en- 
gagement. 

Montcalm had borne himself heroically 
during the battle, and had done all that a 
brave and skillful commander could do to 
win the victory. As he was endeavoring to 
rally his troops at their final repulse, he was 
wounded for the second time, and was car- 




DEATH OF GENERAL WOLFE BEFORE QUEBEC. 



done his whole duty, and with his life had 
purchased an empire for his country. 

Monckton, the second in rank, having 
been wounded, the command devolved upon 
General Townshend, a brave officer, but 
incapable of following up such a success with 
vigor. He recalled the troops from the 
pursuit and contented himself with the pos- 
session of the battle-field. At this moment 



ried into the city. The surgeon informed 
him that his wound was mortal. " So much 
the better," he answered cheerfully ; " I shall 
not live to see the surrender of Quebec." 
De Ramsay, the commandant of the post 
asked his advice about the defence of the 
city. " To your keeping," answered Mont- 
calm, " I commend the honor of France. I 
will neither give orders nor interfere any 



END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



321 



further. I have business of greater moment 
to attend to. My time is short. I shall pass 
the night with God, and prepare myself for 
death." 

He then wrote a letter to the English com- 
mander, commending the French prisoners 
to his generosity, and at 
five o'clock on the morn- 
ing of the fourteenth his 
spirit passed away. Suc- 
ceeding generations have 
paid to his memory the 
honors it deserves, and 
on the spot where the 
fate of Quebec was de- 
cided the people of Ca- 
nada have erected, to 
commemorate the hero- 
ism of the conqueror and 
the conquered, a noble 
monument inscribed with 
the names of Wolfe and 
Montcalm. 

The French lost five 
hundred killed and one 
thousand prisoners,while 
the loss of the English 
was six hundred in killed 
and wounded. Five days 
afterward, on the eight- 
eenth of September, the 
city and garrison of Que- 
bec surrendered to Gen- 
eral Townshend. The 
capture of this great 
stronghold was hailed 
w^ith rejoicings in both 
America and England. 
Congratulations were 
showered upon Pitt, who modestly put them 
aside with the reverent remark : " I will 
aim to serve my country ; but the more a 
man is versed in business, the more he finds 
the hand of Providence everywhere." 
21 



In April, 1760, De Levi, the French com- 
mander at Montreal, attacked Quebec wntha 
force often thousand men, hoping to reduce 
it before the arrival of reinforcements from 
England. Murray, the English commander, 
marched out with three thousand men to 




KING GEORGE III. 

attack him, and in a severe battle on the- 
twenty-sixth of April was defeated and 
driven back to the city with a loss of one 
thousand men. The French then laid sieo-e 

o 

to Quebec, but on the ninth of May an 



322 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



English fleet arrived to its relief, and De Levi 
was obliged to withdraw to Montreal. 

In September, Montreal itself was invested 
by a powerful force under General Amherst. 
Seeing that there was no hope of resistance, 
the French commander surrendered the town 
on the eighth of September, 1760. With 
this capture Canada passed entirely into the 
hands of the English. Detroit and the other 
posts on the lakes were soon given up by the 
French, and the dominion of France in 
America was confined to the valley of the 
Mississippi. There were no further hostili- 
ties between the English and French. 

Important Treaty. 

The French and Indian war was closed by 
the treaty of Paris, on the tenth of February, 
1763. By this treaty Great Britain obtained 
all the French territory east of the Missis- 
sippi, with the exception of the island of 
New Orleans, the northern boundary of 
which was the rivers Iberville and Amite, 
and Lakes Maurepas and Pontchartrain. 
Florida was ceded to England by Spain in 
exchange for Havana. France ceded to 
Spain the island of New Orleans and all 
Louisiana west of the Mississippi. Thus 
Great Britain was mistress of the whole of 
the vast region east of the Mississippi, with 
the exception of the island of New Orleans, 
from the Arctic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexi- 
co. The region west of the Mississippi was 
claimed by Spain. In all the vast continent 
of America France retained not one foot of 
ground. 

In the meantime the Indians of the south- 
west had become involved in war with the 
whites. The Cherokees, who had always 
been friendly to the English, had done good 
service during the early part of the war by 
protecting the frontiers of Virginia, and had 
served also in Forbes' expedition against 
Fort Duquesne. They received for their 



services no reward or pay from any source, 
and as they were setting out for their homes 
neither General Forbes nor the colonial au- 
thorities supplied them with either food or 
money. To avoid starvation on their march 
they were compelled to plunder the barns of 
some of the settlers, and this led to a conflict 
which rapidly spread into a border war. 

The Cherokees Driven to Arms. 

Lyttleton, the governor of South Carolina, 
exerted himself to prevent the restoration of 
peace, and with success, as he desired the 
credit of exterminating the Cherokees. He 
was opposed by the legislature and people of 
the colony, but in 1759 he sent a force into 
their country, which committed such ravages 
that the Cherokees, driven to despair, re- 
solved upon a war of extermination. They 
made a league with the Muscogees, and sent 
to the French in Louisiana for military stores. 
The Carolinians asked aid of General Am- 
herst, who sent them a force of twelve hun- 
dred men, principally highlanders, under 
General Montgomery. Reinforced by a body 
of Carolinians, Montgomery invaded the 
Cherokee country in 1760, and laid it waste. 
This tribe had made great advances in civil- 
ization, and had settled in villages, and en- 
gaged in the cultivation of their lands. Their 
homes were made desolate, and they were 
driven to the mountains. Montgomery then 
rejoined Amherst, in the north, in obedience 
to orders ; but the Indians for many years 
maintained a desultory warfare along the 
southwestern border. 

The surrender of Canada to the , English 
was viewed with the greatest disfavor by the 
Indians of the north and west, who were 
attached to the French, and were unwilling 
to submit to the rule of the English. Im- 
mediately after the surrender the English 
occupied all the French posts along the 
lakes, and in the Ohio valley, with small 



END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



323 



garrisons. The contrast between these and 
the French, who had formerly held these 
forts, soon impressed itself forcibly upon the 
minds of the savages. The French had 
been friendly and kind to the Indians, and 
had sought to convert them to Christianity; 
the English were haughty and domineering, 
and insulted their priests, and denounced 
their religion. 

" King Pontiac." 

The French had prohibited the sale of rum 
to the Indians ; the English introduced it, 
and finding It profitable continued it, with a 
recklessness of consequences which did not 
escape the keen observation of the savages. 
The demoralization of the red men was rapid, 
and drunkenness and its attendant vices 
wrought sad changes in them. The tribes 
were bitterly hostile to the men who were 
ruining their people, and all were alarmed by 
the rapidity with which emigration had been 
pouring over the mountains since the capture 
of Fort Duquesne. They saw that they were 
about to be driven from their homes, and 
forced westward, before the advancing tide of 
the whites. 

The most determined opponent of the 
English rule was Pontiac, a chief of the 
Ottawas. He was a Catawba by birth, had 
been brought from his native country as a 
prisoner, and had been adopted into the Ot- 
tawa tribe, whose chief he had become by his 
bravery and skill. He was the idol of his 
own people, and his influence over the neigh- 
boring tribes was boundless. He was styled 
"the king and lord of all the country of the 
northwest," and bitterly resented the English 
occupation of his dominions. The first Eng- 
lish officer who came to take possession of 
the French forts was received by him with 
the stern demand, " How dare you come to 
visit my country without my leave ?" 

This " forest hero " now resolved to unite 
all the tribes of the northwest in a last de- 



termined effort to drive out the English, and 
regain the independence of the red man. 
The plan of operations which he adopted 
was most comprehensive, and was the most 
remarkable exhibition of genuine leadership 
ever given by an Indian. He began negotia- 
tions with the neighboring tribes, and in- 
duced the Delawares,Shawnees, the Senecas, 
Miamis, and many of the smaller tribes, oc- 
cupying the great region of the upper lakes, 
the valley of the Ohio, and a portion of the 
Mississippi valley, to join his people in their 
effort against the English. He sent a 
prophet to all the tribes to declare to them 
that the Great Spirit had revealed to him 
"that if the English were permitted to dwell 
in their midst, then the white man's diseases 
and poisons would utterly destroy them." 
The conspiracy was pressed forward with 
energy, and though it was more than a year 
in forming, it was kept a profound secret. 

The Plot Revealed. 

The principal post on the upper lakes was 
Detroit. It was surrounded by a numerous 
French population engaged in agriculture 
and trading. It was the centre of the trade 
of this region, and its possession was of the 
highest importance to the English. Pontiac 
was anxious to obtain possession of this 
fort and sent word to Major Gladwin, the 
commandant, that he was coming on a cer- 
tain day, with his warriors, to have a talk 
with him. The chief was resolved to make 
this visit the occasion of seizing the fort and 
massacring the garrison, and he and his 
warriors selected for the attempt cut down 
their rifles to a length which enabled them 
to conceal them under their blankets, in 
order to enter the fort with their arms. 

The plot was revealed to Gladwin by an 
Indian girl, whose affections had been won 
by one of the English officers, and when 
Pontiac and his warriors repaired to the fort 




324 



END OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



325 



for their " talk " Gladwin made him aware 
that his conspiracy was discovered, and very 
unwisely permitted him to leave the fort in 
safety. Pontiac now threw off the mask of 
friendship and boldly attacked Detroit. 

Wholesale Slaughter. 

This was the signal for a general war. In 
about three weeks' time the savages sur- 
prised and captured every fort west of Ni- 
agara, with the exception of Detroit and 
Pittsburgh. The garrisons were, with a few 
exceptions, put to death. Over one hundred 
traders were killed and scalped in the 
woods, and more than five hundred families 
were driven, with the loss of many of their 
numbers, from their settlements on the fron- 
tier. Pontiac endeavored, without success, 
to capture Detroit, and a large force of the 
warriors of several of the tribes laid siege to 
Pittsburgh, the most important post in the 
valley of the Ohio. The ravages of the 
Indians were extended over the wide terri- 
tory between the Ohio and the Mississippi, 
and the settlements in that region were for 
the time completely broken up. 

General Bouquet, with a force of five 
hundred men, consisting chiefly of Scotch 
Highlanders, was sent from eastern Penn- 
sylvania to the relief of Fort Ligonier, 
which was located at the western base of the 
mountains, and of Pittsburgh. Their march 
lay through a region which had been deso- 
lated by the Indians, and they were obliged 
to depend upon the stores they carried with 
them. Upon reaching Fort Ligonier, Bou- 
quet found the communication with Pitts- 
burgh cut off, and could learn nothing of the 
fate of the fort or garrison. 

Leaving his cattle and wagons at Ligo- 
nier, he pushed forward with his men in 
light marching order, determined to ascer- 
tain if Pittsburgh still held out. He had to 
fight his way through the Indians, who 



turned aside from the siege of the fort and 
ambushed the Highlanders at nearly every 
step. They were overwhelmingly defeated 
by the gallant Highlanders, for Bouquet was 
now a veteran Indian fighter, and had learned 
to fight the savages with their own tactics. 
Their rout was complete, and Bouquet reach- 
ed Pittsburgh in safety, to the great joy of the 
garrison. 

Victory Over the Indians. 

Bouquet's victory was decisive. The In- 
dians were utterly disheartened and fled 
westward ; and from that day the Ohio val- 
ley was freed from their violence. The tide 
of emigration once more began to flow over 
the mountains, and this time it was to know 
no cessation. The tribes concerned in Pon- 
tiac's conspiracy lost hope, and were over- 
awed by the preparations of the English for 
their destruction, and began to withdraw 
from the confederacy and make peace with 
the whites. Pontiac soon found himself de- 
serted by all his followers, even by his own 
people ; but his proud spirit would not brook 
the thought of submission. He would make 
no treaty ; he was the mortal foe of the 
English, and would never acknowledge their 
rule. Leaving his home and his people, he 
set out for the country of the Illinois, for 
purpose of stirring up the more distant tribes 
to war. A proclamation from Lord Amherst 
offered a reward for his murder, and he soon 
fell, the victim of the hired assassin. 

The long war was over. It had brought 
both loss and gain to the colonies. It had 
involved them in an expenditure of sixteen 
million dollars, of which sum but five milhon 
dollars had been refunded by the Enghsh 
government. Thus the debts of the colonies 
were greatly increased. Thirty thousand 
men had been killed, or had died from 
wounds or disease during the war, and the 
sufferings of the settlers along the extended 



326 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



and exposed frontiers had been almost incal- 
culable. 

On the other hand, the war had greatly 
increased the business of the colonies, es- 
pecially in those of the north. Large sums 
had been spent in America by Great Britain 
for the support of her armies and fleets, and 
many fortunes were built up by enterprising 
men during this period. Above all the 
Americans had been taught their own 
strength, and the value of united action. 
They had often proved their superiority to the 
regular troops of the English army, and had 
learned valuable lessons in the art of war. 
In the long struggle Washington, Gates, 
Morgan, Montgomery, Stark, Putnam and 
others were trained for the great work 
which was to be required of them in future 
years. 

The colonies were bound together by a 
common grievance, arising out of the 
haughty contempt with which the royal 
commanders treated the provincial troops, 
and sacrificed their interests to those of the 
regulars. The lesson that the colonies could 



do without the assistance of England, and 
that their true interests demanded a separation 
from her, was deeply implanted in the minds 
of many of the leading men. 

Another gain for the colonies was a posi- 
tive increase in their liberties resulting from 
the war. The necessity of securing the cor- 
dial co-operation of the Americans during 
the struggle caused the royal governors to 
cease their efforts to enforce arbitrary laws, 
during the existence of hostilities, as the en- 
forcement of such measures would have 
alienated the colonists, and have prevented 
them from raising the needed supplies of 
men and money. The colonial assemblies 
were careful to take advantage of this state 
of affairs. They made their grants of sup- 
plies with great caution, and retained in their 
own hands all the disbursements of the pub- 
lic funds. They thus accustomed the people 
to the practices of free government, and 
taught them their rights in the matter, so 
that when the war closed the royal governors 
found that they were no longer able to prac- 
tice their accustomed tyranny. 




BOOK IV 

The American Revolution 



CHAPTER XXV 
Causes of the Struggle for Independence 

Injusiice of Great Britain Towards Her Colonies — The Navigation Acts — Effects of These Laws Upon the Colonies — 
Great Britain Seeks to Destroy the Manufactures of America — Writs of Assistance — They Are Opposed — Home 
ivlanufactures Encouraged by the Americans — Ignorance of Englishmen Concerning America — Great Britain Claims 
the Right to Tax America — Resistance of ihe Colonists — Samuel Adams — The Parsons' Cause — Patrick Henry — 
England Persists in Her Determination to Tax America — Passage of the Stamp Act — Resistance of the Colonies — 
Meeting of the First Colonial Congress — Its Action — William Pitt — Repeal of the Stamp Act — Franklin Before the 
House of Commons — New Taxes Imposed Upon America — Increased Resistance of the Colonies — Troops Quartered 
in Boston — The " Massacre'" — The Non-Importation Associations — Growth of Hostility to England — Burning of the 
"Gaspe"— The Tax on Tea Retained by the King — Destruction of Tea at Boston — Wrath of the British Govern- 
ment — Boston Harbor Closed — Troops Quartered in Boston — The Colonies Come to the Assistance of Boston — 
Action of the Virginia Assembly — General Gage in Boston — The Regulating Act — Its Failure — Gage Seizes the 
Massachusetts Powder — Uprising of the Colony — Meeting of the Continental Congress — Its Action — Addresses to 
the King and People of England — The Earl of Chatham's Indorsement of Congress — The King Remains Stubborn. 



THE treaty of Paris placed England in 
control of the North American con- 
tinent east of the Mississippi, and 
the English government was of the 
opinion that this possession brought with it 
the right to treat America as it pleased, with- 
out regard to the rights or liberties of her 
people. We have already considered some 
of the many acts of injustice by which Great 
Britain drove the colonies into rebellion 
against her. We have now to relate those 
bearing more immediately on the separation. 
The navigation acts of 1660 and 1663 were 
passed, as we have seen, for the purpose of 
crippling the commerce of the colonies, and 
confirming their dependence upon England. 
They were severely felt throughout all the col- 
onies, and especially in New England, which 
was largely dependent upon its commerce. 
These acts were the beginning of a policy 
deliberately adopted by England, and per- 
sisted in by her for more than a century, for 



the purpose of enriching her mercantile class 
by depriving the colonists of the just rewards 
of their labors. The Americans were re- 
garded by the mother country as inferiors, 
and as dependents, who had been planted by 
her in " settlements established in distant 
parts of the world for the benefit of trade." 
The natural right of all men to acquire 
property and wealth by the exercise of their 
industry was denied to them ; they were to 
labor only that the British merchant might 
grow rich at their expense. Every species 
of industry in America, save the mere culti- 
vation of the soil, was to be heavily taxed 
that it might be crushed out of existence. 
The Americans were to be obliged to ship 
their products to England for sale, and to be 
compelled to purchase in her markets the 
supplies they needed. No foreign country 
might trade directly with the colonies. 

Such articles of foreign production as were 
needed must be shipped to England, and thea 

327 



328 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



transferred to British vessels for transporta- 
tion to the colonies, in order that they might 
yield a profit to the English ship-owner. The 
only direct trade which was allowed, and was 
not taxed, was the infamous traffic in negro 
slaves, against which every colony protested, 
and which Great Britain compelled them to 
accept. Even the trees in the " free woods," 
suitable for masts, were claimed by the king, 
and marked by his " surveyor-general of 
woods." It was a criminal offence to cut 
one of them after being so marked. 

Restrictions upon Trade. 

In spite of these outrages the colonies 
persisted in their efforts to establish manu- 
factures and a commerce of their own. As 
early as 1643 iron works were established in 
Massachusetts, and in 172 1 the New England 
colonies contained six furnaces and nineteen 
forges. Pennsylvania was still more largely 
engaged in the manufacture of this metal, 
and exported large quantities of it to other 
colonies. 

By the year 1756 there were eight furnaces 
and nine forges, for smelting copper, in oper- 
ation in Maryland. In 1721 the British iron- 
masters endeavored to induce Parliament to 
put a stop to the production of iron in 
America, but without success. In 1750 they 
were more successful. In that year an act 
of Parliament forbade, under heavy penalties, 
the exportation of pig-iron from America to 
England, and the manufacture by the Ameri- 
cans of bar-iron or steel for their own use. 
All the iron works in the colonies were 
ordered to be closed, and any that might 
afterwards be erected were to be destroyed as 
" nuisances." 

Some of the colonies had engaged in the 
manufacture of woolen goods, and the mak- 
ing of hats had become a very large and 
profitable business. In 1732 Parliament for- 
bade the transportation of woolen goods of 



American manufacture from one colony to, 
another, and the same restriction was placed 
upon the trade in hats. As an excuse for 
this outrage it was argued that as the Ameri- 
cans had an unlimited supply of beaver and 
other furs open to them, they would soon be 
able to supply all Europe, as well as them- 
selves, with hats. England was unwilling 
that America should manufacture a single 
article which she could supply, and in order 
to cripple the industry of the colonies still 
further it was enacted by Parliament that no 
manufacturer should employ more than two 
apprentices. In 1733 the famous " Molasses 
Act " was passed, imposing a duty on sugar, 
molasses, or rum, imported into any of the 
British possessions from any foreign colony. 
The object of this act was to benefit the 
British West India possessions by compell- 
ing- the North American colonies to trade 
with them. 

Thrilling Speech of James Otis. 

In order to enforce the various restrictions 
upon the trade of the colonies Great Britain 
established in America a large force of cus- 
toms officers, who were given unlawful 
powers for this purpose. Parliament enacted 
that any sheriff or officer of the customs, who 
susj>ecied that merchandise imported into the 
colony in which he was stationed had not 
paid the duty required by law, might apply 
to the colonial courts for a search warrant, or 
" writ of assistance," and enter a store or 
private dwelling and search for the goods he 
suspected of being unlawfully imported. 

These writs were first used in Massachu- 
setts in 1 76 1, and aroused a storm of indig- 
nation from the people, who felt that their 
most sacred rights were being violated by 
them. They were resisted, and the case was 
carried before the courts in order to test their 
validity. James Otis, the attorney for the 
crown, resigned his office rather than argue 




SCENE NEAR THE SOURCE OF THE RARITAN RIVER. 



329 



330 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



in behalf of them, and with great eloquence 
pleaded the cause of the people. His speech 
created a profound impression throughout 
the colonies, and aroused a determination in 
the hearts of his fellow-citizens to oppose the 
other enactments of Parliament which they 
felt to be unjust. This trial was fatal to the 
writs, which were scarcely ever used after- 
wards. " Then and there," says John 
Adams, " was the first opposition to arbi- 
trary acts of Great Britain. Then and there 
American Independence was born." 

Taxing the Colonies. 

The ■ spirit of opposition soon manifested 
itself in the New England colonies. The 
manufactures, trade and fisheries of that sec- 
tion were almost ruined, and the people had 
no choice but to defend themselves. Asso- 
ciations were formed in all the colonies 
pledging themselves not to purchase of Eng- 
lish manufacturers anything but the absolute 
necessities of life. Families began to make 
their own linen and woolen cloths, and to 
preserve sheep for their wool. Homespun 
garments became the dress of the patriot 
party, and foreign cloths were almost driven 
out of use. It was resolved to encourage 
home manufactures in every possible way 
and associations were formed for this pur- 
pose. These measures became very pop- 
ular, and were adopted by the other colonies 
in rapid succession. 

England was blind to these signs of alien- 
ation and danger, and such of her public 
men as saw them regarded them as of no 
importance. It was resolved to go still 
further, and levy direct taxes upon the col- 
onies. In 1763 such a proposition was 
brought forward by the ministers. It was 
claimed by them that as the debt of England 
had been largely increased by the French 
war, which had been fought in their defence, 
it was but right that they should help to de- 



fray the expense by paying a tax to the 
English government. 

In the meantime the colonies had warmly 
discussed the intentions of Great Britain re- 
specting them, and all strenuously denied 
the right of the mother country to tax them 
without granting them some form of repre- 
sentation in her government. They claimed 
the right to have a voice in the disposal of 
their property, and they regarded the design 
of Parliament as but a newproof of the indis- 
position of the mother country to treat them 
with justice. 

The feeling of the Americans towards 
England at this period has been aptly de- 
scribed as " distrust and suspicion, strangely 
mixed up with filial reverence — an instinctive 
sense of injury, instantly met by the in- 
stinctive suggestion that there must be some 
constitutional reason for doing it, or it would 
not be done." In spite of the injuries they had 
received at her hands, the Americans were 
warmly attached to England. They gloried 
in her triumphs, were proud to trace their 
descent from her, and claimed a share in her 
great history and grand achievements. Had 
England been wise she might have strength- 
ened this attachment to such an extent that 
the ties which bound the two countries could 
never have been sundered. But England 
was not only careless of the rights of Amer- 
icans, she was grossly ignorant of their 
country and of their character. 

Ignorant Rulers. 

" Few Englishmen had accurate ideas of 
the nature, the extent, or even the position 
of the colonies. And when the Duke of 
Newcastle hurried to the king with the in- 
formation that Cape Breton was an island, he 
did what perhaps half his colleagues in the 
ministry, and more than half his colleagues 
in Parliament, would have done in his place. 
They knew that the colonies were of vast 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



331 



extent ; that they lay far away beyond the 
sea ; that they produced many things which 
Englishmen wanted to buy, and consumed 
many things which Englishmen wanted to 
sell ; that English soldiers had met Eng- 
land's hereditary enemies, the French, in 
their forests ; that English sailors had beaten 
French sailors on their coasts. But they did 
not know that the most flourishing of these 
colonies had been planted by men who, 
prizing freedom above all other blessings, 
had planted them in order to secure for 
themselves and their children a home in 
which they could worship God according to 
their own idea of worship, and put forth the 
strength of their minds and of their bodies, 
according to their own conception of what 
was best for them here and hereafter."* 

The few Americans who visited Great 
Britain found themselves looked upon as 
aliens and inferiors ; their affection for the 
land of their fathers was met with contempt, 
and they were ridiculed as barbarians. The 
English colonial officials made this feeling 
apparent to those Americans who remained 
at home. Everywhere the colonists saw 
themselves treated with injustice. The hard- 
earned glories of their troops in the colonial 
wars were denied them and claimed for the 
English regulars, and there was scarcely a 
provincial who had borne arms but had some 
petty insult or injury, at the hands of the 
royal authorities, to complain of. 

Looking back over their history, the 
Americans could not remember a time when 
they had not been treated with injustice by 
Great Britain, They owed that country 
nothing for the planting of the colonies ; that 
was the work of their ancestors, who had 
been forced to fly from England to escape 
wrong and injury. They had been left to 



"^Historical Vieiu of the American Revolution. By G. 
W. Greene, p. 15. 



conquer their early difficulties without aid, 
and with scanty sympathy from England, 
who had taken no notice of them until they 
were sufficiently prosperous to be profitable 
to her. 

Injustice of the Mother Country. 

Then she had rarely laid her hand upon 
them but to wrong them. She had pur- 
sued such a uniformly unjust policy towards 
them that their affection for her was rapidly 
giving way to a general desire to separate 
from her. They owed her nothing ; they 
were resolved to maintain their liberties 
against her. Some of the leading men of the 
colony had already begun to dream of the 
future greatness of America, and had become 
convinced that the true interests of their 
country required a separation from England. 

In spite of this feeling England persisted 
in her course of folly. In March, 1764, the 
House of Commons resolved, " that Parlia- 
ment had a right to tax America." The 
next month (April) witnessed the enforce- 
ment of this claim in the passage of an act 
of Parliament levying duties upon certain 
articles imported into America. By the same 
act iron and lumber were added to the 
" enumerated articles " which could be ex- 
ported only to England. The preamble to 
this measure declared that its purpose was to 
raise " a revenue for the expenses of defend- 
ing, protecting and securing his majesty's 
dominions in America." 

The colonists protested against this act as 
a violation of their liberties, and declared 
that they had borne their full share of the 
expense of the wars for their defence, that 
they were now able to protect themselves 
without assistance from the king, and added 
the significant warning that " taxation with- 
out representation was tyranny." No one 
yet thought of armed resistance ; the colo- 
nists were resolved to exhaust every peaceful 



332 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



means of redress before proceeding to 
extreme measures. As yet the desire for 
separation was confined to a few far-seeing 
men. 

Prominent among these was Samuel 
Adams, of Boston, a man in whom the 
loftiest virtues of the old Puritans were min- 




SAMUEL ADAMS. 

gled with the graces of more modern times. 
Modest and unassuming in manner, a man of 
incorruptible integrity and sincere piety, he 
was insensible to fear in the discharge of his 
duty. He was a deep student of constitu- 
tional law, and was gifted with an eloquence 
"which could move multitudes. His clear 



vision had already discerned the dangers 
which threatened his country, and had dis- 
covered the only path by which she could 
emerge from them in safety. His plan was 
simple : resistance, peaceable at first ; forci- 
ble if necessary. Under his guidance the 
people of Boston met and protested against 
the new plan of taxation, 
and instructed their repre- 
sentatives in the general 
court to oppose it. 

"We claim British rights, 
not by charter only," said 
the Boston resolves; "we 
are born to them. If we 
are taxed without our con- 
sent, our property is taken 
without our consent, and 
then we are no more free- 
men, but slaves." The gen- 
eral court of Massachusetts 
declared " that the imposi- 
tion of duties and taxes by 
the Parliament of Great 
Britain upon a people not 
represented in the House 
of Commons is absolutely 
irreconcilable with their 
rights." A committee was 
appointed to correspond 
with the other colonies, 
with a view to bringing 
about a concerted action 
for the redress of griev- 
ances. In Virginia, New 
York, Connecticut and the 
Carolinas equally vigorous 
measures were taken. 

In Virginia the first indication of the in- 
tention of the people to resist the arbitrary 
measures of the crown was given in a matter 
insignificant in itself, but clearly involving 
the great principle at issue. In that colony 
tobacco was the lawful currency, and the 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



333 



failure of a crop, or a rise in the price of to- 
bacco, made such payments often very bur- 
densome. In the winter of 1763 the legisla- 
ture passed a law authorizing the people of 
the colony to pay their taxes and other public 
dues in money, at the rate of twopence a 
pound for the tobacco due. The clergymen 
of the established church had each a salary 
fixed by law at a certain number of pounds 
of tobacco, and as this measure involved 
them in a loss they refused to acquiesce in it 
and induced Sherlock, the bishop of London, 
to persuade the king to refuse the law his 
signature. " The rights of the clergy and 
the luthority of the king must stand or fall 
together," was the sound argument of the 
bishop. Failing of the royal signature the 
law was inoperative. 

The matter was soon brought to an issue 
in Virginia. The Rev. Mr. Maury, one of 
the clergymen affected by the law, brought 
a suit to recover damages, or the difference 
between twopence per pound and the current 
market price of tobacco, which was much 
higher. This was popularly known as the 
" Parsons' Cause." It was a clearly joined 
issue between the right of the people to make 
their own laws on the one side, and the king's 
prerogative on the other. 

The Man for the Hour. 

The " parsons " secured the best talent in 
the colony for the prosecution of their claims ; 
the cause of the "people" was confided to a 
young man of twenty-seven, whose youth 
was supplemented by the additional disad- 
vantages of being poor and unknown. He 
was Patrick Henry, the son of a plain far- 
mer, and a native of the county of Hanover. 
He had received but little education, as his 
father's straitened circumstances had com 
pelled him to put his son to the task of 
earning his bread at the early age of fifteen 
years. He entered a country store, and the 



next year went into business with his elder 
brother, William, who, being too indolent to 
attend to business, left the store to the man- 
agement or rather the mismanagement of 
Patrick. 

The young man was brimming over with 
good nature, and could never find it in his 
heart to refuse any one credit, and was too 
kind-hearted to press unwilling debtors to 
payment. He let the store " manage itself,'^ 
and amused himself by studying the charac- 
ter of his customers, and with his flute and 
violin. He was also a great reader, and read 




PATRICK HENRY. 

every work he could buy or borrow. The 
store survived about a year, and the next 
two or mree years were passed by Patrick in 
settling its affairs. At the age of eighteen 
he married, and began life as a farmer. He 
soon grew tired of this pursuit, and selling 
his farm once more engaged in mercantile 
life. It was not suited to him, nor he to it. 
He passed his days in reading, this time 
giving his attention to works of history and 
philosophy. Li vy was his favorite, and he read 
it through at least once a year for many years. 



334 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



His second mercantile enterprise ended in 
bankruptcy in a few years, and in extreme 
want he determined to try the law. He ob- 
tained a license to practice after a six weeks' 
course of study, and entered upon his new 
career utterly ignorant of its duties. It is 
said that he could not then draw up the 
simplest legal paper without assistance. He 
was then twenty-four years old, but it was 
not until he had reached the age of twenty- 
seven that he obtained a case worthy of his 
powers , for he had genius, and it only re- 
quired the proper circumstances to draw it 
out. He had passed days in communion 
with nature in his frequent hunting and fish- 
ing excursions, and had drunk deeply of 
the wisdom she imparts to her votaries. He 
had studied men with the eye of a master, 
and he had at last fallen into the position from, 
which he could rise to his true place among 
the eading spirits of the age. In the case 
with which he was now intrusted, a decision 
of the court on a demurrer, in favor of the 
claims of the clergy, had left nothing unde- 
termined but the amount of damages in the 
cause which was pending. 

Argument for Damages. 

" The array before Mr. Henry's eyes," 
says his biographer, William Wirt, " was 
now most fearful. On the bench sat more 
than twenty clergymen, the most learned 
men in the colony, and the most capable, as 
well as the severest critics before whom it 
was possible for him to nave made his debut. 
The court house was crowded with an over- 
whelming multitude, and surrounded with 
an immense and anxious throng, who, not 
finding room to enter, were endeavoring to 
listen without, in the deepest attention. But 
there was something still more awfully dis- 
concerting than all this for in the chair of 
the presiding magistrate sat no other person 
than his own father. Mr. Lyons opened the 



cause very briefly : in the way of argument 
he did nothing more than explain to the jury 
that the decision upon the demurrer had put 
the act of 1750 entirely out of the way, and 
left the law of 1748 as the only standard of 
their damages ; he then concluded with a 
highly wrought eulogium on the benevo- 
lence of the clergy." 

When it came Patrick Henry's turn to 
speak, he rose awkwardly, amid a profound 
silence. No one had ever heard him speak, 
and all were anxious to see how he would 
acquit himself. He clutched nervously at 
his papers, and faltered out his opening sen- 
tences with a degree of confusion which 
threatened every moment to put an end to 
his effort. The people watched their cham- 
pion in sorrow and indignation ; the clergy 
exchanged glances of triumph, and eyed the 
speaker with contempt ; while his father, 
overcome with shame, seemed ready to drop 
from his chair. But suddenly there came a 
change over the young advocate. Warming 
with his subject, he threw off his embarrass- 
ment and awkwardness, and stood erect and 
confident. His look of timidity gave place 
to one of command; his countenance glowed 
with the fire of genius, and startled the gazers 
by the aspect of majesty which it assumed 
for the first time. 

"He Has Spoken Treason." 

His tones grew clear and bold, his action 
graceful and commanding, and the astounded 
jury and audience were given a display of 
eloquence such as was without a parallel in 
the history of the colony. Henry knew that 
the case was against him, but he pleaded the 
natural right of Virginia to make her own 
laws independently of the king and Parlia- 
ment. He proved the justness of the law; 
he drew a striking picture of the character 
of a good king, who should be the father of 
his people, but who becomes their tyrant and 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



335 



oppressor, and forfeits his claim to obedience 
when he annuls just and good laws. The 
opposing counsel cried out at this bold 
declaration, " He has spoken treason," but 
was silenced by the excited throng. 

"They say," says Mr. Wirt, "that the 
people, whose countenances had fallen as he 
arose, had heard but 
a very few sentences 
before they began to 
look up ; then to look 
at each other in sur- 
prise, as if doubting 
the evidence of their 
own senses ; then, at- 
tracted by some ges- 
ture, struck by some 
majestic attitude, fas- 
cinated by the spell 
of his eye, the charm 
of his emphasis, and 
the varied and com- 



from the bench in precipitation and terror. 
As for the father, such was his surprise, such 
his amazement, such his rapture, that, forget- 
ting where he was, and the character which he 
was filling, tears of ecstacy streamed down 
his cheeks without the power or inclination 
to repress them." 



manding expression 

of his countenance, 

they could look away 

no more. In less than 

twenty minutes they 

might be seen in every 

part of the house, on 

every bench, in every 

window, stooping for- 

ward from their 

stands, in death-like 

silence; their features 

fixed in amazement 

and awe, all their 

senses listening and 

riveted upon the 

speaker, as if to catch the last strain of some 

heavenly visitant. 

" The mockery of the clergy was soon 
turned into alarm, their triumph into con- 
fusion and despair, and at one burst of his 
rapid and overwhelming invective, they fled 




COLONEL BARRE. 

The jury brought in 
penny damages for the " 



a verdict of one 
parsons," and the 



court overruled the motion of their counsel 
for a new trial. Henry from that moment 
took his place among the leaders of the 
patriot party in Virginia. He had struck a 



336 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



chord which responded in every American 
heart ; he had denied the right of the king 
to make laws for the colonies. 

The remonstrance of Massachusetts was 
followed by similar appeals from Connecti- 
cut, New York, Rhode Island and Virginia. 
The petition of New York was couched in 
such strong terms that no member of Par- 
liament could be found bold enough to pre- 
sent it. These remonstrances were unheeded 
by Parliament, which pronounced them "ab- 
surd " and " insolent." That body persisted 
in its determination to tax the colonies, and 
Grenville, the prime minister, warned the 
Americans that in a contest with Great 
Britain they could expect nothing but defeat. 
He announced the intention of the English 
government to levy the taxes, and graciously 
added that if the colonies preferred any spe- 
cial form of taxation, their wishes would be 
met as far as possible. In March, 1765, the 
measure known as the " Stamp Act " passed 
the House of Commons by a vote of five to 
one, and was adopted almost unanimously 
by the House of Lords. 

An Insane King. 

It met with a warm opposition i.i the 
Commons from the friends of America, pro- 
minent among whom was Colonel Barre, 
who had served with Wolfe in America, and 
had learned to appreciate the American 
character. The measure received the royal 
signature at once. The poor king would 
have signed anything he was bidden — Jie 
tvas insane. The act imposed a duty on all 
paper, vellum and parchment used in the 
colonies, and required that all writings of a 
legal or business nature should be made on 
"stamped paper;" otherwise they were de- 
clared null and void. 

In order to enforce the " Stamp Act," 
Parliament, two months later, passed " the 
Quartering Act." It authorized the minis- 



ters to send as many troops as they should' 
see fit to America, to enforce submission to the 
acts of Parliament. Wherever these troops 
should be stationed, it should be the duty of 
the people, at their own expense, to furnish 
them with quarters, fuel, bedding, cider or 
rum, candles, soap " and other necessaries." 

Exciting Scene. 

The news of the passage of these acts pro- 
duced the most intense excitement in Amer- 
ica. The general assembly of Virginia was- 
in session when the news was received in 
May. The royalist leaders were amazed at 
the folly of the ministry, but deemed it best 
to take no action in the matter. Patrick 
Henry, now a member of the assembly, rose- 
in his place and offered a series of resolu- 
tions, declaring that the people of Virginia 
were bound to pay only such taxes as- 
should be levied by their own assembly, and 
that all who maintained the contrary should' 
be regarded as enemies of the liberties of the 
colony. 

These resolutions provoked an exciting 
debate, in which Henry, in a magnificent 
oration, exposed the tyranny of the British 
government, and stirred the hearts of the 
burgesses with a determination to resist. 
" Caesar had his Brutus," exclaimed the ora- 
tor in one of his loftiest flights, " Charles- 
the First his Cromwell, and George the 
Third — ." The assembly was in an uproar. 
"Treason! treason!" shouted the speaker. 
A few joined in the cry, but the majority 
waited in breathless suspense the comple- 
tion of the sentence of Henry, who, fixing 
his eye upon the speaker, added in a tone 
which was peculiar to himself, " may profit 
by their exam.ple. If that be treason, make 
the most of it." The resolutions were 
adopted by a large majority. 

The next day, during Henry's absence, 
the timid assembly rescinded some of the- 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



33r 



resolves and modified the others. The 
assembly, for thus daring to exercise its right 
of expressing its opinion, was at once dis- 
solved by the governor, but too late to pre- 
vent its action from producing its effect. 
Copies of the resolutions of Henry were 
forwarded to Philadelphia, where they were 
printed and circulated through the colonies. 



the colonies to send delegates to a congress 
to be held at New York in October. In the 
meantime associations were organized i:i all 
the colonies as far south as Maryland, 
called " Sons of Liberty," for the purpose of 
stopping the use of stamps. The people 
were resolved to take the matter in their 
own hands. 




HANGING A STAMP ACT OFFICIAL IN EFFIGY. 



They aroused the drooping spirits of the 
people, and it was resolved everywhere that 
the stamps should not be used in America. 

The general court of Massachusetts or- 
dered that the courts should not require the 
use of stamps in conducting their business ; 
and in June, before the Virginia resolutions 

reached Boston, issued a circular inviting all 
22 



In Boston the mob attacked the house of 
Oliver, the secretary of the colony, who had 
been appointed to distribute the stamps, and 
compelled him to resign. They also attacked 
the houses of some of the most prominent 
supporters of the ministry, but the patriots 
sincerely deplored and condemned these 
violent proceedings. At Wethersfield, 



338 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Connecticut, five hundred farmers seized Jared 
Ingersol, the stamp officer for that colony, 
compelled him to resign, and then to remove 
his hat and give " three cheers for liberty, 
property, and no stamps." Similar scenes 
were enacted in the other colonies. 

Rights and Grievances. 

On the seventh of October, 1765, the 
First Colonial Congress met at New York. 
It was composed of delegates from the col- 
onies of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Con- 
necticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland, South 
Carolina, New York and New Jersey. New 
Hampshire, though not represented by a 
delegate, gave her support to its measures, 
and Georgia formally signified her accept- 
ance of the work of this body. Timothy 
Ruggles, of Massachusetts, was chosen 
president. The session extended over three 
weeks, and resulted in the adoption of a 
" Declaration of the Rights and Grievances 
of the Colonies ; " a petition to the king ; 
and a memorial to both Houses of Par- 
liament. 

In the Declaration of Rights the Congress 
took the ground that it was a violation of 
their rights to tax them without granting 
them a representation in the Parliament of 
Great Britain, and that as such representa- 
tion was impossible because of the distance 
between the two countries, no taxes could be 
legally imposed upon the colonies but by 
their own assemblies. The measures of the 
Congress were, as soon as possible, indorsed 
by all the colonial assemblies, and thus the 
colonies were drawn into that union which, 
in their own lanofuag'e, became " a bundle of 
sticks, which could neither be bent nor 
broken." 

At length the first of November arrived, 
the day on which the Stamp Act was to go 
into operation. Not a man could be found 
to execute the law, all the stamp officers hav- 



ing resigned through fear of popular vio- 
lence. Governor Colden, of New York, de- 
clared he was resolved to have the stamps 
distributed, but the people of the city warned 
him that he would do so at his peril, and 
burned him in Q^gy- Colden became 
alarmed at these demonstrations, and on the 
fifth of November delivered the stamps to 
the mayor and council of New York. 

A Day of Mourning. 

In all the colonies the first of November 
was observed as a day of mourning. Bells 
were tolled, flags hung at half-mast, and 
business suspended. The merchants of 
New York, Boston and Philadelphia united 
in an agreement to import no more 
goods from England, to countermand the 
orders already sent out, and to receive no 
goods on commission until the Stamp Act 
should be repealed. Their action was 
promptly sustained by the people, who 
pledged themselves to buy no articles of 
English manufacture, and to encourage 
home productions. Circulars were sent 
throughout the colonies urging the people 
to unite in such action, and were heartily 
responded to. Business went on without the 
use of stamps, and the courts ignored them 
in their proceedings. 

The news of these proceedings should 
have warned the English ministers of their 
folly ; it only made them more determined 
to persist in it. They resolved not to repeal 
the Stamp Act. To comply with the request 
of the colonists, now that they had resisted 
the law, would, they declared, be simply a 
surrender to rebellion. " Sooner than make 
our colonies our allies," said one of their 
number, " I would wish to see them re- 
turned to their primitive deserts." The 
friends of America, led by the aged and 
infirm William Pitt, made a determined ef- 
fort to procure the repeal of the Stamp Act, 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



339 



and they were now supported by all the in- 
fluence of the English merchants, who found 
their trade rapidly falling off in consequence 
of the non-intercourse resolves adopted by 
the Americans. 

Swathed in flannels, Pitt proceeded to the 
House of Commons, and in a speech of great 
vigor urged the House to repeal the obnox- 
ious and unconstitutional measure. In reply 
to Grenville, the prime minister, who accused 
him of exciting sedition in 
America, he said, "Sir, I have 
been charged with giving birth 
to sedition in America. Sorry 
I am to have the liberty of 
speech in this House imputed 
as a crime. But the imputa- 
tion will not deter me ; it is 
a liberty I mean to exercise. 
The gentleman tells us that 
America is obstinate ; that 
America is almost in rebellion. 
I rejoice that America has 
resisted." The House started 
at these words, but Pitt con- 
tinued firmly, " If they had 
submitted, they would have 
voluntarily become slaves. 
They have been driven to 
madness by injustice. My 
opinion is that the Stamp 
Act should be repealed, abso- 
lutely, totally, immediately." 
Edmund Burke, then a rising 
young man, eloquently sustained the appeal 
of the great commoner. 

The Commons had already begun to 
waver, but before yielding entirely they 
wished to ascertain from competent witnesses 
the exact temper and disposition of the 
Americans. For this purpose, Benjamin 
Franklin, who was residing in London at 
the time as the agent of several of the colo- 
nies, was summoned before the bar of the 



House to give the desired information. He 
appeared, in answer to the summons, on the 
thirteenth of February, 1766. He was 
questioned by Lord Grenville and Charles 
Townshend, and by several friends of the 
ministry, and delivered his answers with 
firmness and clearness. He told them that 
the colonists could not pay for the stamps, 
as there was not enough gold and silver in 
the colonies for that purpose; that they had 




STAMP ACT OFFICIAL BEATEN BY THE PEOPLE. 

incurred more than their share of the ex- 
pense of the last war, for which Great 
Britain had in no way reimbursed them ; 
that they were still burdened with heavy 
debts contracted in consequence of this war ; 
that they were well disposed towards Great 
Britain before 1763, and considered Parlia- 
ment as " the great bulwark and security of 
their liberties and privileges ; but that now 
their temper was much altered, and their 



340 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



respect for it lessened ; and if the act is not 
repealed, the consequence would be a total 
loss of the respect and affection they bore to 
this country, and of all the commerce that 
depended on that respect and affection." 

Franklin Startles Parliament. 

He startled the House by declaring that 
in a few years America would be amply able 
to supply herself with all the necessities of life 
then furnished her by Great Britain. " I do 
not know," said he, "a single article im- 
ported into the northern colonies but what 
they can either do without or make them- 
selves. The people will spin and work for 
themselves, in their own houses. In three 
years there may be wool and manufactures 
enough." " If the legislature," he was 
asked, " should think fit to ascertain its right 
to lay taxes, by any act laying a small tax, 
contrary to their opinion, would they sub- 
mit to pay the tax ? " "An internal tax," he 
replied, " how small soever, laid by the 
legislature here, on the people there, will 
never be submitted to. They will oppose it 
to the last. The people will pay no internal 
tax by Parliament." " May they not," 
asked a friend of Grenville, " by the same 
interpretation of their common rights, as 
Englishmen, as declared by Magna Charta 
and the Petition of Right, object to the Par- 
liament's right of external taxation ? " * 
"They never have hitherto," answered 
Franklin, promptly. " Many arguments 
have been lately used here to show them 
that there is no difference, and that if you 
have no right to tax them internally, you 
have none to tax them externally, or 
make any other law to bind them. At pres- 
ent they do not reason so ; but in time they 
may be convinced by these arguments." 



* The levying of duties by Parliament on merchandise 
imported into the colonies. 



Franklin's testimony was conclusive. The 
Stamp Act was repealed on the eighteenth 
of March, 1766, not because it was acknowl- 
edged by England as a measure of injustice, 
but because it could not be enforced without 
a collision with the colonies, which the min- 
istry were not as yet prepared for. The 
people of London greeted the repeal with 
great joy. Bonfires were lighted, bells were 
rung, the city was illuminated, and the ship- 
ping in the Thames was decorated with 
flags. The news was sent by special mes- 
sengers to the nearest ports, in order that it 
might reach America with as little delay as 
possible. 

Rejoicings in America. 

In America the news of the repeal of the 
Stamp Act was received with the greatest 
joy. The bells were rung in the principal 
cities, the imprisoned debtors were released 
from captivity, the associations for non- 
intercourse with England were dissolved, 
and everywhere Pitt was hailed as the cham- 
pion of the liberties of America. New York, 
Virginia and Maryland each voted a statue 
to him. 

The rejoicings of the Americans were 
premature. Parliament in repealing the 
Stamp Act solemnly asserted, by a bill for 
that purpose, its right and power to " bind 
the colonies in all cases whatsoever." Eng- 
land was only baffled for the moment ; she 
had not relinquished her designs upon the 
liberties of America. 

The repeal of the Stamp Act brought with 
it the fall of Grenville's ministry. Another 
was appointed under the leadership of the 
Marquis of Rockingham ; but it was short- 
lived and soon gave way. The king then 
summoned William Pitt, who had in the 
meantime been created Earl of Chatham, to 
form an independent ministry, late in 1766. 
This act was regarded with great hope in 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



341 



America, as Pitt was universally considered 
the colonists' best friend. These hopes were 
doomed to disappointment. In January, 
1767, Charles Townshend, the chancellor of 
the exchequer in Pitt's cabinet, taking ad- 
vantage of the absence of the prime minister, 
declared in the House of Commons that it 
was his intention, at all risks, to derive a 
revenue from America by laying taxes upon 
her, and that he knew how to raise this reve- 
nue from her. 

Pitt Withdraws from the Cabinet. 

Having thus thrown down the gauntlet to 
his official chief, it became evident that 
either the Earl of Chatham must relinquish 
the premiership, or Townshend must leave 
the cabinet. Chatham was anxious to dis- 
miss him from the chancellorship, but as it 
was known that Townshend was acting in 
accordance with the sympathies and wishes 
of the king, no one was willing to risk his 
prospects by accepting the chancellorship in 
Townshend's place ; and Chatham, unable to 
fill his place, was obliged to retain him. In 
utter disgust Chatham withdrew from active 
participation in the affairs of the cabinet, and 
Townshend remained supreme director of 
the colonial policy of England. In May, 
Townshend revealed his plan for raising a 
revenue in America. It was to levy a duty, 
to be collected in the colonies, on certain 
articles of commerce, such as wine, oil, 
paints, glass, paper, and lead colors, and 
especially upon tea^ which last commodity 
he declared the Americans obtained cheaper 
from the Dutch smugglers than the English 
themselves. 

He was told that if he would withdraw the 
army from America there would be no neces- 
sity for taxing the colonies. He replied, " I 
will hear nothing on the subject ; it is abso- 
lutely necessary to keep an army there." 
In June, 1767, an act was passed by Parlia- 



ment levying upon the colonies the duties 
proposed by Townshend ; and a board of 
commissioners of the customs for America 
was established, with its headquarters at 
Boston. Soon after their appointment the 
" Romney " frigate entered Boston Harbor, 
and the new commissioners, confident in her 
protection, treated the people of Boston with 
unbearable haughtiness. Her officers fre- 
quently stopped the New England vessels 
as they entered the harbor, and impressed 
seamen from their decks. 

The colonies were moved with the pro- 
foundest indignation upon the receipt of the 
newsof the imposition of the new taxes. The 
colonial newspapers, which now numbered 
twenty-five, were filled with appeals to the 
people to stand up for their liberties. The 
old associations for non-importation of Eng- 
lish goods were revived, and on every hand 
the declaration was unanimous that the 
Americans would neither eat, drink, nor wear 
anything imported from England. The gen- 
eral court of Massachusetts issued a circular 
letter to the other colonial assemblies in- 
viting them to unite with her in measures 
for obtaining redress. 

The Colonies Strike Back. 

The English ministers were greatly in- 
censed at the new resistance of the colonists, 
and in June, 1768, ordered the general court 
of Massachusetts to rescind its circular let- 
ter. Their demand was refused, and the 
general court, led by James Otis and Samuel 
Adams, expressed its conviction that Parlia- 
ment would better serve the cause of peace 
by repealing its obnoxious laws. The circu- 
lar had been favorably received by the other 
colonies, and Massachusetts was constantly 
receiving from them encouragement to persist 
in her resistance to the tyranny of the minis- 
try. As a punishment for the refusal of the 
general court to rescind its circular, that body 




342 



BRITISH TROOPS IN BOSTON. 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



343 



was dissolved by the royal governor of Mas- 
sachusetts. Some of the other colonial as- 
semblies that had shown sympathy with 
Massachusetts were also dissolved by their 
respective governors. 

Opposition in Boston. 

A very bitter feeling existed between the 
people and the royal officials, and, to make 
matters worse, at this crisis the revenue offi- 
cers at Boston seized a schooner belonging 
to John Hancock, one of the patriot leaders, 
on the pretext that her owner had made a 
false entry of her cargo, which consisted of 
wine. The schooner was towed under the 
guns of the " Romney " frigate, and a crowd 
collected in Boston and attacked the houses 
of the commissioners of customs, who were 
forced to fly to the fort on Castle Island for 
safety. 

The report of this outbreak was trans- 
mitted to England as proof that Massachu- 
setts was almost in a state of insurrection, 
and it was resolved by the ministry to send 
troops to overawe " the insolent town of 
Boston," and to hold Massachusetts as a 
conquered country. A regiment of regulars 
under General Gage reached Boston in Sep- 
tember, 1768, but the assembly refused to 
provide quarters or food, or the other neces- 
saries which were demanded by their com- 
mander in accordance with the " Quartering 
Act." General Gage was obliged to encamp 
a part of his men on Boston Common, while 
he lodged the rest temporarily in Faneuil 
Hall. With considerable difficulty he hired 
several houses in Boston and quartered his 
troops in them. The assembly of New York 
also refused to provide food or quarters for 
the royal troops, and was dissolved by the 
governor of the province. 

The wrath of the English officials was 
concentrated upon Boston, which was held 
as though it were a conquered city. Senti- 
nels were placed at the street corners, and 



the citizens were challenged by them as they 
went about their daily duties. The ill-feeling 
between the citizens and the troops gave rise 
to several encounters between them. On 
the evening of the second of March, 1770, a 
sentinel was attacked by the mob. A de- 
tachment of troops was sent to his aid, and 
was stoned by the mob. At length a soldier 
fired his musket at the crowd and his com- 
rades poured in a volley, killing three and 
wounding five citizens. The city was thrown 
into an uproar, the alarm bells were rung, 
and crowds poured into the streets. The 
danger of a general collision was very great, 
but the people were persuaded to disperse 
upon the promise of Hutchinson, the gov- 
ernor, that justice should be done. This 
outbreak was known at the time as " the, 
Boston Massacre." 

The Soldiers Driven Out. 

The next morning a meeting of the citi- 
zens was held at Faneuil Hall. Resolutions 
were passed, demanding the removal of the 
troops from the city to the fort on Castle 
Island, and the arraignment before the civil 
courts of Captain Preston, the officer who 
ordered the troops to fire. The soldiers were 
removed from the town as the only means of 
preserving the peace, and Captain Preston 
and six of his men were arraigned for mur- 
der. John Adams and Josiah Quincy, two 
leaders of the patriot party, undertook the 
defence of the accused officer and his men in 
order to make sure that they should have a 
fair trial. They were acquitted of murder, 
but two of the soldiers were convicted of 
manslaughter. The calmness and delibera- 
tion with which this trial was conducted had 
a happy effect in England, and exhibited the 
fairness and moderation of the colonists in 
the most favorable light. 

The British merchants now began to feel 
the effect of the non-importation associations 



344 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



of the Americans, and their trade suffered 
even more than it had done in the times of 
the Stamp Act, in consequence of the cessa- 
tion of orders for goods from the colonies. 
They now began to sustain the demand of 
the colonists for the repeal of the unjust 
taxes. Lord North, who was now prime 
minister, was willing to grant their demand, 
and to remove all the taxes except the duty 
on tea, which he retained at the express 
command of the king, who had now recov- 
ered his reason, and was the real director of 
the policy of his government. George III. 
held on with the most stubborn- tenacity to 
the assertion of his right to tax the colonies, 
and insisted " that there should be always 
• one tax, at least, to keep up the right of tax- 
ing." This concession was made in May, 
J 770, and for nearly a year there was a lull 
in the excitement. The matter was not 
settled, however, for the Americans had not 
resisted the amount of the tax, but the impo- 
sition of any tax at all. They were contend- 
ing for a principle, not for the saving of a 
few dollars. 

Depredations and Quarrels. 

The bad feeling which was rapidly grow- 
ing up between the colonists and the mother 
country was greatly increased by the injus- 
tice and annoyance heaped upon the colonists 
by the royal officials. Almost every colony 
had to complain of these outrages, and the 
king's officers seemed to think they could 
not do their cause better service than by 
exasperating the Americans. In New York 
the people had erected a liberty pole in the 
fields, now the City Hall Park. One night 
in January, 1770, a party of soldiers from 
the fort cut down the pole. This act was 
bitterly resented by the citizens, and fre- 
quent quarrels occurred between them and 
the troops, though there was no actual 
bloodshed. 



Early in 1772 the armed schooner 
" Gaspe " was stationed in Narragansett Bay 
to enforce the revenue laws. Her com- 
mander, Lieutenant Dudingston, undertook 
to execute his orders in the most insultingf 
and arbitrary manner. Market boats and 
other vessels passing the " Gaspe " were 
compelled to lower their colors to her, and 
armed parties from the schooner were sent 
ashore on the neighboring islands, and car- 
ried off such provisions as they desired. 
Complaint was made by the citizens of Provi- 
dence to the governor of Rhode Island, who 
referred the matter to the chief justice, Hop- 
kins, for his opinion. The chief justice de- 
clared " that any person who should come 
into the colony and exercise any authority 
by force of arms, without showing his com- 
mission to the governor, and, if a custom- 
house officer, without being sworn into his 
office, was guilty of a trespass, if not piracy." 
It was clear from the opinion of the chief 
justice that Dudingston was exceeding his 
authority, and the governor sent a sheriff on 
board the " Gaspe " to ascertain by what 
orders the lieutenant acted. Dudingston 
referred the matter to the admiral at Boston, 
who replied : " The lieutenant, sir, has done 
his duty. I shall give the king's officers 
directions that they send every man taken in 
molesting them to me. As sure as the peo- 
ple of Newport attempt to rescue any vessel 
and any of them are taken, I will hang them 
as pirates." 

The Schooner Captured. 

The insolence of the admiral caused even 
more indignation than the outrages of Dud- 
ingston, and the citizens of Rhode Island 
resolved to take the matter into their own 
hands at the earliest opportunity. On the 
ninth of June, 1772, the Providence packet, 
a swift sailer, was passing up the bay when 
she was hailed by the " Gaspe." She paid 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



345 



no attention to the hail, and being of light 
draught, stood in near the shore. The 
" Gaspe " gave chase, and, attempting to 
follow her, ran aground on Naraquit, a short 
distance below Pautuxet. The tide falling 
soon, left her fast. The news of her disaster 
was conveyed to Providence by the packet, 
and a plan was at once matured for her 
destruction. 

On the following night a party of men in 
six or seven boats, led by John Brown, a 
leading merchant of Providence, Captain 
Abraham Whipple, of Providence, Simeon 
Potter, of Bristol, and others, left Providence 
and dropped down towards the position of 
the " Gaspe." They were discovered as 
they approached, and were hailed by Dud- 
ingston. One of the party in the boats fired 
and Dudingston fell wounded. The schooner 
was then boarded without opposition, her 
crew were set ashore, and the " Gaspe " was 
set on fire and burned to the water's edge. 
A large reward was offered for the perpetrat- 
ors of this bold act. All were known in 
Providence, but in spite of this, the royal 
officials were not able to secure the appre- 
hension of any of them. The secret was 
faithfully kept. 

Objections Are Useless. 

The non-importation associations had, 
upon the repeal of the duties we have men- 
tioned, limited their opposition to the use of 
tea, and the East India Company in England 
found itself burdened with an enormous 
stock of tea, which it could not dispose of as 
usual in consequence of the cessation of 
sales in America. The company therefore 
proposed to pay all the duties on the tea in 
England and ship it to America at its own 
risk, hoping that the fact of there being no 
duty to pay in America would induce the 
colonists to purchase it. 

This plan met the determined opposition 
of the king, who would not consent to re- 



linquish the assertion of his right to tax the 
Americans. Lord North could not under- 
stand that it was not the amount of the tax, 
but the principle involved in it, that was 
opposed by the Americans, and he proposed 
that the East India Company should pay 
three-fourths oi \hQ duty in England, leaving 
the other fourth — about three pence on a 
pound — to be collected in America. His 
lordship was told plainly that the Americans 
would not purchase the tea on these condi- 
tions, but he answered : " It is to no pur- 
pose the making objections, for the king will 
have it so. The king means to try the 
question with the Americans." 

Trouble About Tea. 

There were men in America who fully 
understood that the king meant " to try the 
question with the Americans," and were will- 
ing the trial should come. Samuel Adams 
was satisfied as to what would be the result, 
and was diligently working to prepare the 
people for it. He had the satisfaction of 
seeing public opinion in America daily 
assume a more enlightened and determined 
condition. A convention of all the colonies 
for taking action for a common resistance 
seemed to him a necessity, and he sent forth 
circulars to the various provinces urging 
them to assert their rights upon every pos- 
sible occasion, and to combine for mutual 
support and protection. 

The news of the agreement between the 
East India Company and the government 
for the exportation of tea increased the de- 
termination of the colonists to resist the tax. 
It was also resolved that the tea should 
neither be landed nor sold. A meeting was 
held in Philadelphia and resolutions were 
passed requesting those to whom the tea 
was consigned " to resign their appoint- 
ments." It was also resolved that whosoever 
should " aid or abet in unloading, receiving, 



346 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



or vending the tea " should be regarded " as 
an enemy to his country." Meetings of a 
similar nature were held in New York and 
Charleston, and similar resolutions were 
adopted. 

A fast-sailing vessel reached Boston about 
the first of November, 1773, with the news 
that several ships laden with tea had sailed 
from England to America. On the third of 
November a meeting was held at Faneuil 
Hall, and, on motion of Samuel Adams, it 
was unanimously resolved to send the tea 
back upon its arrival. A man in the crowd 
cried out : " The only way to get rid of it is 
to throw it overboard." The meeting in- 
vited the consignees of the tea to resign their 
appointments. Two of these men were sons 
of Governor Hutchinson, who was intensely 
hated by the people of Massachusetts be- 
cause of his double-faced policy, which had 
been detected and exposed by Dr. Franklin. 
Until this discovery Hutchinson had induced 
the people of Massachusetts to believe that 
he was their best friend, when in reality he 
had suggested to the British government 
nearly all the unjust measures that had been 
directed against that colony. 

An Ominous Silence. 

The first of the tea ships reached Boston 
on the twenty-fifth of November, 1773. A 
meeting of the citizens was held at Faneuil 
Hall, and it was ordered that the vessel 
should be moored to the wharf, and a guard 
of twenty-five citizens was placed over her to 
see that no tea was removed. The owner of 
the vessel agreed to send the cargo back if 
the governor would give his permit for the 
vessel to leave Boston. This the governor 
withheld, and in the meantime two other 
ships arrived with cargoes of tea and were 
ordered to anchor beside the first The com- 
mittee appointed by the meeting of citizens 
waited on the consignees, but obtained no 
satisfaction from them. 



The law required that the tea must be' 
landed within twenty days after its arrival, or 
be seized for non-payment of duties. The 
consignees and the governor had determined 
to wait until the expiration of this time, when 
the royal authorities would seize the tea and 
remove it beyond the reach of the citizens. 
The duties could then be paid and the tea 
landed and sold. Their intentions were 
fully understood by the patriots. When 
the committee made its report to the meet- 
ing of citizens, it was received in a dead 
silence, and the meeting adjourned without 
taking any action upon it. This ominous 
silence alarmed the consignees. Hutchin- 
son's two sons fled to the fort and placed 
themselves under the protection of the 
troops, while the governor quietly left the 
city. 

Tea Thrown Overboard. 

On the sixteenth of December another 
meeting was held. The next day the time 
allowed by law would expire, and the tea 
would be placed under the protection of the 
fort and the armed ships in the harbor. The 
owner had gone to see the governor, at 
Milton, to obtain a pass for his vessels, with- 
out which they could not leave the harbor. 
This the governor refused, on the ground 
that he had not a proper clearance. He re- 
turned to Boston late in the evening and re- 
ported the result of his mission to the meet- 
ing. Then Samuel Adams arose and gave 
the signal for the action that had been de- 
termined upon by saying : " This meeting 
can do nothing more to save the country." 

Instantly a shout rang through the room, 
and a band of forty or fifty men "dressed 
like Mohawk Indians," with their faces 
blackened to prevent recognition, hastened 
from the meeting to the wharf where the 
ships were moored. A guard was posted to 
prevent the intrusion of spies, and the ships 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



347 



were at once seized. Three hundred and 
forty-two chests of tea were broken open and 
their contents poured into the water. The 
affair Avas witnessed in silence by a large 
crowd on the shore. When the destruction 
of the tea was completed, the " Indians " and 
the crowd dispersed to their homes. Paul 
Revere was despatched by the patriot lead- 
ers to carry the news to New York and 
Philadelphia. 



compel the Americans to submit to the au- 
thority of Great Britain. Boston, in particu- 
lar, was to be made a terrible example to the 
rest of the colonies. A bill was introduced 
into Parliament, and passed by a majority of 
four to one, closing the port of Boston to all 
commerce, and transferring the seat of gov- 
ernment to Salem. The British ministry 
boasted that with ten thousand regulars they 
could " march through the continent." and 




THROWING THE TEA OVERBOARD IN BOSTON HARBOR. 



At New York and Philadelphia the people 
would not allow the tea to be landed, and at 
Charleston it was stored in damp cellars, 
where the whole cargo was soon ruined. At 
Annapolis a ship and its cargo were burned ; 
the owner of the vessel himself setting fire to 
the ship. 

The British government was greatly in- 
censed at the refusal of the colonists to allow 
the tea to be landed, and determined to 



they were resolved to bring America to her 
knees and make her confess her fault in dust 
and humiliation. 

In addition to the Boston Port Bill, Parlia- 
ment passed other measures of equal severity. 
By one of these the royal officers were ordered 
to quarter the troops sent out from England 
on all the colonies at the people's expense ; 
another provided that if any officer, in the 
execution of the Quartering Act, should 



348 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



commit an act of violence, he should be sent 
to England for trial. The deliberate pur- 
pose of this last act was to encourage the 
military and other officials to acts of violence 
and oppression by shielding them from pun- 
ishment in America. The liberties of the 
American people were thus placed at the 
mercy of every petty official bearing a royal 
commission. Another law, known as the 
" Quebec Act," granted unusual concessions 
to the Roman Catholics of Canada, in order 
to attach them to the royal cause in the event 
of a collision between England and her colo- 
nies. 

Help for the Patriots. 

Boston was largely dependent upon her 
commerce, and the closing of her harbor 
entirely destroyed her trade and brought 
great loss and suffering to her people. The 
outrage to which she was thus subjected was 
resented by the whole country, and evidences 
of sympathy poured in upon her from every 
quarter. Salem refused to allow the estab- 
lishment of the seat of government within 
her limits, and offered the use of her port to 
the merchants of Boston free of charge. 
Marblehead made a similar offer. Large 
numbers of the people of Boston were 
thrown out of employment by the closing of 
Boston harbor, and their families, left help- 
less, suffered considerably. 

The various colonies came forward 
promptly to their relief. The neighboring 
towns sent in provisions and other neces- 
saries of life, and money was subscribed in 
other parts of the country. South Carolina 
sent to Boston two hundred barrels of rice, 
and promised eight hundred more when they 
were wanted. North Carolina sent a contri- 
bution of two thousand pounds in money, 
and money and provisions were sent from 
Virginia and Maryland. In the former colo- 
ny, the farmers beyond the Blue Ridge raised 



a contribution of one hundred and thirty- 
seven barrels of flour and sent it to Boston. 
Even the city of London sent one hundred 
and fifty thousand dollars to the relief of 
Boston. Cheered by these evidences of sym- 
pathy, Boston resolved to hold out to the 
end. 

One of the first and most determined of the 
colonies in expressing her sympathy for 
Massachusetts was Virginia. Upon the re- 
ceipt of the news of the closing of the port 
of Boston, the assembly of this colony passed 
resolutions of sympathy with Massachusetts, 
and appointed the first of June, the day 
designated for the enforcement of the Port 
Bill, as a day of fasting and prayer. For 
this bold action the governor dissolved the 
assembly. 

General Gage Appointed Governor. 

It met the next day — May 25th — in spite 
of Governor Dunmore's prohibition, in the 
coffee-room of the Raleigh Tavern, and de- 
clared that an attack on Massachusetts was 
an attack on every other colony and ought 
to be opposed by the united wisdom of all. 
The assembly urged that a general congress 
of all the colonies should be held to take 
united action for the redress of grievances, 
and a committee was appointed to corres- 
pond with the other colonies for the purpose 
of bringing about this congress. The first 
of June was rigidly observed in Virginia as a 
fast day. George Mason charged his family 
to be careful to attend church on that day 
clad in mourning. 

In the meantime Hutchinson had been 
replaced as governor of Massachusetts by 
General Gage, the commander-in-chief of 
the British army in North America. He 
landed in Boston on the seventeenth of May, 
1 774, and was well received by the people. 
He was a man of mild character and 'great 
good-nature, and utterly unfit for the task of 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



349 



coercing a free people. The determined at- 
titude of the patriots bewildered him. He 
brought with him instructions for " the seiz- 
and condign punishment of Samuel 



ure 



Adams, John Hancock, Joseph Warren and 
other leading patriots, but he stood in such 
dread of them that he never so much as 
attempted their arrest." 
He was greatly per- 
plexed to know how to 
manage the people of 
Boston. It was clear to 
him that they intended 
to resist the injustice of 
the mother country, but 
they kept so carefully 
within the law that he 
could not take hold of 
their acts. They held 
meetings and discussed 
their grievances, but vio- 
lated no law, and dis- 
countenanced violence 
of all kinds. He was 
authorized by the British 
government to fire upon 
the colonists whenever 
he should see fit; but 
their prudent and peace- 
ful course gave him no 
opportunity for so doing. 
The government at 
length undertook to put 
a stop to the town meet- 
ings of the Americans by 
forbidding them to hold 
such meetings after a cer- 
tain day. They evaded 

this law by convoking the meetings before the 
designated day, and " keeping them alive " by 
adjourning them from time to time. Faneuil 
Hall and the Old South Church were the 
favorite places of meeting, but many of these 
assemblies were held under the Liberty Tree. 



In the meantime the recommendation of 
Virginia for a general congress was accepted 
by the other colonies, and measures were set 
on foot to bring it about. The need of such 
an assembly, which should represent the 
whole country, was becoming more and 
more apparent every day. In the various 




JOHN HANCOCK.. 

colonies delegates were chosen, and it 
was agreed, at the instance of the legis- 
lature of Massachusetts, that the congress 
should meet in Philadelphia on the fifth 
of September, 1774. Martin, the royalist 
governor of Georgia, prevented that colony 



350 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



from choosing delegates to the congress, 
and General Gage attempted a similar inter- 
ference with the general court of Massachu- 
setts. Samuel Adams, as usual, had antici- 
pated him, however. On the seventeenth of 
June, having privately ascertained the senti- 
ments of the members, he locked the door 
of the room in which the meeting of the 
assembly was held, and so kept out the 
governor's secretary, who came to dissolve 
the session, and who knocked in vain for 
admission. Thus, safe from executive inter- 
ference, the general court proceeded to ap- 
point its delegates to the congress and to 
make provision for their support. This ac- 
complished, the doors were opened and the 
members submitted to the dissolution pro- 
nounced by Governor Gage. 

Organized Opposition. 

The act of Parliament by which the British 
government undertook to prohibit the town 
meetings of Massachusetts was known as the 
" Regulation Act." It was introduced into 
Parliament by Lord North in April, and re- 
ceived the royal assent in May, 1754. It 
was an infamous measure. It annulled the 
<;harter of the colony, and " without previous 
notice to Massachusetts, and without a hear- 
ing, it arbitrarily took away rights and lib- 
erties which the people had enjoyed from the 
foundation of the colony, except in the evil 
days of James II." All the power of the 
colony was concentrated in the hands of the 
royal governor bv conferring upon him the 
appointment of all the courts of justice and 
every official connected with them. The 
courts were all to be remodelled in the in- 
terest of the king, and Gage at once set to 
work to appoint the new judges. 

The whole colony united in a determined 
resistance to them. In many of the towns 
the citizens would not allow the new courts 
to be opened, and in Boston no man could be 



found to serve as a juror in the courts ap- 
pointed for that city. A meeting of the citi- 
zens of Boston was held at Faneuil Hall on 
the twenty-sixth of August, 1774, and was 
attended by delegates from the counties of 
Worcester, Middlesex and Essex. It adopted 
a series of resolutions denying the authority 
of Parliament to change any of the laws of the 
province, and declared that the new govern- 
ment set up by Gage under the Regulating 
Act was unconstitutional, and that the new 
officers, should they attempt to act, would 
become the enemies of the province although 
they bore the commission of the king. 

The People Aroused. 

In order to provide for the safety of the 
colony a provincial congress with large ex- 
ecutive powers was advised by the conven- 
tion. Gage found himself unable to enforce 
the new laws. "The chief justice and his 
colleagues, repairing in a body to the gov- 
ernor, represented the impossibility of exer- 
cising their office in Boston or in any other 
part of the province ; the army was too 
small for their protection ; and besides, none 
would act as jurors. Thus the authority of 
the new government, as established by act 
of Parliament, perished in the presence of 
the governor, the judges and the army."* 
Thus defeated. Gage began to increase the 
number of troops at Boston. 

On the first of September Gage sent a de- 
tachment to Quarry Hill, near Charlestown, 
and seized the public magazine in which the 
province of Massachusetts kept its powder 
for its militia, and brought it to Boston. The 
news of this seizure roused the people of the 
surrounding counties to a high state of in- 
dignation. A body of several thousand of 
the best citizens of Middlesex, " leaving their 
guns in the rear," marched to Cambridge to 



*Baacroft. 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



351 



protest against the outrage. They com- 
pelled Danforth, a county judge and a mem- 
ber of Gage's council ; Phipps, the high 
sheriff; and Oliver, the lieutenant-governor, 
to resign their places. They attempted no 
violence, and inasmuch as Gage had acted 
within the letter of the law in removing the 
powder, dispersed quietly, satisfied for the 
time with their protest. Their demonstra- 
tion thoroughly alarmed Gage, who kept the 
troops in Boston under arms all night, 
posted cannon to command the approaches 
to the town, and doubled all the guards. At 
the same time he wrote 
to England for reinforce- 
ments. 

The news of the seiz- 
ure of the Massachusetts 
powder spread rapidly 
through the province and 
into the adjoining colo- 
nies. The seizure was 
made on Thursday morn- 
ing, and by Saturday 
morning twenty thou- 
sand men were under 
arms and advancing 
upon Boston. They were 
stopped by expresses 
from the patriots at 
Boston, but their prompt 
action showed the spirit of the 
When the news reached Israel 



written express to the foreman of this com- 
mittee when you have occasion of our 
martial assistance ; we shall attend your 
summons, and shall glory in having a share 
in the honor of ridding our country of the 
yoke of tyranny which our forefathers have 
not borne, neither will we. And we much 
desire you to keep a strict guard over the 
remainder of your powder, for that must be 
the great means, under God, of the salvation 
of our country." 

The excitement was not without its good 
results, however. It led every man to ex- 




CARPENTERS HALL, PHILADELPHIA. 



provmce. 
Putnam, 

in his home in Connecticut, the old hero 
at once called on the militia to go with 
him to the aid of Boston, where the report 
said the people had been fired on by the 
royal troops and shipping. His call was 
answered by thousands, but later advices 
from Boston put a stop to the march. 

" But for counter intelligence," wrote Put- 
nam to the patriots at Boston, " we should 
have had forty thousand men, well equipped 
and ready to march this morning. Send a 



amine the condition of his means of resist- 
ance, and to supply his deficiencies in arms 
and equipments. The royal authority was 
at an end outside of Boston, and active roy- 
alists found it best to seek safety within that 
city. 

The general congress, or, as it is better 
known, the Old Continental Congress, met 
in Carpenter's Hall, in Philadelphia, on the 
fifth of September, 1774. It numbered fifty- 
five members, consisting of delegates from 
every colony save Georgia, whose governor 
had prevented the election of delegates. 



352 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Among the members were many of the most 
eminent men in the land. From Virginia 
came George Washington, Patrick Henry 
and Richard Henry Lee; from Massachu- 
setts, Samuel Adams and John Adams ; from 
New York, PhiHp Livingston, John Jay and 
William Livingston; from Rhode Island, 
the venerable Stephen Hopkins ; from Con- 
necticut, Roger Sherman ; from South Caro- 
lina, Edward and John Rutledge and Chris- 
topher Gadsden ; and from New Jersey, the 
Rev. John Witherspoon, the president of 
Princeton College. The members of this 
illustrious body were not strangers to each 
other, though the majority of them met now 
for the first time. They had corresponded 
with each other and had discussed their 
wrongs so thoroughly that each was well 
acquainted with the sentiments of his col- 
leagues, and all were bound together by a 
common sympathy. 

Prayer and Patriotism. 

The congress was organized by the elec- 
tion of Peyton Randolph, of Virginia, as 
speaker. Charles Thomson, of Pennsylva- 
nia, an Irishman by birth, and the principal 
of the Quaker High School in Philadelphia, 
was then chosen secretary. It was proposed 
to open the sessions with prayer. Some of 
the members thought this might be inexpe- 
dient, as all the delegates might not be able 
to join in the same form of worship. Up 
rose Samuel Adams, in whose great soul 
there was not a grain of sham. He was a 
strict Congregationalist. " I am no bigot," 
he said. " I can hear a prayer from a man 
of piety and virtue, whatever may be his 
cloth, provided he is at the same time a 
friend to his country." On his motion, the 
Rev. Mr. Duche, an Episcopal clergyman of 
Philadelphia, was invited to act as chaplain. 
Mr. Duche accepted the invitation. 

When the congress assembled the next 
morning, all was anxiety and apprehension, 



for the rumor of the attack upon Boston, 
which had reached Putnam and aroused 
Connecticut, had gotten as far as Philadel- 
phia. The chaplain opened the session by 
reading the thirty-fifth Psalm, which seemed, 
as John Adams said, ordained by Heaven to 
be read that morning, and then broke forth 
into an extempore prayer of great fervor and 
eloquence. 

A Recital of "Wrongs. 

At the close of the prayer a deep silence 
prevailed in the hall. It was broken by 
Patrick Henry, who rose to open the day's 
proceedings. He began slowly and hesi- 
tatingly at first, " as if borne down by the 
weight of his subject," but as he proceeded 
he rose grandly to the duty of the occasion, 
and in a speech of masterly eloquence he re- 
cited the wrongs of the American colonies at 
the hands of Great Britain, and declared that 
all government in America was dissolved, 
and urged upon the congress the necessity 
of forming a new government for the colo- 
nies. Towards the close of his speech he 
struck a chord which answered in every 
heart. " British oppression," he exclaimed, 
" has effaced the boundaries of the several 
colonies ; the distinctions between Virgin- 
ians, Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers and New 
Englanders are no more. I am not a Vir- 
ginian, but an American." The deputies 
were astonished at his eloquence, as well 'as 
at the magnitude of the interests with which 
they were intrusted. 

The congress continued its sessions for 
seven weeks. It had no authority to bind 
the colonies to any course ; its powers were 
merely advisory, and it did not transcend its 
authority. It drew up a Declaration of 
Rights, in which it defined the latural rights 
of man to be the enjoyment of life, liberty 
and property. It claimed for the Ameri- 
cans, as British subjects, the right to partici- 



CAUSES OF THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE. 



353 



pate in the making of their laws, and the 
levying of taxes upon their own people. 
The right of trial by jury in the immediate 
vicinity of the scene of the alleged offence, 
and the right of holding public meetings 
and petitioning for the redress of grievances 
were solemnly asserted. A protest was 
entered against the maintaining of standing 
armies in America without the consent of 
the colonies, and against eleven specified 
acts passed since the opening of the reign of 
George III., as violative of the rights of the 
colonies. The declaration concluded with 
the solemn warning, " To these grievous 
acts and measures Americans cannot sub- 
mit." 

Prompt Measures. 

Congress then addressed itself to a plan 
for obtaining redress. It was agreed to 
form an "American Association," whose 
members were to pledge themselves not to 
trade with Great Britain or the West Indies, 
or with persons engaged in the slave trade ; 
not to use tea or any British goods ; and not 
to trade with any colony which should re- 
fuse to join the association. For the purpose 
of enforcing the objects of this association, 
committees were to be appointed in the vari- 
ous parts of the country to see that its 
provisions were carried into effect. 

Other papers were adopted by the con- 
gress, setting forth its views more clearly. 
A petition to the king was prepared by 
John Dickinson, of Pennsylvania, who also 
drafted an address to the people of Canada. 
A memorial to the people of the colonies 
was written by Richard Henry Lee, of Vir- 
ginia, and an address to the people of Great 
Britain by John Jay, of New York. These 
papers were forwarded to England to be laid 
before the British government, and on the 
twenty-sixth of October the congress ad- 
journed to meet on the tenth of May, 1775. 
" 23 



In January, 1775, Lord North presented 
the papers adopted by congress to the 
House of Commons, and at the same time 
they were laid before the House of Lords 
by Lord Dartmouth. The venerable Earl of 
Chatham made this the occasion of a power- 
ful appeal to the majority in Parliament to 
reverse their arbitrary course towards the 
Americans before it should be too late. 

Referring to the papers laid before the 
House, he said : " When your lordships 
look at the papers transmitted us from 
America, when you consider their decency, 
firmness and wisdom, you cannot but respect 
their cause and wish to make it your own. 
For myself, I must avow, that in all my 
reading — and I have read Thucydides, and 
have studied and admired the master states 
of the world — for solidity of reason, force of 
sagacity, and wisdom of conclusion under a 
complication of difficult circumstances, no 
nation or body of men can stand in prefer- 
ence to the general congress at Philadelphia. 
The histories of Greece and Rome give us 
nothing equal to it, and all attempts to im- 
pose servitude upon such a mighty conti- 
nental nation must be in vain. We shall be 
forced ultimately to retract ; let us retract 
while we can, not when we must. These 
violent acts must be repealed ; you will 
repeal them ; I pledge myself for it, I stake 
my reputation on it, that you will in the end 
repeal them. Avoid, then, this humiliating 
necessity." 

The king was furious when the words of 
the greatest statesman of his kingdom were 
repeated to him. Neither the wisdom nor 
the eloquence of Chatham could turn the 
king or the ministers from their mad 
course. They had but one plan for Amer- 
ica now. She must submit humbly to their 
will ; if she should resist, she must be 
crushed into submission. The king meant 
to try the question with the Americans. 



CHAPTER XXVI 
Progress of the War 

Gage Fortifies Boston Neck — He Summons the General Court — Recalls his Proclamation — The Provincial Congress 
of Massachusetts — It takes Measures for Defence — The Militia Organized — The Minute Men — Friends of America in 
England — Gage Resolves to Seize the Stores at Concord — Midnight March of the British Troops — The Alarm Given — 
Skirmishes at Lexington and Concord — Retreat of the British — A Terrible March — Uprising of New England — Boston 
Invested — Dunmore Seizes the Virginia Powder — Is Made to Pay for It — Uprising of the Middle and Southern 
Colonies — The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence — Capture of Ticonderoga and Crown Point — Meeting of 
the Second Continental Congress — Congress Resolves to Sustain Massachusetts — Renewed Efforts for Peace — Congress 
Assumes the General Government of the Colonies — A Federal Union Organized — Its Character — A Continental Army 
Formed — George Washington Appointed Commander-in-Chief — General Officers Appointed — Condition of the Army 
Before Boston — Inaction of Gage — Battle of Breed's Hill — A Glorious Defence — The Battle Equivalent to a Victory 
in its Effects upon the Country — Arrival of Washington at Cambridge — He Takes Command of the Army — He Reor- 
ganizes the Army — Difficulties of the Undertaking — The Invasion of Canada Resolved Upon — March of Montgomery 
and Arnold — Rapid Successes of Montgomery — He Captures Montreal — March of Arnold Through the Wilderness — 
Arrival Before Quebec — Forms a Junction with Montgomery — The Siege of Quebec — The Ice Forts — Failure of the 
Attack — Death of Montgomery — Retreat of the Americans from Canada — Lord Dunmore's War in Virginia — Destruc- 
tion of Norfolk — The Thirteen United Colonies — Burning of Falmouth — Naval Matters — Action of Great Britain — 
The War to be Carried On — The Hessians. 



WHILE the Continental Congress 
was in session, matters were 
in a most serious state in 
Massachusetts. General Gage, 
alarmed by the threatening aspect of the 
Americans, began to fortify Boston Neck, 
the narrow peninsula which united the city 
with the mainland. A regiment was stationed 
at these works to prevent communication 
between the citizens and the people in the 
country. The news of this action spread 
rapidly. At Portsmouth, New Hampshire, 
a company of volunteers seized the fort and 
carried off one hundred and fifty barrels of 
powder and several cannon. At Newport 
forty-four cannon were seized by the people 
and sent to Providence for safe-keeping. 

In the midst of this excitement, Gage, 
thinking such a step might conciliate the 
people, summoned the general court to meet 
at Salem ; but, alarmed at the growing spirit 
of liberty, countermanded the order. The 
members of the general court met, however. 



at Salem, on the fifth of October, 1774, but 
finding no one to organize them adjourned 
to Concord, where they resolved themselves 
into a provincial congress, of which John 
Hancock was elected president. This con- 
gress existed as the government of the people, 
and was independent of the authority of the 
king. They protested their loyalty to King 
George and their desire for peace, and endea- 
vored to induce Gage to desist from fortify- 
ing Boston Neck. Gage refused to comply 
with their demand, and warned them to desist 
from their unlawful course. The provincial 
congress paid no attention to his warning, 
but proceeded to call out the militia to the 
number of twelve thousand. They were 
allowed to remain at their homes, but were 
required to be ready for service at a minute's 
warning. Hence they were known as 
" Minute Men." 

Two committees of safety were appointed : 
one to call out the minute men when their 
services were needed ; the other to supply 

354 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



355 



them with provisions and ammunition. Two 
general officers, Artemas Ward and Seth 
Pomeroy, were appointed. The other New 
England colonies were invited to increase the 
number of minute men to twenty thousand. 
The sum of twenty thousand pounds was 
voted for the military service, and Massa- 
chusetts prepared for the worst. In every 
colony military preparations were set on foot, 
and the whole of America began to prepare 
for the coming storm which all thinking men 
now saw was close at hand. 

The papers drawn up by the Continental 
Congress had been widely circulated in Eng- 
land, and had aroused a great deal of sym- 
pathy for America, and it was hoped by many 
that the new Parliament, which met in Janu- 
ary, 1775, would see the necessity of doing 
justice to the colonies. The cause of America 
was eloquently pleaded by the Earl of Chat- 
ham and others, but the King and the Minis- 
ters were resolved to compel the submission 
of the Americans, and the majority in Parlia- 
ment sustained them. A measure known as 
the "New England Restraining Bill" was 
introduced by Lord North, which deprived 
the people of New England of the privilege 
of fishing on the banks of Newfoundland. 

The Colonies Act Promptly. 

In March news arrived that all the colonies 
had endorsed the action of the Continental 
Congress and had pledged themselves to 
support it. To punish them the provisions 
of the Restraining Bill were extended to every 
colony save New York, Delaware and North 
Carolina. These colonies were exempted in 
the hope of inducing them to desert the 
American cause. The measure failed of its 
object, and the three favored colonies re- 
mained firm in the support of the Congress. 

General Gage now resolved to take a 
decisive step. He learned that the patriots 
had established a depot of provisions and 



military stores at Concord, eighteen miles from 
Boston, and resolved to seize these supplies 
at once. The military force under his com- 
mand at Boston numbered three thousand 
men, and he felt himself strong enough not 
only to seize these stores, but also to arrest 
John Hancock and Samuel Adams, who were 
lodging at Lexington. Accordingly, on the 
night of the eighteenth of April, 1775, he 




THE MINUTE MAN. 

detached a force of eight hundred men under 
Lieutenant-Colonel Smith, and shortly before 
midnight had them conveyed across Charles 
River to Cambridge, from which place they 
began their march to Concord. Gage had 
conducted the whole movement with the 
greatest secrecy, but, his preparations had 
been detected by the patriot leaders in Boston, 
and Hancock and Adams had been warned 



356 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



of their danger. The British had hardly 
embarked in their boats when two lanterns 
were displayed from the tower of the Old 
North Church. 

Paul Revere, the chosen messenger, who 
had been awaiting this signal, at once set off 
from Charlestown and rode in haste to Lex- 
ington to warn the patriots of the approach 
of the British troops. At the same time 



not gone far when they heard in advance of 
them the firing of alarm guns and the tolling 
of bells. The British officers were astonished 
at the rapidity with which their movement 
had been discovered; but they could not 
doubt the meaning of these signals. The 
country was being aroused, and their situa- 
tion was becoming serious. Lieutenant- 
Colonel Smith sent a messenger to General 




THE BATTLE OF LEXINGTON, APRIL I9, I775. 



William Dawes left Boston by the road over 
the Neck, and rode at full speed towards 
Lexington, arousing the country as he went 
along with his stirring tidings. Other mes- 
sengers were sent forward by these men, and 
tlje alarm spread rapidly through the country. 
From Cambridge the British pushed for- 
ward rapidly towards Lexington. They had 



Gage for reinforcements, and ordered Major 
Pitcairn to push forward with a part of the 
force and seize the two bridges at Concord. 
Pitcairn obeyed his orders promptly, and 
arrested every one whom he met or over- 
took save a countryman, who escaped and 
reached Lexington in time to give the 
alarm. 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



357 



Pitcairn's division reached Lexington at 
daybreak on the nineteenth of April. They 
found seventy or eighty minute men, and 
several other persons, assembled on the 
common. They were ignorant of the inten- 
tions of the British, and supposed they merely 
wished to arrest Adams and Hancock, who 
had left the village upon the first alarm. 

'• Disperse, ye Rebels !" 

As he saw the group Pitcairn ordered his 
men to halt and load their muskets, and called 
out to the Americans : " Disperse, ye villains, 
ye rebels, disperse ; lay down your arms ; 
why don't you lay down your arms and dis- 
perse ?" The Americans stood motionless 
and silent, " witnesses against agression ; too 
few to resist ; too brave to fly." Pitcairn, 
seeing that his order was not obeyed, dis- 
charged his pistol and ordered his men to 
fire. A few straggling shots followed this 
order, and then the regulars poured a close 
heavy volley into the Americans^ killing 
seven and wounding nine of them. Parker, 
the commander of the minute men, seeing 
that the affair was to be a massacre instead 
of a battle, ordered his men to disperse. The 
British then gave three cheers for their vic- 
tory. In a little while Colonel Smith arrived 
with the remainder of his command, and the 
whole party then pushed on towards Con- 
cord. 

The alarm had already reached Concord, 
and in a little while news was received of 
the massacre at Lexington. The minute 
men promptly assembled on the common, 
near the church, and awaited the approach 
of the enemy. The minute men from Lin- 
coln came in at an early hour, and a few 
from Acton. About seven o'clock the British 
were seen advancing in two divisions, and as 
it was evident that they were about four 
times as numerous as the Americans, the 
latter retreated to the summit of a hill on 



the opposite side of the Concord River, and 
there awaited the arrival of reinforcements, 
which were coming in from the surrounding 
country. 

The British occupied the town, and post- 
ing a force of one hundred men to hold the 
North Bridge, began their search for arms 
and stores. The greater part of these had 
been secreted, but the soldiers found a few 
that could not be removed, and gave the 
rest of their time to plundering the houses 
of the town. " This slight waste of stores," 
says Bancroft, " was all the advantage for 
which Gage precipitated a civil war." 

Arrival of the Minute Men. 

Between nine and ten o'clock the Ameri- 
can force had increased by the arrival of the 
minute men from Acton, Bedford, Westford, 
Carlisle, Littleton and Chelmsford, to about 
four hundred and fifty. Below them, in full 
view, were the regulars plundering their 
homes, and from the town rose the smoke of 
the fires the soldiers had kindled for the 
destruction of the few stores they had man- 
aged to secure. Not knowing whether they 
meant to burn the town or not, the officers 
of the minute men resolved to advance and 
enter Concord. Barret, the commanding 
officer, cautioned the men not to fire unless 
attacked. As their approach was discovered 
the British began to take up the planks of 
the North Bridge, and to prevent this the 
Americans quickened their pace. The regu- 
lars then fired a volley, which killed two of 
the minute men. The fire was returned, and 
two of the soldiers were killed and several 
wounded. These volleys were followed by 
some desultory skirmishing, and about noon 
Colonel Smith drew off his men and began 
to retreat by the way he had come. 

One of those killed at the bridge was 
Isaac Davis, the captain of the minute men 
of Acton. He had bidden his young wife a 



358 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



touching good-bye, as he ran to lead his 
men to the fight. A Httle later his dead 
body was brought to her door. 

With the retreat of the British from Con- 
cord the real work of the day began. The 
country was thoroughly aroused, and men 
came pouring in from every direction, eager 
to get a shot at the regulars. The road by 
which the royal forces were retreating was 
narrow and crooked, and led through forests 



the strife as the regulars entered its limits. 
Far and wide the alarm was spreading 
through the country, and the people were 
getting under arms. By noon a messenger 
rode furiously into the distant town of Wor- 
cester and shouted the alarm. Instantly the 
minute men of the town got under arms, and 
after joining their minister in prayer, on the 
common, took up the march for Cambridge. 
The whole province was rising, and the 




DEATH OF ISAAC DAVIS. 



and thickets, and was bordered by the stone 
walls which enclosed the farms. At every 
step the militia and minute men hung upon 
the enemy, and kept up an irregular but 
fatal fire upon them from behind trees, 
fences and houses. Flanking parties were 
thrown out to clear the way, but without 
success. The number of the Americans 
increased at every step. Each town took up 



enemies of the fugitive regulars were 
increasing every moment. 

Smith hurried his command through Lex- 
ington at a rapid rate, and a short distance 
beyond the town met Lord Percy advancing 
to his assistance with twelve hundred 
infantry and two pieces of artillery. Percy 
formed his men into a square, enclosing the 
fugitives, who dropped helplessly on the 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



359^ 



ground, "their tongues hanging out of their 
mouths hke those of dogs after a chase,'' 
and with his cannon kept the Americans at 
bay. He could not think of holding his 
position, however, and after a halt of half 
an hour resumed the retreat, first setting fire 
to some houses in Lexington. 

The fighting now became more energetic 
than ever. From either side, from in front and 
the rear, the Americans kept up a constant 
fire upon the British, who revenged them- 
selves by murdering some helpless people 
along the road and burning houses. Below 
West Cambridge the British broke into a 
run, and at length, about sunset, succeeded 
in escaping across Charlestown Neck, where 
they were safe under the fire of their ship- 
ping. Had the militia from Marblehead and 
Salem, who were on the march, been more 
alert, the entire British force would have 
been captured, as they were in no condition 
to resist a determined attack in front. 

The loss of the Americans during the day 
was forty-nine killed, thirty-four wounded 
and five missing. The British lost in killed, 
wounded and missing two hundred and 
seventy-three men, or more than fell in 
Wolfe's army in the battle of the Heights of 
Abraham. Many of the officers, including 
Colonel Smith, were wounded. 

The News Spreads Like Wildfire. 

The news of the conflicts at Lexington and 
Concord spread rapidly through New Eng- 
land, and was sent by express messengers to 
New York and the colonies farther south. 
In New England it produced a general upris- 
ing of the people, and in ten days Boston 
was blockaded by an irregular army of twenty 
thousand provincial troops, whose encamp- 
ments extended from Roxbury to the Mystic 
River, above Charlestown, a distance of ten 
miles., John Stark, who had served with 
gallantry in the old French war, was on his 



way to Boston in ten minutes after he was 
informed of the fighting. 

Israel Putnam, a veteran soldier, and as 
true a hero as ever lived, was ploughing in 
his field when the courier rode by with the 
tidings of the battle. He left his plough, 
sprang on his horse, and after rousing his 
neighbors rode from his home, in Connecti- 
cut, to Cambridge, without even stopping to 
change his clothes. The Massachusetts Con- 
gress took energetic measures for the sup- 
port of the army before Boston, and in a few 
days this force began to assume a more regu- 
lar character. 

Arms and Ammunition Seized. 

Matters had also reached a crisis in Vir- 
ginia. On the night of the twentieth of 
April Lord Dunmore seized the powder in 
the magazine at Williamsburg, and sent it, 
under guard of a party of marines, on board 
an armed schooner in the James river. The 
inhabitants, on the morning of the twenty- 
first, took arms to compel the restoration of 
the powder, but were persuaded to refrain 
from violence. In a few days the news from 
Lexington and Concord was received, and it 
was the general belief that Dunmore's course 
was only a part of a general plan to disarm 
the colonies. 

On the second of May Patrick Henry 
summoned the independent companies ot 
Hanover to meet him at a certain place, and 
led them towards Williamsburg, determined 
to compel the governor to restore the powder 
or pay its full value in money. On the march 
they were met by a messenger from Dunmore, 
who paid them the full value of the powder 
in money. This money was soon after for- 
warded to Congress. The companies then 
disbanded and returned home. Dunmore, 
thoroughly frightened, fled with his family 
on board a man-of-war, and declared " Pat- 
rick Henry and his associates to be in rebel- 



360 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



lion." Afraid to meet the Virginians in an 
open fight, he threatened to arm their slaves 
against them, and inaugurated a general 
massacre. 

The middle and southern colonies were 
prompt to follow the example of New Eng- 
land. The people of New York seized the 
provisions intended for the king's troops at 
Boston, shut up the custom-house, and for- 
bade any vessels to leave the harbor for ports 
or colonies acknowledging the authority of 
Great Britain. The arms and ammunition 
belonging to the city were seized by the 







CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA BY ETHAN ALLEN. 

volunteers, and measures were set on foot for 
a general resistance to the authority of the 
king. New Jersey was equally determined, 
and in Pennsylvania enthusiastic meetings of 
citizens resolved "to associate for the pur- 
pose of defending, with arms, their lives, their 
property, and liberty." 

Military companies were formed and trained 
in the exercise of arms. The people of Mary- 
land compelled their royalist governor to 
surrender to them all the arms and ammuni- 
tion of the province. The militia officers of 
South Carolina at once resiofned their com- 



missions from the governor, and regiments 
of militia for the defence of the colony were 
raised and drilled. At Charleston the royal 
arsenal was seized, and its contents distributed 
among the people. Georgia also placed her- 
self in the ranks of her patriot sisters, and 
seizing the ammunition and arms within her 
limits prepared for resistance. 

North Carolina took a more decisive stand 
than any of the colonies. The spirit of resist- 
ance ran high within her borders. A con- 
vention of the people of Mecklenburg county 
was held at Charlotte on the twenty-ninth of 

May, and adopted 
a series of resolu- 
tions declaring 
themselves inde- 
f the 
control of Great 
Britain, and re- 
nouncing all alle- 
giance to her. This 
was the famous 
" Mecklenburg De- 
claration of Inde- 
pendence." The 
whole country, 
from New Hamp- 
shire to Georgia, 
was united in its 
determination t o 
resist the injustice of Great Britain with 
arms. Massachusetts had struck the first 
blow, but every colony was now prepared 
and determined to bear its part in the great 
struggle for freedom. 

The Massachusetts Committee of Safety 
were anxious to secure the important posts 
of Ticonderoga and Crown Point on Lake 
Champlain. The possession of these posts 
would not only enable the Americans to 
command the entrance to Canada, but would 
give them the large quantities of military 
supplies stored in these forts. The project 




PUTNAM'S ESCAPE AT HORSE NECK. 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



361 




was entered into with great energy by Bene- 
dict Arnold, then commanding a company 
before Boston, and by Ethan Allen, of Ver- 
mont. Allen was the leader of the Green 
Mountain Boys, a military organization in 
Vermont, which had been formed to resist 
the authority of New York, which claimed 
Vermont as a part of its territory. 

The people of Vermont, however, 
preferred the authority of New 
Hampshire to that of New York. 
The dispute had become quite 
animated when the outbreak of the 
Revolution drew the attention of 
all parties to more stirring events. 
Arnold, upon hearing that Allen 
was preparing to seize the forts, set 
out at once for Vermont, and over- 
took the Green Mountain Boys near 
the head of Lake Champlain. Pro- 
ducing a colonel's commission he 
ordered Allen to surrender the com- 
mand to him, but the latter refused, 
and was sustained by his men, and 
Arnold at length agreed to serve as 
a volunteer. 

Securing a few boats Allen cros- 
sed the lake with his little force, 
about two hundred and seventy in 
number, and at daybreak, on the 
morning of May 10, surprised Fort 
Ticonderoga, and made prisoners 
of the garrison before they v/ere 
fairly awake. Not a blow was 
struck. The astounded commander 
of the fort asked Allen by whose authority he 
acted. " In the name of the Great Jehovah 
and the Continental Congress," was the 
instant reply, delivered in stentorian tones. 
The commandant instantly submitted. On 
the twelfth of May Seth Warner, Allen's 
lieutenant, surprised Crown Point, and 
secured the fort. Arnold secured a number 
of boats and, descending the lake, captured 



St. John's, in the " Sorel." Sixty prisoners 
were taken in this expedition, and besides 
two of the most important military posts in 
America the patriots secured two hundred 
cannon, and a large supply of ammuni- 
tion. 

On the tenth of May, the day of the cap- 
ture of Ticonderoga, the second Continental 













^^.^ 




//0^/'UOl/}iCTtj 



^A^l^J /U^^^^l 













SIGNERS OF THE MECKLENBURG DECLARATION. 

Congress met at Philadelphia. This time 
they assembled in the State House, a place 
more suited to the dignity of such a body ; 
and calculated to give more publicity to their 
proceedings. No change was at first made 
in the officers of the preceding session, but 
in a few days Peyton Randolph resigned his 
position to return home to attend the Vir- 
ginia legislature, which had been summoned 



362 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



by the governor. Thomas Jefferson was 
appointed to fill his position as a delegate. 

John Hancock of Massachusetts, who had 
been .specially exempted by the king from all 
offers of amnesty, was chosen president of 
the Congress. Three new members of note 
now entered the Congress. They were Ben- 
jamin Franklin, a delegate from Pennsyl- 
vania, and George Clinton and Robert R. 
Livingston, delegates from New York. 
Franklin had just returned from England, 
where he had resided for several years as the 
agent for some of the colonies. He had 
been in constant official contact with the lead- 
ing men of Great Britain and was thoroughly 
informed as to the policy of the British gov- 
ernment respecting America. He was, there- 
fore, a most valuable acquisition to the Con- 
gress. 

Justice Demanded of Great Britain. 

The circumstances under which this Con- 
gress assembled were very different from 
those which had attended the meeting of its 
predecessor. Then there was hope that the 
remonstrances of the colonies would open 
the eyes of the British government to the 
folly of its course ; but those remonstances 
had been received with fresh outrages, their 
petitions had "been spurned with contempt 
from the foot of the throne," and the British 
army had begun the war at Lexington and 
Concord. Massachusetts, driven beyond the 
point of forbearance, had taken up arms, and 
had besieged the royal troops in Boston^ A 
state of war actually existed and Congress 
must either sustain Massachusetts, and so 
involve every colony in the struggle, or 
leave her to meet the power of Great Britain 
unaided. 

The whole country was in favor of stand- 
ing by Massachusetts, and the delegates in 
Congress reflected its feeling. It was, there- 
fore, resolved by Congress to place all the 



colonies in a state of defence, and to prepare 
for a vigorous prosecution of the war should 
it be found impossible to avert it. At the 
same time, as a last means of preserving 
peace, a new petition was addressed to the 
king stating the grievances of the colonies, 
and asking for justice at his majesty's hands. 
Addresses were also issued to the people of 
Great Britain, Ireland and Jamaica. To the 
people of Great Britain they declared, after 
relating their wrongs, and their failure to 
obtain redress : " We are reduced to the 
alternative of choosing an unconditional sub- 
mission to the tryanny of irritated ministers, 
or resistance by force. The latter is our 
choice. We have counted the cost of this 
contest, and we find nothing so dreadful as 
voluntary slavery." In the petition to the 
king Congress denied that it was the inten- 
tion of the colonies to cast off their allegi- 
ance ; but asserted their intention to main- 
tain their rights. When this petition was 
presented to the king in September, he 
refused to take any notice of it. 

The Federal Union. 

In view of the altered position of affairs 
Massachusetts consulted the Congress as to 
the propriety of establishing a regular sys- 
tem of government, and was advised to 
make such regulations for that purpose as 
were necessary, and to continue them as a 
temporary expedient until it should be 
known whether the king would allow the 
colony to resume the government guaran- 
teed to it by its charter. In order to avoid 
the trouble which would ensue from an inter- 
ruption of the regular postal communication 
between the colonies, Congress assumed the 
power of organizing a general system of 
mails for the whole country, and appointed 
Dr. Franklin postmaster-general. 

From these acts Congress advanced to 
others still more important. A " Federal 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



363 



Union " of the colonies was organized, in 
which each colony retained the exclusive 
control of its internal affairs, but delegated 
to Congress authority to direct all matters 
pertaining to the general welfare of the col- 
onies, such as the power to declare war^ 
make peace, and negotiate treaties of alliance 
and friendship with foreign countries. In the 
exercise of these powers Congress assumed 
the general government of America. A day 
of fasting and prayer to God, for his assist- 
ance in the struggle for freedom, was enjoined 
upon all the colonies. All persons were for- 
bidden to furnish provisions under any cir- 
cumstances. 

W^ho shall Command the Army ? 

Measures were adopted for the organiza- 
tion and enlistment of an army, and for the 
purpose of erecting fortifications at suitable 
points, and procuring arms and ammunition. 
In order to raise the funds needed for carry- 
ing out these objects " Bills of Credit," to 
the amount of two millions of dollars, were 
issued, and for their redemption Congress 
pledged the faith of the " United Colonies." 
The provincial congress of Massachusetts 
requested the Congress at Philadelphia to 
adopt the New England forces before Boston 
as the "Continental Army," and this request 
was at once complied with. As General Ward, 
the commander of these troops, held his 
commission from Massachusetts, it was 
necessary for Congress to appoint a com- 
mander-in-chief commissioned by itself. 

With respect to this appointment the mem- 
bers were divided. Some thought that as 
the troops were all New England men, the 
commander should be chosen from the same 
section. Others favored the appointment of 
a commander who would inspire the confi- 
dence of, and be acceptable to, the entire 
country. The name of General Ward was 
suggested by the first party ; but a majority 



of the delegates favored the appointment of 
Colonel Washington, who was a member of 
Congress, and chairman of the committee on 
military affairs, in which capacity he had 
proposed the plan for the organization of the 
army, and had suggested the most important 
measures for defence. He had profoundly 
impressed the delegates with his great and 
commanding character, his military ability, 
and his wisdom as a statesman. 

Washington Appointed. 

Patrick Henry, on his return home from 
the first Congress, had been asked who was 
the greatest man in that body. His reply 
expressed the views of his colleagues respect- 
ing Washington. " If you speak of elo- 
quence," he said, " Mr. Rutledge, of South 
Carolina, is, by far, the greatest orator ; but 
if you speak of solid information and sound 
judgment Colonel Washington is unques- 
tionably the greatest man on that floor." 
Dr. Warren wrote from Massachusetts to 
Samuel Adams, in Congress, about this time,v 
that the appointment of Colonel Washing-* 
ton as commander-in-chief would give great 
satisfaction to many leading men in Massa- 
chusetts. John Adams was anxious for the 
appointment, and having satisfied himself of 
the wishes of the greater part of the delegates, 
ventured openly to allude to Washington as 
the proper person for the position, and spoke 
of him as a gentleman whose " skill and 
experience as an officer, whose independent 
fortune, great talents, and excellent universal 
character, would command the approbation 
of all America, and unite the cordial exer- 
tions of the colonies better than any other 
person in the Union." 

On the 14th of June M. Johnson, of 
Maryland, formally nominated Washington 
to the office of commander-in-chief, and he 
was unanimously chosen by ballot. The 
next day his election was communicated to 



3^4 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



him by the President of Congress. Washing- 
rose in his place, and thanked the House for 
the unexpected honor conferred upon him, 
assured them of his devotion to the cause, 
and announced his acceptance of the great 
trust confided to him. He declared his 
intention to refuse the pay affixed to the 
office, which had been placed at five hundred 
dollars a month, and added : " I will keep an 
exact account of my expenses. These. I 
doubt not, they will discharge, and that is all 



Gates. 




GENERAL ISRAEL PUTNAM. 

I desire." Congress, on its part, pledged its 
hearty support to the new commander, and 
resolved " to maintain and assist, and adhere 
to him with their lives and fortunes in the 
defence of American liberty." 

Washington lost no time in proceeding to 
assume the command conferred upon him. 
After a few days spent in preparation in 
Philadelphia he left that city on the twenty- 
first of June for the headquarters of the 
army, accompanied by Generals Lee and 
Schuyler. 



A few days after the election of the com- 
mander-in-chief Congress appointed four 
major-generals, one adjutant-general, with 
the rank of brigadier, and eight brigadier- 
generals for the subordinate commands in 
the American army. 

Major-Generals. 
The major-generals were Artemas Ward, 
Charles Lee, Philip Schuyler and Israel Put- 
nam. The adjutant-general was Horatio 
The brigadiers were Seth Pomeroy, 
Richard Montgomery, David Woos- 
ter, William Heath, Joseph Spencer, 
John Thomas, John Sullivan and 
Nathaniel Greene. 

In the meantime the blockade of 
Boston had been continued by the 
provincial army under General 
Ward. These forces numbered 
about fifteen thousand men, and 
had come from their respective 
towns in independent companies, 
and were without any regular or- 
ganization. They had no uniform, 
but the majority wore their ordinary 
home-spun working clothes ; they 
were deficient in arms ; a few had 
muskets, but the majority had rifles 
and fowling-pieces. The artillery 
consisted of nine pieces of cannon, 
and was commanded by Colonel 
Gridley, who had directed the artil- 
lery at the siege of Louisburg. The Massa- 
chusetts troops were commanded by Gen- 
eral Ward ; those from New Hampshire by 
Colonel Stark ; the Connecticut troops by 
Putnam ; and the regiment from Rhode 
Island by Nathaniel Greene, a young black- 
smith. 

Save for the solemnity of the cause, and 
the earnestness and determination which 
animated the whole force, there, was little to 
save this quaint assemblage from the ridicule 
which the royal officers heaped upon it. It 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



365 



did to ordinary view seem the height of 
folly to oppose such an ill-provided and 
unorganized mass to the splendidly equipped 
veterans who served King George. 

Yet this force " with calico frocks and 
fowling-pieces" hemmed in within the nar- 
row limits of Boston 
the splendid army of 
ten thousand men, 
commarided by such 
generals as Howe, 
Burgoyne and Sir 
Henry Clinton, which 
Gage had concen- 
trated in Boston. Bur- 
goyne could not 
repress his astonish- 
ment upon reaching 
Boston. "What!" he 
exclaimed, "ten thou- 
sand peasants keep 
five thousand kind's 
troops shut up ! Well, 
let us get in and we'll 
soon find elbow room." 
Inspite of his immense 
superiority, however, 
Gage did not venture 
to attack the Ameri- 
can lines. He con- 
tented himself with 
issuing a proclama- 
tion declaring the 
province under mar- 
tial law, and offering 
a free pardon to all 
rebels who should 
return to their allegi- 
ance, with the exception of Samuel Adams 
and John Hancock. These rebels were 
cut off from all hope of the king's mercy, 
and were given to understand that they 
could expect nothing but the most sum- 
mary punishment. 



General Gage now determined to extend 
his lines and to occupy Dorchester Heights, 
overlooking South Boston, and Bunker Hill, 
an eminence rising beyond Charlestown, on 
the north of Boston. The execution of this 
design was fixed for the eighteenth of June 




GENERAL BURGOYNE. 

and in the meantime Gage's intention became 
known in the American camp. To prevent 
it, it was resolved, at the instance of the 
Massachusetts Committee of Safety, to seize 
and fortify these eminences, beginning with 
Bunker Hill. The more prudent opposed 



366 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



this undertaking as too rash ; it was certain 
to bring on a general engagement of the 
opposing forces, and the Americans were too 
poorly provided with arms and ammunition 
to hope for success. Others insisted that no 
time should be lost in securing the Heights. 

A Daring Enterprise. 

Putnam was confident they could be held 
with proper intrenchments, and that thus pro- 
tected the troops could be relied upon to 
hold their position. The great scarcity of 
ammunition rendered the undertaking one 
of peculiar daring and it was necessary to 
select for the command an officer whose firm- 
ness and discretion could be depended upon. 
The choice fell upon Colonel William Pres- 
cott, of Massachusetts, and a brigade was 
placed under his orders. 

Soon after the sunset on the sixteenth of 
June a force of about eleven hundred men, 
armed principally with fowling-pieces, and 
carrying their scanty stock of powder and 
ball in their old-fashioned powder horns and 
pouches, assembled on Cambridge Com- 
mon. Langdon, the President of Harvard 
College, one of the chaplains of the army, 
offered up an impressive prayer, and then 
the order was given to march, and the col- 
umn moved ofif in the darkness. No one 
knew the object of the expedition, but the 
presence of several wagons loaded with 
intrenching tools, made it evident that the 
movement was one of importance. Charles- 
town Neck was strongly guarded, but the 
detachment passed it in safety and reached 
the summit of Bunker Hill without being 
observed. 

The Committee of Safety had suggested 
that Bunker Hill should be secured, but 
Prescott's orders from General Ward were to 
fortify Breed's Hill, a lower eminence but 
nearer to Boston, and commanding the har- 
bor more perfectly. It was a more exposed 



position than the other, but Prescott decided 
to obey his orders. Colonel Gridley, who 
was an experienced engineer, marked out a 
redoubt about eight rods square, and in the 
clear June starlight the men set to work 
with a will to construct the fortification 
before the morning should reveal them to 
the British. It was midnight when the 
men began their labors. A strong guard 
was thrown out along the shore of the 
harbor to prevent a surprise, and Ihe men 
could distinctly hear the call of the senti- 
nels on the men-of-war in the harbor. 
During the night Putnam came over to the 
hill to encourage the Connecticut troops. 

Heavy Guns Open Fire. 

The early morning light revealed to the 
astonished royalists the half-finished redoubt 
on Breed's Hill and the Americans still bus- 
ily at work upon it. The sloop-of-war 
" Lively," lying off the present navy yard, 
without waiting for orders, opened a steady 
fire upon the redoubt, and her example was 
soon followed by the other war vessels and the 
floating batteries in the harbor, A battery 
of heavy guns was posted on Copp's Hill 
in Boston, and opened on the redoubt. 

This fire was well calculated to demoralize 
a raw force such as that within the redoubt, 
but it produced no effect upon the Ameri- 
cans, who went on with their task quietly 
and with energy. Gridley soon withdrew 
from the hill, and Prescott, thus deserted, 
and without an engineer, prepared to extend 
his line to the best of his ability. He pro- 
longed it from the east side of the redoubt 
northward for about twenty rods towards the 
bottom of the hill ; but the men were pre- 
vented from completing it by the heavy fire 
of the British artillery. One man ventured 
beyond the redoubt early in the day, and 
was killed by a shell. Prescott ordered him 
to be instantly buried, lest the sight of his 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



367 



body might dishearten the men. To inspire 
the troops with confidence, Prescott sprang 
upon the parapet and walked slowly up and 
down the work examining it and issuing 
his orders. 

Boston Aroused by the Cannonading. 

In the meantime the firing had aroused 
the people of Boston, who crowded the 
house-tops, and every available point from 
which a view of the action could be obtained. 
General Gage reconnoitred the American 
position from Boston, through his glass, and 
observed Prescott, who was standing on the 
redoubt inspecting the work. " Who is that 
officer in command?" he asked of Councillor 
Willard.who was by his side. "Will he fight?" 
Willard had recognized Prescott, who was his 
brother-in-law, and replied : " He is an old 
soldier, and will fight to the last drop of his 
blood." Gage thereupon determined to dis- 
lodge the Americans from their position 
without lost of time, and summoned a coun- 
cil of his officers at his headquarters, in 
which it was decided to cross Charles River, 
effect a landing at Moulton's Point, and 
attack the works in front. Generals Clinton 
and Grant advocated an attack from the 
direction of Charlestown Neck, which would 
have resulted in the capture of the whole 
American force ; but Gage refused to place 
his attacking column between the American 
army at Cambridge and the detachment on 
the hill. 

The bustle in Boston as the British pre- 
pared for the attack could be distinctly seen 
by the Americans, and urgent messages were 
sent to General Ward for reinforcements and 
provisions. Putnam hurried to Ward's head- 
quarters to urge this demand; but Ward, 
who was greatly oppressed by the scarcity 
of powder in the camp, hesitated to weaken 
the main body, and it was not until eleven 
o'clock on the morning- of the seventeenth 



of June that he gave orders for the regi- 
ments of Stark and Reed to advance to Pre- 
scott's assistance. The arrival of these 
troops greatly cheered the little band under 
Prescott, who had been working all night, 
and were greatly in need of food. 

In the meantime Prescott had posted the 
Connecticut troops behind a rustic breast- 
work which he had constructed on the 
north of the redoubt. A stone fence ran 
down the side of the hill towards a swamp 
in this direction. Behind this the Ameri- 
cans placed a post and rail fence which they 
had torn up, and filled the interval between 
them with new-mown hay, thus forming a 
rude shelter. A part of the reinforcements 
joined Knowlton at this breastwork, and the 
remainder halted on Bunker Hill to enable 
Putnam to hold that point, the posses- 
sion of which he considered essential to the 
safety of the force on Breed's Hill. About 
two o'clock General Warren arrived. He 
held the commission of a major-general, and 
both Prescott and Putnam offered to relin- 
quish the command to him, but he refused 
it, saying he had come to serve as a volun- 
teer, and took his place in the ranks at the 
redoubt. 

Reinforcements for the British. 

At noon twenty- eight barges filled with 
regulars, under the command of Generals 
Howe and Pigott, left Boston, and crossing 
the harbor, landed at Moulton's Point, under 
the cover of a heavy fire from the shipping. 
General Howe now discovered that the 
American position was stronger than he had 
supposed, and sent over to General Gage for 
reinforcements. While awaiting their arrival 
he refreshed his men with provisions and 
grog. His reinforcements having arrived, 
General Howe found himself at the head of 
over two thousand veteran troops, splendidly 
equipped in every respect. Opposed to him 



368 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



were about fifteen hundred imperfectly armed 
Americans. Gage had threatened that if 
Charlestown Heights were occupied by the 
provincials he would burn the town of 
Charlestown. He now proceeded to execute 
his barbarous threat, and fired the town by 
means of shells from the battery on Copp's 
Hill, hoping that the flames and smoke 



to storm the redoubt, while the other was 
led by General Howe in person against the 
rail fence, for the purpose of turning the 
American left flank and cutting off" the 
retreat of the force in the redoubt. Prescott 
passed along his line as he saw the advance 
of the enemy, and encouraged his men with 
his cheering words, " The red coats," he 




BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. 



would screen the approach of his attacking 
party under General Howe. A change of 
wind prevented this, however, and carried 
the smoke in the opposite direction. 

About half-past two o'clock on the after- 
noon of the seventeenth of June General 
Howe gave the order to advance. One 
division, under General Pigott, was ordered 



said, " will never reach the redoubt if you 
will but withhold your fire till I give the 
order, and be careful not to shoot over their 
heads." Putnam had come down to the 
rail fence to encourage the men posted 
there, and as he saw the advance of the 
enemy, called out to the troops: "Wait 
till you see the white of their eyes; aim 



at their waistband ; pick off the handsome 
coats." 

The British advanced in splendid style up 
the side of the hill, firing rapidly as they 
moved on. The Americans awaited their 
advance in a deep silence. As Pigott's division 
came within forty yards of the redoubt, the 
defenders levelled their guns and took a 
steady aim. A minute or two later Prescott 
^jave the command, "Fire!" A sheet of 
ilame broke from the rampart and tore great 
gaps in the English line, which reeled and 
staggered back down the hill. The officers 
exerted themselves gallantly to rally the 
men, and once more the line advanced. This 
time the Americans suffered them to come 
nearer, and again drove them back with a 
fatal fire before which whole ranks went 
down. They broke in such confusion that 
Pigott himself ordered a retreat. The division 
under General Howe was equally unfortu- 
nate. It was suffered to advance within 
thirty yards of the rail fence, and was then 
driven back by a fire which broke it in con- 
fusion. The British retired to the shore 
from which they had started. 

The Whole Line Driven Back. 



Greatly astonished, but not disheartened 
by his repulse. General Howe reformed his 
line, and after an interval of fifteen minutes 
moved off again against the works, his plan 
being the same as that of the first assault. 
This time the Americans reserved their fire 
as before, and once more sent the whole 
British line reeling and broken down the hill. 
Officers of experience on the experience on 
the English side subsequently declared that 
they had never seen such firing in any battle 
in which they had been engaged. A deafen- 
ing cheer from the patriot line greeted the 
repulse of the enemy. "If we can drive them 
back once more," cried Prescott, " they can- 
not rally again." A shout from the redoubt 
24 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 369 

answered him. " We are ready for the red 
coats again ! " 

General Clinton had witnessed the repulse 
of the regulars from his position on Copp's 
Hill, and was filled with astonishment and 
indignation at the sight. Without waiting 
for orders he crossed over to Charlestown 
widi reinforcements, and offered his services 
to General Howe as a volunteer. Many of 
the English officers were opposed to another 
attack ; but as it was learned that the ammu- 
nition of the Americans was very low, Howe 
resolved to storm the works with the 
bayonet, and this time to break through the 
open space between the redoubt and the rail 
fence breastwork. His men were ordered to 
lay aside their knapsacks, and many of them 
threw off their coats also. A raking fire of 
artillery drove the Americans from the 
breastwork extending from the redoubt into 
that work for shelter, and the order was 
given to the regulars to advance with fixed 
bayonets. 

Hand-to-hand Struggle. 

The Americans- were nearly out of ammu- 
nition, and in the whole command there were 
not fifty men with bayonets to their guns. 
They met the advance of the enemy with a 
sharp fire, but their powder having given 
out, were not able to check them. Pressing 
on the British assailed the redoubt on three 
sides with the bayonet. A desperate hand- 
to-hand struggle followed ; the Americans 
fighting with clubbed guns and with stones. 
It was impossible to hold the work, how- 
ever, and Prescott gave the order to retreat- 
The men fell back in good order. The aged 
General Pomeroy, who was serving as a 
volunteer in the ranks, clubbed his gun and 
retreated with his face to the regulars, keep- 
ing them at bay by his determined action. 

The detachment at the rail fence, under 
Knowlton, Stark and Reed, held their posi- 
tion until their comrades had withdrawn 




DEATH OF MAJOR PITCAIRN 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



371 



from the redoubt, and then retreated in good 
order down the hill, thus preventing the 
enemy from cutting off the retreat of Pres- 
cott's party. One of the last to leave the 
redoubt was General Warren, who had 
borne himself with great gallantry in the 
engagement. He had scarcely left the 
trenches when he fell shot through the 
head, thus consecrating the spot with his 
blood, and leaving to his country a noble 
memory which she has ever held in grateful 
honor. 

Putman had gone to the rear before the 
final attack of the enemy to collect men for 
a reinforcement. On his return he met the 
retreating provincials passing over Bunker 
Hill. Without orders from any one, he 
rallied such as would obey him, and for the 
first time during the day assumed the com- 
mand. With these forces, and a detachment 
which arrived too late to take part in the 
battle, he withdrew to Prospect Hill, where 
he began to fortify his position. The British 
made no effort to pursue him, but contented 
themselves with occupying Breed's and Bun- 
ker Hills. 

Heavy Losses on Both Sides. 

In this battle the Americans lost four 
hundred and fifty men, killed, wounded and 
prisoners. The British, out of a force of 
less than three thousand, lost one thousand 
and fifty-four, including eighty-three officers, 
thirteen of whom were killed. Among the 
killed was Major Pitcairn, who had ordered 
his men to fire on the patriots at Lexington. 
The victory was dearly bought by the British. 

In its moral effects the battle was worth as 
much to the Americans as a success. It 
taught them that undisciplined provincials 
could hold their ground against the king's 
regulars, and inspired them with a confidence 
in their own ability to maintain the struggle. 
They had held their ground against twice 



their number, and were driven from it only 
when their ammunition failed. General Gage 
was deeply impressed with this lesson, and 
made no attempt to assume the offensive. 
When the news of the battle reached Eng- 
land the ministers were greatly dissatisfied 
with their victory. Gage was recalled, and 
General Howe was appointed his successor. 

Preparations for the Conflict. 

Washington, who had started on his jour- 
ney to New England before the arrival of the 
news of the battle, was met on the way by 
the courier who bore the tidings to Congress. 
He hastened his journey, and reached Cam- 
bridge on the second of July. The next 
day he formally assumed the command of 
the army. He was received with enthusiasm 
which was most gratifying to him, and at 
once set to work to place the army in a 
proper condition for the service required of 
it. He was fully aware of the magnitude of 
the task he had undertaken, and his letters 
written at the time indicate a deep reliance 
upon God for assistance in discharging it. 

The army numbered about fourteen thous- 
and men, and was without organization, with- 
out uniforms, poorly armed, and imperfectly 
clothed. It must be disciplined, supplied 
with arms and clothing, and with ammuni- 
tion. At the same time the enemy in Bos- 
ton must be watched and kept in check. 
To make the army effective its force must be 
raised to twenty or twenty-five thousand 
men, and the petty jealousies which divided 
it must be removed. 

It was resolved to maintain the present 
position of the army before Boston, and to 
capture or drive out the British force in 
that city. Washington established his head- 
quarters at Cambridge, which was his centre,- 
and was under the immediate command of 
General Putnam. The right wing, under 
General Ward, held Roxbury, and the left, 



372 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



under General Charles Lee, was at Prospect 
Hill. About this time the army was joined 
by a force of riflemen from Virginia, Mary- 
land, and Pennsylvania, under Daniel Mor- 
gan, who was destined to achieve distinction 
during the war. He was rough and unedu- 
cated, but was one of the truest sons of 
America. He was never found wanting in 
any position in which he was placed, and 
was a man upon whose devotion and integ- 




BUNKER HILL MONUMENT. 

rity absolute reliance could be placed by his 
commanders. 

The winter was passed in the organization 
of the army. The want of ammunition pre- 
vented Washington from assuming the offen- 
sive, though he greatly desired to do so. It 
was necessary to observe the greatest care 
to prevent this state of affairs from becoming 
known to the British, and at the same time 
every effort was made to supply the defi- 
ciency. These efforts were partially success- 
ful. 



It was proposed to attack Canada soon 
after the capture of the forts at Ticonderoga 
and Crown Point. This proposal met with 
little favor in Congress until it was known 
that the British were assembling a force of 
regulars and enlisting the Indians in Canada 
for the invasion of New York. Then, as a 
measure of self-defence, the proposed invasion 
of that country was sanctioned, and prepara- 
tions for it were actively begun. Two expe- 
ditions were deter- 
mined upon ; one 
by way of Lake 
Champlain, the 
other across the 
wilderness, by way 
of the Kennebec 
and Chaudiere Riv- 
ers. The first was 
intrusted to Gener- 
al Philip Schuyler, 
who had been ap- 
pointed by Wash- 
ington to the com- 
mand in New York, 
and the latter to Col- 
onel Arnold, who 
was in the camp at 
Cambridge, eager 
for some opportu- 
nity to distinguish 
himself 
A force of New York and New England 
troops was assembled on Lake Champlain 
under Schuyler, who was ably seconded by 
Brigadier General Richard Montgomery, who 
had served under Wolfe in the old French 
war. Schuyler moved down the lake to the 
Isle aux Noix, in the Sorel River, and occu- 
pied that island. In September he made an 
attempt to capture St. John's, but finding it 
much stronger than he had supposed, re- 
sumed his former position. Falling seriously 
ill soon after, he was obliged to withdraw to 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



373 



Albany, and relinquished the command to 
Montgomery. Reaching Albany, he suc- 
ceeded in securing supplies, ammunition and 
reinforcements, and sent them to Mont- 
gomery. 

An Important Success. 

That energetic officer at once assumed the 
offensive, and captured St. John's, on the 
Sorel River, on the third of November, after 
a spirited resistance, and in spite of the efforts 
of Sir Guy Carleton to relieve it. On the 
thirteenth of November Montgomery arrived 
before Montreal, which surrendered upon his 
first summons. This capture enabled the 
American commander to supply his men 
with woolen clothes, of which they were very 
much in need. Although it was the begin- 
ning of the winter, and his force was reduced 
to three hundred men, poorly clad and lack- 
ing almost every kind of supplies, Montgom- 
ery set out without delay to join Arnold 
before Quebec. 

Arnold had left the camp at Cambridge in 
September with a force of eleven hundred men, 
including three companies of riflemen under 
Morgan. He was to ascend the Kennebec 
and march across the wilderness to Quebec, 
where he was to unite his force with the army 
from New York, The march across the 
unbroken wilderness of Maine and Canada is 
one of the most memorable in history. It 
consumed two months of time, and was 
marked by intense suffering and unceasing 
and severe labor. The troops had to cut 
their way through an unbroken wilderness 
ford icy streams, climb mountains and brave 
the rigors of the Canadian winter. Their 
provisions gave out, and they were reduced 
to the necessity of eating their dogs and 
chewing their moccasins. 

At length, on the ninth of November, 
Arnold, with about six hundred and fifty 
effective men, reached the St. Lawrence, at 



Point Levi. Could he have crossed over to 
Quebec at once, that city must have fallen 
into his hands ; but he was unable to do so, 
as he had no boats ; and in a few days Sir 
Guy Carleton arrived from Montreal, which 
he had abandoned to Montgomery, and put 
the city in a state of defence. 

Eluding the two armed vessels which held 
the river, Arnold crossed his command to 
the opposite side of the St. Lawrence, and 
climbing the cliffs by the path which Wolfe 
had ascended, occupied the Heights of Abra- 
ham, and endeavored to draw the garrison 
out of their works to meet him. They 
declined his challenge, and finding it impos- 
sible to besiege the city without artillery, he 
moved to a point twenty miles up the river, 
where he met Montgomery, from whom he 
obtained clothing for his men, who had lost 
nearly all their clothes in their march through 
the wilderness. 

A Difficult March. 

Montgomery now assumed the command 
of the united forces, which numbered less 
than a thousand men, and on the fifth of 
December laid siege to Quebec. Having no 
materials for the proper construction of a 
battery, a novel expedient was adopted. 
Gabions were filled with ice and snow, over 
which water was poured. The cold soon 
froze this to a solid mass ; but, as the ice was 
brittle, it afforded no protection against the 
fire of the enemy's guns. The Americans 
soon found their artillery too light to make 
any impression upon the walls of the city, 
and, as a last resort, it was determined to 
attempt the capture of the place by an assault, 
which was ordered for the thirty-first of 
December. The attack was made with 
spirit, but was unsuccessful. 

Montgomery was shot down while leading 
the attack on the lower town, and his column 
was driven back. Arnold was severely 



374 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



wounded in the assault upon the upper town, 
and the command passed to Morgan, the 
next in rank. Morgan succeeded in carry- 
ing the two batteries which defended the 
entrance to Quebec, and in forcing his way 
into the town ; but, being overpowered by 
numbers, was compelled to surrender. He 
and his men were treated with especial kind- 
ness by Sir Guy Carleton in recognition of 
their bravery. The attack having proved a 
failure, Arnold, whose force had been reduced 




GENERAL RICHARD MONTGOMERY. 

to five hundred men, fell back to a position 
about three miles above Quebec, and held it 
all winter, hoping to receive such reinforce- 
ments as would enable him to take Quebec. 

In April, 1776, General Wooster joined 
Arnold with reinforcements, and, assuming 
the command, made another unsuccessful 
effort to capture Quebec. Wooster was soon 
recalled, and was succeeded by General 
Thomas. Sir Guy Carleton, governor of 
Canada, was heavily reinforced, and Thomas 



was obliged to abandon the attempt on 
Quebec and retreat. His movement was so 
hasty that he left his baggage, artillery and 
sick in Carleton's hands. The British com- 
mander, with a humanity rare among his 
countrymen during this struggle, treated the 
sick prisoners with great kindness. Thomas 
fell back as far as the Sorel, where he died 
of the small-pox, which was making great 
ravages among the troops. Sir Guy Carle- 
ton continued to advance, and defeated a 
portion of the army under General Thomp- 
son at Three Rivers. Thompson and a 
number of his officers and men were made 
prisoners. 

The remainder secured their retreat and 
joined General Sullivan on the Sorel. The 
wreck of the army now fell back from Canada 
to Crown Point in a most miserable and dis- 
heartened condition. Thus ended the inva- 
sion of Canada, the most disastrous expedi- 
tion attempted by the Americans during the 
war ; yet still one the failures of which were 
greatly offset by the heroic daring of the 
troops engaged. Carleton was able to occupy 
the entrances to Canada with a strong force 
and to make any future attempt at invasion 
impossible. 

Norfolk Bombarded. 

While these events were transpiring in 
Canada, Virginia was also the scene of war. 
Towards the close of the year 1775 Lord 
Dunmore, the royalist governor of Virginia, 
who had taken refuge on board a man-of- 
war, issued a proclamation offering freedom 
to the negro slaves and indentured white ser- 
vants of the patriots who would join him in 
the servile war he meant to iniugurate. 
With a force collected in this manner, he 
landed at Norfolk and took possession of the 
town. Fugitive slaves joined him in con- 
siderable numbers, and it seemed likely that 
he would be able to carry out his threat and 



I 



PROGRESS OF THE WAR. 



375 



scourge Virginia and North Carolina with a 
warfare of massacre and servile violence. 

Several regiments were raised in Virginia 
to drive him out of the province. The second 
of these, under Colonel Woodford, seized the 
narrow peninsula which connects Norfolk 
with the mainland, and on the ninth of 
December was attacked by Dunmore's forces, 
which were summarily defeated. In revenge. 
Dunmore returned in January, 1776, and 
bombarded and burned Norfolk, then the 
largest and richest town and the principal 
shipping port of Virginia. 

On the fifth of September, 1775, the Con- 
tinental Congress resumed its sessions. 
Delegates from Georgia appeared and were 
admitted to seats in the Congress, and the 
colonies assumed the style of the TJiirteeii 
. United Colonies. Matters were not very 
encouraging when Congress met. The army 
was in need of everything that could con- 
tribute to its efficiency, and the New England 
coast was harassed with the armed vessels of 
Great Britain, which laid its towns under 
exaction, or subjected them to bombard- 
ment, and committed other gross outrages 
upon the inhabitants. On the eighteenth of 
October the town of Falmouth, now Port- 
land, in Maine, was burned by Lieutenant 
Mowatt of the British navy. The other 
towns, warned by the fate of Falmouth, pro- 
ceeded to fortify themselves, and escaped 
with nothing worse than an occasional 
engagement with some royal cruiser. 

Naval matters very largely occupied the 
attention of the whole country at this period. 
The only way in which the needed supplies 
could be obtained was by purchase abroad or 
the capture of the enemy's ships. Maryland, 
Virginia and South Carolina promptly estab- 
. lished naval boards for the purpose of fitting 
out cruisers for this service ; and among the 
first acts of Washington, after assuming the 
command of the army, was to send out 



armed vessels to the St. Lawrence and the 
New England waters to seize the supply 
ships of the English on their way to Canada 
and Boston. A number of vessels were 
captured by these cruisers, and a considera- 
ble quantity of arms, ammunition and other 
stores thus accumulated. 

Securing War Supplies. 

Congress appointed a secret committee 
to import powder from the West Indies, and 
to erect mills in the interior for its manufac- 
ture ; and foundries for casting cannon. 
Licenses were issued to privateers, and a 
naval committee was appointed to superin- 
tend the formation of a marine force for the 
defence of the harbors, and was charged with 
the building of thirteen frigates. In Decem- 
ber a secret committee was appointed to 
open and conduct a correspondence with 
foreign nations, or with friends of the cause 
in Europe. 

Parliament, in the meantime, had not been 
idle, but had enacted stringent measures for 
the prosecution of the war and the punish- 
ment of the colonists. The measures adopted 
by the British government were cruel and 
barbarous. The Americans were to be 
treated as criminals and as deserving of 
death. They were made subject to the pains 
and penalties of treason if captured, and 
could in no case expect the treatment of 
prisoners of war. The crews of all vessels 
captured in trading to the colonies were con- 
demned beforehand to serve in the marine 
corps of the royal navy. It was decided 
to increase the British army in America to 
forty thousand men. Twenty-five thousand 
of these troops were to be raised,, and the 
effort to enlist men was begun in England, 
but without success. Recruits could not be 
found in sufficient numbers to repay the 
effort. The ministry could not hope for 
better success in Ireland, as they had been 



n^ 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



warned by General Howe that the Irish were 
strong sympathizers with the Americans and 
could not be relied upon to fight against them. 
In this emergency the government resolved 
to employ German troops for the subjuga- 
tion of America, and negotions were opened 
with Brunswick and Hesse Cassel, two petty 
German States. The result was that Great 
Britain hired seventeen thousand troops 
from these states for the conquest of the 
English-speaking people of America. These 
mercenaries were generally known as Hes- 
sians, and became the objects of the bitter 
hatred of the Americans — a hatred which 
they fully earned by their subsequent cruel- 
ties towards the colonists. 



These measures were not adopted by the 
British government without opposition. 
There was a determined minority in Eng- 
land, consisting of such men as Burke, Barre 
and the Duke of Grafton, who manfully 
sought to obtain justice for the colonies up 
to the last moment at which a settlement was 
possible. The corporation of London and 
the mercantile interests of the country 
generally were opposed to the measures 
of the government, and sought to procure 
a just and peaceful settlement; but all ef- 
forts were in vain. The king and the 
ministry were resolved upon the subjuga- 
tion of America ; nothing else would satisfy 
them. 




CHAPTER XXVII 
The Declaration of Independence 

The Siege of Boeton — Difficulties of the American Army — Activity of the Privateers — Clinton's Expedition — Colonel 
Knox Arrives from Ticonderoga with Cannon — Seizure of Dorchester Heights by Washington — The British Evacuate 
Boston — Royalist Plots in New York — Paper Money Issued by Congress — Gates Sent to the North — The British 

Attack Charleston — Battle of Fort Moultrie — The Howes in New York Bay — Change in the Character of the War 

Growing Sentiment in Favor of Independence — Virginia Proposes that the Colonies Assert their Independence — 

Action of Congress — The Declaration of Independence — Articles of Confederation Adopted by Congress Lord 

Howe's Efforts at Conciliation — Addresses a Letter to Washington — Battle of Long Island — Defeat of the Americans 
— Retreat from Long Island — Evacuation of New York by the Americans — Loss of Fort Washington — Washington 
Retreats Through New Jersey — He Crosses the Delaware — Darkest Period of the War — Washington's Determination 
to Continue the War — Lord Howe's Proclamation— Its Effect — Congress at Baltimore — Carleton Invades New York 
— Defeats Arnold on Lake Champlain — Carleton Retires into Canada — Battle of Trenton — Happy Effects of the 
Victory — Congress Confers Dictatorial Powers upon Washington — Commissioners Sent to France. 



THE winter of 1775-76 was passed by 
the army before Boston in inaction. 
There was not ammunition enough 
in the camp to enable Washington 
to attack Boston, and the British were well 
content to remain within their lines without 
seeking to raise the siege. Washington 
lexerted himself to the utmost to obtain artil- 
lery and powder. Henry Knox, a bookseller 
of Boston, who had entered the military ser- 
vice of the colonies, had attracted the attention 
of the commander-in-chief by his skill in the 
use of artillery and in planning the works 
erected for the defence of the camp. Knox 
now proposed to go to Ticonderoga and bring 
away from that place and from Crown Point 
all the artillery and powder that could be 
spared, and his plan was at once approved 
by Washington, who urged Congress to com- 
mission him a colonel of artillery. 

At the same time he wrote to Schuyler, the 
commander in New York, to give Knox every 
assistance in his power in his effort to bring 
the artillery from Lake Champlain to Boston. 
Great difficulties were experienced during 
the winter in inducing the troops to renew 
their enlistments. It required all the ingenu- 



ity and tact of which Washington was master 
to remove the prejudices and jealousies which 
had grown up in the camp since the com- 
mencement of the blockade of Boston, and 
which threatened to disband the army. He 
succeeded in a greater degree than he had 
expected. At the opening of the year 1776 
he had about ten thousand men in camp, 
many of whom were raw troops newly enlisted 
and without arms. Still they were a more 
harmonious and contented force than the first 
army. Towards the close of 1775 the priva- 
teers made extensive captures from the 
British. Captain Manly, of the schooner 
" Lee," captured a British brig off Cape Ann, 
laden with arms, artillery and military stores 
for the British army at Boston. These were 
sent at once to Washington, and proved of 
the greatest service. Among the captures 
was an immense mortar, which Putnam named 
the " Congress," and placed in position at 
Lechmere Point, on the north of Boston. 

Matters were gloomy indeed. The people 
people were anxious that Boston should be 
attacked, but such a course was impossible. 
As late as the tenth of February, 1776, 
Washington wrote : " Without men, without 

177 



378 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



arms, without ammunition, little is to be 
done." To increase the discouragement of 
the patriots news came of the defeat of the 
attempt to conquer Canada. The British 
were collecting a fleet for a demonstration 
against some point on the Atlantic coast, 
and as it was not certain where the blow 
would fall, a feeling of general uneasiness 
prevailed along the entire seaboard. 

This expedition sailed from Boston, under 
Sir Henry Clinton, about the first of Febru- 
ary. Washington, who had for some time 




GENERAL HENRY KNOX. 

suspected that it was designed to capture 
New York, had already sent General Charles 
Lee to raise troops to occupy that important 
city and hold it against the British. Lee 
executed his task with energy, and on the 
fourth of February entered New York and 
encamped in the suburbs, in what is now 
the City Hall Park. Governor Tryon, who 
had taken refuge on board a man-of-war, 
threatened to bombard the city if the Ameri- 
can forces should enter it ; but Lee informed 
him that the first shot fired at New York 



would be the signal for the execution of the 
leading friends of the royal cause in that city. 
This decisive answer induced Tryon to delay 
his barbarous purpose. That afternoon Sir 
Henry Clinton, with his fleet, entered the 
harbor. Finding that he had come too late 
to secure the city, Clinton declared that he 
had merely called at the harbor to pay a visit 
to his friend Tryon, and in a few days he 
sailed away for North Carolina, where the 
royalist Governor Martin, who, like Tryon, 
had taken refuge on board a man-of-war, had 
been endeavoring to stir up an insurrection 
of the Tories, as the royalists were called. 
The command of this movement was to be 
assumed by Clinton. Martin also expected 
a fleet under Sir Peter Parker from Ireland. 

Decisive Defeat of the Tories. 

To gain time, and stir up the Tories to 
prompt action, he commissioned two retired 
officers of the British army, Scotchmen, 
named McDonald and McLeod, who had 
recently settled in North Carolina, to raise 
troops among the friends of the king in the 
interior. They succeeded in raising about 
fifteen hundred men, and set off for the coast 
to join Martin. The patriots at once rallied 
in considerable force to oppose their march, 
and intercepted them at Moore's Creek 
Bridge, near Wilmington. On the twenty- 
fifth of February a sharp engagement was 
fought here, which resulted in the defeat of 
the Tories. McLeod was killed and McDonald 
was taken prisoner. Eighteen hundred 
stand of arms, one hundred and fifty swords, 
two medicine-chests, and the sum of fifteen 
thousand pounds sterling in gold fell into the 
hands of the victors, and went far toward 
supplying their deficiencies. The contem- 
plated rising of the Tories was put down 
in the interior counties, and Martin find- 
ing his hopes of raising troops in North 
Carolina destroyed, withdrew with Clinton 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



379 



.o the Cape Fear to await the arrival of the 
fleet of Sir Peter Parker. 

In the meantime a Union flag had been 
provided for the army before Boston, and 
was formally displayed for the first time in 
the American camp on the first of January, 
1776. It retained the English cross in the 
upper left-hand corner, in token of the rela- 
tions still existing between the colonies and 
England, and bore on its broad field thirteen 
stripes of alternate red and white, represent- 
ing the thirteen colonies united for the defence 
of their liberties. Towards the close of 
February the stock of powder was consider- 
ably increased, and a little later Colonel Knox 
arrived from Ticonderoga with the cannon 
and ammunition from that post. 

He had transported them on sledges across 
the long stretch of country between Lake 
Champlain and Boston, and had overcome 
difficulties in the accomplishment of this task 
which seemed at first insurmountable. The 
arrival of these guns gave Washington a fair 
supply of heavy ordnance and put an end to 
the long delay which had prevailed in the 
American camp. The regular army had been 
increased to fourteen thousand men, and had 
been reinforced by six thousand militia from 
Massachusetts. 

Ready for Decisive Action. 

All now was bustle and activity. The 
newly arrived cannon were mounted to com- 
mand the city, and Washington was at length 
able to attempt the long- desired demonstra- 
tion against the enemy in Boston. As early 
as December, 1775, Congress had urged him 
to undertake the capture of Boston, and had 
authorized him to destroy the city if he could 
expel the British in no other way, and John 
Hancock, who was a large property-owner, 
regardless of the fate of his possessions, had 
written to him : " Do it, and may God crown 
your attempt with success." All through 



the winter Washington had been held back 
from such an attempt by the advice of his 
council of war, which hesitated to assume 
the offensive with an insufficient supply of 
arnmunition and artillery. Putnam had suc- 
ceeded in fortifying the neighboring heights 
on the mainland, but had been obliged to 
do much of this work at night to avoid the 
fire of the enemy's shipping. The last 
obstacle to decisive action was now removed. 
Washington resolved to seize the eminence 
on the south of Boston, known as Dorchester 
Heights. It commanded the town from that 
quarter and also the shipping in the harbor. 
Its possession by the Americans would force 
Sir William Howe either to evacuate the 
city or risk a general engagement for its 
recovery. 

Heavy Fire of Shot and Shell. 

On the evening of the second of March a 
heavy fire was opened upon the British lines 
by the American batteries and also upon 
Boston. A number of houses were set on 
fire, and the attention of the British was fully 
occupied in extinguishing the flames. The 
bombardment was renewed the next night. 
At dark on the evening of the fourth of 
March the Americans renewed their fire with 
redoubled vigor, and were replied to with 
spirit by the British, and during the whole 
night the roar of cannon went on, covering 
the movements of the Americans from ob- 
servation by the enemy. The force assigned 
for the seizure of Dorchester Heights was 
placed under the command of General 
Thomas, and in case the movement should be 
discovered, and the enemy should seek to dis- 
lodge this detachment from the Heights, 
General Putnam was ordered to cross Charles 
River with a column of four thousand picked 
troops and attack the city from that quarter. 

Under the cover of the heavy cannonade 
the column of General Thomas passed the 



38o 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



narrow isthmus in safety, and reached the 
Heights by eight o'clock undiscovered by 
the enemy. They at once set to work, though 
the ground was frozen to a depth of more 
than eighteen inches, and by morning had 
thrown up a series of earthworks which 
entirely commanded both the city and the 
harbor. General Howe was greatly aston- 
ished as he examined these works through 
his glass when the mists of the morning 
cleared away. " The rebels," he said, " have 
done more work in a night than my whole army 
would have done in a month." The British 




MEDAL STRUCK BY CONGRESS IN HONOR OF THE RECAPTURE OF BOSTON 



admiral declared that his ships could not 
remain in the harbor, as the possession of the 
Heights by the Americans placed the fleet 
entirely at their mercy. It was evident to 
all the British commanders that the Heights 
must be recovered or the city abandoned 
and General Howe determined to storm the 
American works that night, and made prep- 
arations for an attack. This movement was 
prevented by a severe storm, which put a 
stop to the cooperation of the fleet, and when 
the storm had died away the works had been 
so greatly strengthened as to render an assault 
hopeless. 



A council of war was held, and it was 
resolved to abandon the town. As such a 
step required some time, Howe secured the 
safety of his army by declaring that he would 
burn the town if his troops were fired on 
during their embarkation. A deputation of 
the citizens proceeded to the American camp 
and informed General Washington of Howe's 
determination, and in order to save the city 
from further suffering the British were allowed 
to depart in peace. They consumed eleven 
days in their embarkation. They embarked 
about fifteen hundred Tories with them, and 
after plundering a num- 
ber of stores and private 
houses, and robbing the 
inhabitants of a consid- 
erable supply of pro- 
visions, they embarked 
on the seventeenth of 
March, and dropping 
down the bay anchored 
at Nantasket Roads. 
They had scarcely left 
the city when the Ameri- 
can army, under Wash- 
ington, marched in and 
occupied the place. The 
long siege often months 
was at an end, and Bos- 
ton was again free. The patriot army was 
received with enthusiasm, and matters soon 
began to resume their accustomed condition. 
By the capture of Boston the Americans 
obtained possession of two hundred and fifty 
pieces of artillery, four mortars, and a con- 
siderable quantity of ammunition, provisions 
and clothing, which the British could not 
carry away. After the departure of the 
British fleet from Nantasket Roads several 
transports with troops, not aware of the 
evacuation, entered the harbor, and were 
captured. Several storeships, laden with 
military supplies of all kinds, also arrived 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



381 



from England, and were captured in the same 
way. These captures were of the highest 
importance to the patriots. Their supply of 
ammunition was in this way increased more 
than sevenfold. 

The capture of Boston was justly esteemed 
the most important success of the war. It 
freed New England from the presence of the 
English, and enabled her to contribute men 
and money to the defence of the middle 
colonies. On motion of John Adams, Con- 
gress adopted a unanimous vote of thanks to 



defence. He soon discovered that the Tories 
in the city were in constant communication 
with Governor Tryon and the British ships 
in the harbor. Severe measures were at once 
adopted to stop this intercourse. A con- 
spiracy for the recovery of the city by Tryon 
was discovered, and his agents were found 
tampering with the American soldiers. One 
Thomas Hickey, a deserter from the British 
army, was hanged " for mutiny, sedition and 
treachery," and this vigorous measure at 
once put a stop to the plots of the Tories. 







CONTINENTAL BILLS. 



Washington and the army, and ordered a 
gold medal to be struck in commemoration 
of the deliverance of Boston. 

The British fleet remained in Nantasket 
roads for several days after the evacuation of 
Boston, and then bore away for Halifax. 
Washington was fearful that its destination 
was New York, and leaving General Ward 
with five regiments to hold Boston, hastened 
southward with the main body of the army. 
He reached New York on the thirteenth of 
of April, and set to work with vigor to put 
the city and its approaches in a state of 



Congress, in February, 1776, found itself 
obliged to issue four millions of dollars of 
additional paper money in order to meet the 
expenses of the war, which were heavier than 
had been supposed. For the proper manage- 
ment of the finances, an auditor-general and 
assistants were appointed to act under the 
financial committee of Congress, and it was 
not long before this branch of the public 
service assumed the form of a treasury 
department. In April a war office was 
established by Congress under the super- 
vision of a committee of its members. John 



382 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Adams was made chairman of this committee, 
and resigned his post of chief-justice of 
Massachusetts to accept it. 

The retreat of SulHvan from Canada now 
became known, and the conduct of that 
officer was approved by Congress, which 
passed a vote of thanks to him. At the same 
time it appointed Major-General Horatio 
Gates to the command of the army in his 
place. Gates was an Englishman by birth, 
and had joined the colonial movement in the 
hope of winning honors and fame by his 
services. He had served in the British army 
during the colonial period, but had failed to 
receive the rewards he deemed himself 
entitled to, and had resigned his commission 
in disgust, and had come to America to reside 
a few years before the rupture with England. 
His experience and skill made him a valuable 
acquisition to the American army, but his 
ambition and jealousy were destined to 
cause it considerable trouble. Gates at once 
claimed that his command embraced not only 
the troops on Lake Champlain, but also the 
whole northern army under Schuyler. The 
matter was referred to Congress, and it was 
decided that Gates was independent of the 
control of Schuyler only while in Canada. 
Elsewhere he was subject to Schuyler's com- 
mand. 

Expedition Against Charleston. 

In the meantime Congress had sent Gen- 
eral Charles Lee to the south to take com- 
mand of the troops assembling to oppose Sir 
Henry Clinton, who was waiting off the 
mouth of the Cape Fear river for the arrival 
of the fleet of Sir Peter Parker from Ireland. 
This fleet joined Clinton in May, and a little 
later Congress learned by means of inter- 
cepted letters that Charleston, in South 
Carolina, was the object of attack. The 
command of the strong military force which 
the fleet brought was to be held by Sir Henry 



Clinton, to whom the general direction of 
the expedition was intrusted. 

Lee hastened at once to Charleston. He 
found there a force of about six thousand 
men, from the Carolinas and Virginia ; but 
the city was not defended by a single fortifi- 
cation. Had Clinton assailed it at once, it 
must have fallen into his hands, as he arrived 
in the harbor on the fourth of June, the very 
day that Lee reached the city ; but he delayed 
his attack until he could fortify his own 
position, and so gave Lee time to erect works 
for the defence of the city. 

Fort Moultrie Bombarded. 

The key to the American position was 
Fort Moultrie, a small work built of palmetto 
logs, and situated on the southwest point of 
Sullivan's Island. It was commanded by 
Colonel William Moultrie, whose name it 
bore. In front of it lay the British fleet under 
Sir Peter Parker. Sir Henry Clinton had 
taken position with two thousand men on 
Long Island, which was separated from Sul- 
livan's Island by only a narrow creek, and 
was building batteries to cover his passage 
of the creek. His plan was to allow the fleet 
to breach the walls of P'ort Moultrie and then 
to cross his troops to Sullivan's Island under 
the cover of his batteries, and carry the fort 
by storm. Lee, who was ignorant of the 
capacity of the soft, spongy palmetto wood 
for resisting the force of cannon shot, regarded 
the effort to hold Fort Moultrie as madness. 
He stationed a force under Colonel Thomp- 
son on Sullivan's Island opposite Clinton to 
dispute his passage of the creek, and took 
position on the mainland with the rest of his 
force where he could support either Moultrie 
or Thompson, as might be necessary. 

On the twenty-eighth of June the enemy's 
fleet opened fire on Fort Moultrie, which 
replied with spirit, and for ten hours the can- 
nonade was maintained with great vigor by 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



383 



both sides. The enemy's balls buried them- 
selves in the soft, spongy wood of the pal- 
metto logs, and thus did little injury to the 
fort; but the well-directed fire of the Ameri- 
can guns inflicted great 
damage upon the fleet. 

The British were finally 
compelled to withdraw 
with heavy loss, and 
abandoned and set fire 
to one of their ships. 
During the engagement 
the flag of the fort was 
shot away, and fell out- 
side of the walls. Ser- 
geant Jasper, of the 
South Carolina forces, 
at once sprang over the 
wall and amidst a heavy 
fire secured the flag, tied 
it to a pole, and set it up 
again on the ramparts. 
This done, he rejoined 
his comrades at the guns. 
A few days later Gov- 
ernor Rutledge pre- 
sented Jasper with his 
own sword and offered 
him a lieutenant's com- 
mission. Jasper accepted 
the sword, but declined 
the commission on the 
ground that he could 
neither read nor write. 

Clinton made repeated 
efforts to cross the creek 
and storm the fort during 
the battle, but was as 
often driven back by the 
batteries under Thompson, 
fleet having withdrawn, he 



Washington was correct in supposing that 
New York was the true destination of Sir 
William Howe after leaving the Nantasket 
Roads. That commander sailed first to Hali- 




SERGEANT JASPER AT FORT MOULTRIE. 



At length, the 
embarked his 
men, and soon after sailed for New York 
to join the troops assembling near that 
city. 



fax, where he landed the civilians and other 
useless incumbrances he had been obliged to, 
carry away from Boston. Then, refitting his 
command, he awaited the arrival of his 
brother. Admiral Lord Howe, who was on 



384 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



his way from England with reinforcements. 
In the latter part of June he sailed from 
Halifax for New York, and arrived within 
Sandy Hook on the twenty-eighth of June, 
the very day of the attack on Fort Moultrie, 
He landed his forces on Staten Island, where 
he was received with enthusiasm by the 
Tories. 

A little later he was joined by Sir Henry 
Clinton from Charleston, and about the mid- 
dle of July Lord Howe arrived with rein- 
forcements, a large part of whom were 
Hessians, hired, as we have stated, by the 
King of England from the Duke of Hesse 
Cassel, in Germany. Their arrival raised the 
strength of the British army in New York 
Bay to thirty thousand men. Their attack 
upon the city was merely a question of time, 
and under the most favorable circumstances 
it was scarcely to be hoped that Washington 
would succeed in maintaining his hold upon 
New York. In the meantime an event of the 
highest importance had changed the whole 
character of the war as regarded the Ameri- 



cans. 



England Will Not Relent. 



The colonists had taken up arms to resist 
the aggressions of the King and Government 
of Great Britain upon their liberties and to 
compel the mother country to respect the 
rights guaranteed to them by their charters 
and by the British Constitution. Thus far 
the war had been waged for these ends. At 
the outset of the struggle a few far-seeing 
persons, such as Samuel Adams and Patrick 
Henry, had been convinced that an appeal to 
arms would render the final separation of the 
colonies from England inevitable, and that 
such an issue was but the fulfilment of the 
destiny of their country, and as such to be 
desired. 

The great majority of the people, however, 
neither thought of nor wished for independ- 



ence. They would have been satisfied to 
secure their liberties and privileges as English 
subjects, and would gladly have continued 
loyal to the king. The events of the war had 
made it plain to the most skeptical that England 
did not intend to do justice to her colonies. 
Neither the king, the ministry, nor Parliament 
were disposed to swerve from their purpose 
of reducing America to absolute submission 
to their will. They were determined that 
the colonists should bear every burden of 
British citizenship, and enjoy none of its 
privileges save what they should see fit to 
allow them. Americans were not to enjoy 
either liberty or property as lawful rights. 

The Feeling Toward Great Britain. 

This determination was so clear that none 
could mistake it. Since the commencement 
of the struggle public opinion in America 
had undergone a great change, and the 
party in favor of a total and final separation 
from the mother country had increased so 
rapidly that it now embraced the great major- 
ity of the American people. Now that they 
had become convinced that they could main- 
tain their liberties only by a total and unqual- 
ified separation from Great Britain, they did 
not hesitate to choose that course. Their 
choice was made without regret. At the 
commencement of the war a very genuine 
attachment bound the people of the colonies 
to England ; but the course of the royal 
government and the severities of the British 
commanders in the Northern colonies, and 
the outrages of the royal governors in the 
South, had entirely alienated the people from 
their love for England. 

Still there were many Tories, or friends of 
the king, in America, and they were active 
and bitter in their opposition to the patriots. 
From the first the Americans regarded the 
Tories with a feeling of hatred which increased 
as the struggle went on, and this feeling was 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



385 



soon extended to all who fought under the 
royal flag or sought to uphold its cause. 

Not only had the people been gradually 
coming to view independence as desirable 
and indispensable ; the exercise by Congress 
of the functions of a 
supreme government 
had accustomed them 
to it, and had shown 
them their capacity 
for conducting a gen- 
eral government for 
the whole country. 
Early in March, 1776, 
Congress granted let- 
ters of marque and re- 
prisal against British 
commerce, and some- 
what later sent Silas 
Deane as its commis- 
sioner to France to 
seek assistance from 
that country. In May 
it had formally recom- 
mended the colonies 
to disregard the royal 
governments and 
adopt systems suited 
to their needs, and in 
harmony with the 
changed state of affairs. 
To all men it was evi- 
dent that a formal re- 
nunciation of allegi- 
ance to Great Britain 
and the assertion of 
their independence by 
the colonies was mere- 
ly a question of time. 

It was, therefore, a surprise to no one when 
the first definite action looking towards inde- 
pendence was taken. On the fifteenth of 
M^y> ^71^, the general assembly of Virginia 

instructed the delegates of that colony in 
25 



Congress to offer a resolution in favor of the 
separation of the colonies from England, and 
the formal declaration of their independence. 
On the thirtieth of May Massachusetts 
instructed her delegates to support this reso- 




INDEPENDENCE HALL, PHILADELPHIA. 

lution. On the seventh of June Richard 
Henry Lee, of Virginia, offered a resolution 
in Congress, "that the united colonies are,, 
and ought to be, free and independent 
States, and that their political connectioni 



386 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



with Great Britain is, and ought to be, dis- 
solved." 

The resolution was seconded by John 
Adams, of Massachusetts, and was debated 
with great earnestness. It was adopted by 
a bare majority of one — seven colonies voting 
for it, and six against it. In accordance with 
the resolution, a committee was appointed to 
draw up a declaration of independence, and, 
in order that the delegates might have an 
opportunity to ascertain the wishes of their 
constituents, the consideration of the subject 
was postponed until the first of July. Two 



with a few verbal alterations, was adopted 
by the committee as it came from his hand. 
It reviewed in a clear and comprehensive 
manner the cause which had impelled the 
colonies to take up arms for the defence of 
their liberties, and which now induced them 
to sever the ties that bound them to Great 
Britain. 

The declaration concluded in these mem- 
orable words : " We, therefore, the repre- 
sentatives of the United States of America, 
in general Congress assembled, appealing to 
the Supreme Judge of all the world for the . 
rectitude of our inten- 
tions, do, in the name 
and by the authority 
of the good people of 
these colonies, solemnly 
publish and declare that 
these united colonies are, 
and of right ought to 
be, free and independent 
states ; that they are 
absolved from all alle- 
giance to the British 
crown, and that all poli- 
tical connection between 
them and the state of 
Great Britain is, and 
ought to be, dissolved; 

HOUSE IN WHICH THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE WAS WRITTEN, PHILADELPHIA. ^^^ ^j^^^ ^^ ^^.^^ ^^^ 




other committees were also appointed. One 
of these was charged with the preparation of 
a plan for uniting the colonies in a single 
government ; the other was to report a plan 
for securing alliances with foreign nations. 
The committee charged with the preparation 
of a declaration of independence consisted of 
Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas 
Jefferson, Roger Sherman and Robert R. 
Livingston. 

On the twenty-eighth of June the com- 
mittee reported the declaration to Congress. 
It was written by Thomas Jefferson, and, 



independent states, they have full power to 
levy war, conclude peace contract alliances, 
establish commerce and to do all other acts 
and things which independent states may of 
right do. And for the support of this decla- 
ration, with a firm reliance on the protection 
of a Divine Providence, we mutually pledge 
to each other our lives, our fortunes, and 
our sacred honor." 

The declaration was debated in Congress, 
and a few passages, which it was feared 
might offend the friends of the colonies in 
Great Britain, were stricken out. The vote 




SIGNING THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, 



387 



388 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



was then taken by colonies, and though 
some of the delegates voted against it, the 
declaration received the votes of all the colo- 
nies with the exception of New York, which 
accepted it a few days later. On the fourth 
day of July, 1776, the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence was formally adopted by Congress, 
and was ordered to be published to the 
world, and to be read at the head of the 
regiments of the army. 

Congress was in session in the hall of the 
state house in Philadelphia. In the spire of 
this venerable building hung a bell, inscribed 




OLD BELL OF INDEPENDENCE HALL. 

with the words of Scripture : " Proclaim 
liberty throughout all the land unto all the 
inhabitants thereof." On the morning of the 
fourth of July vast crowds assembled around 
the building, as it was known that Congress 
would on that day take definite action upon 
the declaration. The bell-ringer stationed 
himself in the tower, ready to proclaim the 
good news the moment it should be 
announced to him, and had posted his little 
son at the door of the hall to await the signal 
of the door-keeper. 



When the announcement of the vote was 
made, the door-keeper gave the signal and 
the boy ran quickly to the tower. The old 
man heard him coming, and clutched the 
bell-rope with a firm grasp. The next instant 
the glad cry of the boy's voice was heard. 
" Ring ! ring ! " he cried, and then the deep,, 
sonorous tones of the bell went rolling out of 
the tower, and were answered with a mighty- 
shout from the assembled throng without. 
The declaration was received by all the states 
and by the army with enthusiasm. Thus, 
the thirteen united colonies became the thir- 
teen United States. It should not be for- 
gotten that the declaration did not make the- 
colonies independent states, or states in any 
sense. It was simply their announcement to 
the world that they had, each for itself, by^ 
the exercise of its own sovereign power,, 
assumed the independence which rightfully^ 
belonged to it. 

The Declaration of Independence put an 
end to all the hopes that had been cherished 
of an accommodation with Great Britain, 
and caused those who were still wavering to 
embrace the cause of their country. It 
relieved Congress of the disadvantage under 
which it had hitherto acted, and enabled it 
to pursue a more vigorous and decisive 
policy in the prosecution of the war. There 
was no retreat now; 'nothing remained but 
to continue the struggle until Great Britain, 
should be compelled to acknowledge the 
independence of the states, or they should 
be reduced to the condition of conquered 
provinces. 

On the twelfth of July the committee 
appointed to prepare a plan for the union of 
the states reported one, which is thus summed 
up: 

" 1st. The style of the confederacy was to 
be 'The United States of America.' 

" 2d. Each state retained its sovereignty, 
freedom and independence and every power 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



389 



and right which is not expressly delegated to 
the United States. 

" 3d. The object ot the confederation was 
for their mutual defence, the security of 
their liberties, and their mutual and general 
Avelfare, binding themselves to assist each 
other against all force offered to or attacks 
made upon them, or any of them, on account 
of religion, sovereignty, trade, or any other 
pretence whatever. 

" 4th. In determining all questions in 
Congress each State was to have one vote. 

" 5th. Each State was to maintain its own 
delegates. 

" 6th. The free inhabitants of each State, 
paupers, vagabonds and fugitives from jus- 
tice excepted, were to be entitled to all 
privileges and immunities of free citizens in 
the several States. 

" 7th. All fugitives from justice from one 
State into another were to be delivered up on 
demand. 

" 8th. Full faith and credit were to be given 
to the records of each State in all the others. 

" 9th. Congress was to grant no title of 
nobility. 

" loth. No person holding any office was 
to receive a present from a foreign power. 

"nth. No State was to form any agree- 
ment or alliance with a foreign power with- 
out the consent of the States in Congress 
assembled. 

" 1 2th. No two or more States were to 
form any alliance between themselves with- 
out the like consent of the States in Congress 

o 

assembled. 

" 13th. No State, without the like consent 
of Congress, was to keep war ships or an 
army in time of peace ; but each was to keep 
a well-organized and disciplined militia, with 
munitions of war. 

" 14th. No State was to lay any duty 
upon foreign imports which would interfere 
with any treaty made by Congress. 



" 15th. No State was to issue letters of 
marque, or to engage in war, without the 
consent of the Congress, unless actually 
invaded or menaced with invasion. 

" 1 6th. When Federal land forces were 
raised, each State was to raise the quota 
required by Congress, arm and equip them 
at the expense of all the States, and to 
appoint all officers of and under the rank of 
colonel. 

" 17th. Each State was to levy and raise 
the quota of tax required by Congress for 
Federal purposes. 

" 1 8th. The faith of all the States was 
pledged to pay all the bills of credit emitted, 
or money borrowed on their joint account, 
by the Congress. 

" 19th. It was agreed and covenanted that 
Canada might accede to the union so formed 
if she chose to do so. 

" 20th (and lastly). Each State was to 
abide by the determination of all the States in 
Congress assembled, on all questions which, 
by the confederation, were submitted to 
them. The Articles of Confederation were 
to be inviolably observed by every State, 
and the Union was to be perpetual. No 
article of the confederation was to be altered 
without the consent of every State. 

" The delegations of power by each of the 
States to all the States, in general Congress 
assembled, upon a like analysis, may be 
stated as follows : 

" 1st. The sole and exclusive power to 
determine on war and peace, except in case 
a State should be invaded or menaced with 
invasion. 

" 2d. To send and receive ambassadors. 

" 3d. To make treaties, with a proviso, etc. 

" 4th. To establish rules for captures. 

" 5th. To grant letters of marque and re- 
prisal. 

" 6th. To appoint courts for trial of piracies 
and other crimes specified. 



390 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



"7th. To decide questions of dispute between 

two or more States in a prescribed manner. 

" 8th. The sole and exclusive power to 



" lOth. To regulate trade with the Indian 
tribes. 

" I ith. To establish post offices. 



Wc^^i^^^^^'^ ^' 



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(/l/^t^cC /Uri^/ ""^"^^ ^^ '-^-f' ^-- 






SIGNATURES OF THE SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



coin money and regulate the value. 

"9th. To fix a standard of weights and 
measures. 



" 1 2th. To appoint all officers of the militia 
land forces, when called out by Congress, 
except regimental. 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



391^ 



" 13th. To appoint all officers of the Fede- 
ral naval forces. 

" 14th. To make rules and regulations for 
the government of land and naval forces. 

" 15th. To appropriate and apply public 
money for public expenses, the common 
defence and general welfare. 

" 1 6th. To borrow money and emit bills of 
credit. 

" 17th. To build and equip a navy. 

" 1 8th. To agree upon the number of land 
forces and make requisitions upon the States 
for their quotas in proportion to the value of 
all land within each State. 

" The foregoing powers were delegated 
with this limitation : The war power, the 
treaty power, the power to coin money, the 
power to regulate the value thereof, the power 
of fixing the quotas of money to be raised by 
the States, the power to emit bills of credit, 
the power to borrow money, the power to 
appropriate money, the power to regulate 
the number of land and naval forces, and the 
power to appoint a commander-in-chief of 
the army as well as the navy, were never to 
be exercised unless nine of the States were 
assenting to the same. 

" These articles form the original basis and 
first Constitution of the existing Federal 
Union of the United States of America." * 

The States Come Into Line. 

These Articles of Confederation were 
adopted, after discussion, by Congress, vot- 
ing by States, and were then submitted to 
the several States for ratification by them. 
In the meantime Congress continued to exer- 
cise the powers conferred by them. By the 
early part of 1777 all the States save Mary- 
land had ratified and adopted the articles. 
That State did not give her full assent to 
them until 1781. 



*Hon. Alexander H. Stephens. 



Lord Howe arrived in New York Bay 
about the middle of July, as has been stated. 
He was vested with full powers by the king 
to settle the quarrel between America and 
England if the Americans would agree to 
submit unconditionally to the king. Failing 
to accomplish a settlement, he and his 
brother, Sir William Howe, were charged 
with the supreme conduct of the war. Lord 
Howe was a man of amiable disposition, and 
really desired peace ; but as he was fully 
convinced of the justice of the royal preten- 
sions, he could not understand or appreciate 
the claims or grievances of the Americans. 
Moreover, he had come too late. The Ameri- 
can people meant that their separation from 
Great Britain should be final. Lord Howe 
was greatly deceived upon his arrival as to 
the actual state of feeling in America. He 
was received with loyal addresses by the 
Tories of Long and Staten Islands and the 
New Jersey shore, and was assured by Gov- 
ernor Tryon that the country was full of 
friends of the king who might be induced to 
join him if properly supported. ^ 

W^ashington Insulted. 

Lord Howe, therefore, resolved to attempt 
a peaceful settlement before proceeding to 
hostilities, and issued a circular addressed to 
the people of America, offering them the 
royal pardon if they would cease their rebel- 
lion, lay down their arms and trust to the 
clemency of the king. Congress gave to this 
circular the widest publicity by causing it to 
be published in every newspaper in the Union, 
in order that the people might see that the 
only settlement that would be accepted by 
England was their voluntary and absolute 
submission to her arbitrary will. " They 
must fight or be slaves." 

About the same time Lord Howe addressed 
a letter to the American commander-in-chief, 
styling him George Washington, Esquire. 



392 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



No notice of this communication was taken 
by Washington, and Howe sent him another 
letter addressed to George Washington, etc., 
etc. Washington, rightly considering that 
the omission of his official title was an insult 
to his country, refused to receive the letter. 
Adjutant-General Patterson, of Lord Howe's 
staff, who bore the communication, expressed 
his regret that the letter could not be opened. 
Lord Howe, he said, came vested with great 
power, and was sincerely anxious for peace. 
Washington, who had received him with 
kindly courtesy, replied that he was aware 
that Lord Howe was intrusted with the power 
to grant pardons, but that as the Americans 
were engaged in the defence of their rights, 
and had committed no crime, they had no 
need of pardon, and his lordship's good inten- 
tions could not be of service to them. 

It was now plain to Lord Howe that he 
had been deceived by Tryon and his friends, 
and that nothing could be accomplished save 
by force of arms. His circular had produced 
no effect, and he could detect no sign of 
•wavering on the part of the Americans. 

Measures for Defence. 

It had been evident for some time that the 
next effort of the British would be to get 
possession of the city of New York. Their 
fleet already held the harbor, and should 
they succeed in securing the Hudson they 
would be able to establish a direct commu- 
nication with Canada, and to isolate New 
England and New York from the Middle 
States and the South. Reinforcements were 
sent to Washington from Pennsylvania, 
Maryland, Virginia and Delaware. These 
gave the American commander a force of 
about twenty-five thousand men ; but scarcely 
seventeen thousand were fit for duty ; the 
remainder being disabled by sickness. 

Washington erected two forts on Man- 
hattan island, one just above Kingsbridge, 



named Fort Washington, and the other just 
below it, named Fort Independence. Kings- 
bridge furnished the only communication 
between the island of Manhattan and the 
mainland, and these forts were erected for 
its defence, as well as to hold the enemy's 
vessels in check should they attempt to 
ascend the Hudson. On the New Jersey 
side of the river, opposite Fort Washington, 
a third work was erected, and named Fort 
Lee. Other forts were built higher up the 
Hudson to hold the river against the enemy 
and maintain the communication between 
the Northern and Southern States. One of 
these, called Fort Montgomery, was located 
at the entrance to the Highlands, opposite 
the promontory of Anthony's Nose ; another 
was built six miles higher up the river, and 
was known as Fort Constitution. 

Battle on Long Island. 

For the defence of the heights of Brooklyn, 
which commanded the city of New York, 
Washington caused a line of works to be 
erected on a range of hills a short distance 
south of Brooklyn, and established there an 
intrenched camp. General Nathaniel Greene 
was placed in command of this position, and 
exerted himself with vigor to strengthen it. 
When he had matured his plans he was sud- 
denly taken ill, and was obliged to relinquish 
the commend to General Sullivan. 

The British fleet lay in Gravesend Bay, 
just without the Narrows, and Washington 
was for a while uncertain whether they would 
make their first attempt against the force on 
Long Island, or attack the city of New York. 
It soon became evident that the capture of 
the lines on Long Island would be their first 
care, and Sullivan was reinforced with six 
battalions, all that could be spared form New 
York, and on the twenty-fourth of August 
General Putnam was placed in command of 
the forces on Lono- Island. 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



393 



On the night of the twenty-sixth of August 
the British crossed over from Staten Island 
to Long Island, and prepared to give battle. 
Their plan was to engage the attention of 
the Americans by a direct attack with two 
divisions, while Sir Henry Clinton, with a 
third division, was to turn the left flank of 
the Americans and gain their rear. They 
hoped, if these movements were successful, 
to surround and capture the entire force 
under Putnam. Clinton began his 
march about nine o'clock on the night 
of the twenty-sixth, guided by a Long 
Island Tory. About daylight on the 
morning of the twenty-seventh of Au- 
gust, the enemy made their attack 
upon the front of the American posi- 
tion, and engaged their attention in 
this direction, while Clinton, by a 
rapid march, gained their rear. 

For a while the Americans fought 
well, but finding themselves almost 
surrounded, and in danger of being 
captured, they abandoned the field 
and retreated within the intrench- 
ments at Brooklyn. The Hessian 
troops behaved with great barbarity 
during the engagement, and a num- 
ber of the Americans were cruelly 
and wantonly bayoneted by them. 
A part of the engagement was fought 
in the beautiful region now occupied 
by Greenwood cemetery. 

Washington hastened to Brooklyn as 
soon as informed of the battle, and arrived 
just in time to witness the defeat of his 
troops. He was powerless to repair the 
disaster, and could only look on in helpless 
agony. " My God ! " he exclaimed, with 
tears : " What brave fellows I must lose 
this day!" 

The American loss was very severe in 
this battle. Out of a force of five thou- 
sand men engaged they lost two thousand 



men, a large number of whom were pri- 
soners. The British had sixteen thousand 
men engaged, and lost four hundred. Had 
they followed up their victory by an imme- 
diate assault upon the American intrench- 
ments they must have carried them ; but 
General Howe believed that Washington 
had a much stronger force for their defence 
than was the case, and encamped in front 
of the intrenchments, intending to begin 




GENERAL JOHN SULLIVAN. 

operations against them the next day. The 
twenty-eighth, however, was a day of 
drenching rain, and the enemy were unable 
to do more than break ground for a 
battery. On the twenty-ninth a dense fog 
hung over the island ; but it lifted for a 
moment, and enabled the Americans to . 
detect an unusual commotion among the 
British shipping. 

It seemed plain that the enemy were pre- 
paring to enter the East River with their 



394 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



fleet, and so separate the force on Long 
Island from that in New York. Washing- 
ton at once summoned a council of war, and 
it was decided to retreat from Long Island 
without delay. It was a hazardous attempt, 
for the army under General Howe was so 
close to the American lines that the conver- 
sations of the men could be heard, and the 
British fleet might at any moment seize the 
East River. To withdraw a force of nine 
thousand men across a wide, deep river, in 
the face of such an army and fleet, was a 
task which required the greatest skill. It 
was successfully accomplished, however. 
Every boat in and around New York and 
Brooklyn was impressed, and though the 
orders for the retreat were not issued until 
noon on the twenty-ninth, everything was in 
readiness for the retreat by eight o'clock 
that evening. At midnight the troops took 
up their silent march from the intrenched 
line to the ferry, where the boats, manned 
by Glover's regiment, which was composed 
of fishermen from Marblehead, awaited them. 
By eight o'clock the next morning the entire 
army, with all its cattle, horses and wagons, 
was safe upon the New York side of the 
river, and beyond the reach of the enemy. 

Important Conference. 

Howe was greatly mortified at the escape 
of the American army, for he had regarded 
it as a sure prize, and prepared, with the aid 
of his ships, to seize the upper part of Man- 
hattan Island, and confine the Americans to 
the city of New York, where their surrender 
would be inevitable. Before proceeding to the 
execution of this plan he resolved to make 
another effort to induce the Americans to aban- 
don their cause, as he rightly believed their 
defeat on Long Island would be followed by a 
season of great depression. A few days after 
the retreat he released General Sullivan, who 
had been taken prisoner in the battle, on 



parole, and sent a letter by him to Congress, 
asking that body to send an informal com- 
mittee, whom he would receive as private 
gentlemen, to confer with him on some meas- 
ure of reconciliation. 

Interview with Lord Howe. 

Congress, willing to hear what he had to 
propose, sent Dr. Franklin, John Adams 
and Edward Rutledge to confer with him. 
They met Lord Howe at a house on Staten 
Island, opposite Amboy. Tne only terms 
his lordship had to propose were the uncon- 
ditional submission of the Americans to the 
royal mercy. He was informed that the 
Americans would consent to treat with 
Great Britain only as " a free and independ- 
ent nation," and that it was useless to propose 
any other basis for a settlement. Lord 
Howe thereupon expressed his regret that 
he should be obliged to distress the Ameri- 
cans. Dr. Franklin thanked him for his 
good feeling, and remarked : " The Ameri- 
cans will endeavor to lessen the pain you 
may feel by taking good care of themselves." 
The report of the interview was made pub- 
lic by Congress, and had a happy effect. It 
convinced all classes that England had no 
terms to offer them but such as embraced a 
shameful surrender of their liberties. 

Fearful that Howe would seek to shut him 
up in New York, Washington left a force 
within the city to hold it, and encamped 
with the rnain body of his army on Harlem 
Heights, at the northern end of the island,, 
from which he could secure his retreat intO' 
Westchester County. The army was reduced 
to less than twenty thousand men, and was 
disheartened by the defeat on Long Island. 
It was seriously debated whether New York 
should be defended or not ; and it was pro- 
posed to burn the city to the ground, in 
order to prevent the enemy from securing 
comfortable winter-quarters in it. Congress 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



395 



ordered that the city should not be de- 
stroyed, but it was evident that it could not 
be held. 

Washington was anxious to learn the 
intentions of the enemy, who still remained 
on Long Island, and Captain Nathan Hale, a 
talented young officer of the Connecticut 
line, volunteered to enter their lines and pro- 
cure the desired information. He proceeded 
to the British camp, obtained the information 
wanted, and was returning in safety when he 
was arrested by a party of the enemy, 
among whom was a Tory relative, who re- 
cognised him. He was taken to Howe's 
headquarters, and the next morning, Sep- 
tember 22d, without any form of trial, was 
hanged as a spy. He met his death with 
firmness, saying : " I only regret that I have 
but one life to lose for my country." 

"Old Put " Saves His Command. 

In the meantime the British had seized 
the islands at the mouth of the Harlem 
River, and had erected a battery on one of 
them. On the fifteenth of September they 
crossed in force to Manhattan Island, at 
Kipp's Bay, about three miles above the 
city. They easily drove back the force sta- 
tioned there to resist their landing, and 
secured their position. Washington at once 
sent General Heath to hold the enemy in 
check, and ordered Putnam to evacuate the 
city of New York, and retire to Harlem 
Heights, without the loss of a moment. 

Putnam obeyed his orders promptly, and 
retreated from the city along the line of the 
Bloomingdale Road, now the upper part of 
Broadway. His march was retarded by a 
crowd of women and children fleeing from 
the city, and was exposed to the fire of the 
enemy's ships in the Hudson. By great 
exertions he managed to save his command, 
but was obliged to leave his heavy artillery 
and three hundred men in the hands of the 



enemy. The British at once took posses- 
sion of New York, and threw up a line of 
intrenchments above the city, from the Hud- 
son, at Bloomingdale, to the East River, at 
Kipp's Bay. The Americans now held the 
upper part of the island, and erected a 
double line of earthworks from river to 
river, about four miles below Kingsbridge. 

On the sixteenth of September the enemy 
made an attack upon the American advanced 
posts, but were handsomely repulsed by the 
Virginia and Connecticut troops. Major 
Leitch, the commander of the Virginians, 
and Colonel Knowlton, the commander of 
the Connecticut regiment, and one of the 
captains at Bunker Hill, were killed. In 
spite of these losses the spirit of the troops, 
which had been much depressed by the 
recent disasters, were greatly cheered. 

A lull of several weeks followed, during- 
which the Americans suffered greatly from 
sickness. They were without proper hospi- 
tal accommodations, " and they lay about in 
almost every barn, stable, shed, and even 
under the fences and bushes." 

^A^ashington's Skillful Tactics. 

Howe now began to move his army to- 
wards Long Island Sound, for the purpose of 
marching across the mainland to the Hudson 
and cutting off the retreat of Washington 
from Manhattan Island, and at the same time 
sent his fleet up the Hudson. His intention 
was understood by Washington, who left three 
thousand men to defend Fort Washington,, 
and with the main body of his army fell back 
to the line of the Bronx, near the village of 
White Plains. Here he was attacked on the 
twenty-eighth of October by General Howe, 
who was advancing from the direction of 
New Rochelle, and who was still hopeful of 
gaining the American rear. A spirited en- 
counter ensued, in which each party lost 
about four hundred men ; and the British 




THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE READ TO THE ARMY 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



397 



intrenched themselves in front of the Ameri- 
can position. 

Apprehensive of an effort on the part of the 
enemy-to storm his line, Washington caused 
the troops to spend the night in strengthen- 
ing the rude works which covered it. They 
labored with such diligence that the next 
morning the British commander decided that 
the line was too strong to be attacked, 
and determined to wait for reinforcements. 
That night Washington silently abandoned 
his lines at White Plains, and withdrew to 
the heights of North Castle, five miles dis- 
tant. Howe, unwilling to follow him further, 
marched to Dobb's Ferry, on the Hudson, 
and encamped. 

British Successes. 

This movement of the British commander 
caused Washington to fear that he meant to 
cross over into New Jersey. He accordingly 
made a new disposition of his forces to meet 
any emergency. General Charles Lee, who 
had recently returned from the South, was 
left at North Castle with a portion of the 
army to watch Howe ; Heath, with another 
portion, was ordered to occupy Peekskill to 
defend the passes of the Highlands ; and 
Putnam was stationed, with a third detach- 
ment, on the west side of the Hudson to hold 
that region. 

With the remainder of his troops Wash- 
ington crossed the Hudson and joined Gen- 
eral Greene at Fort Lee, arriving there on the 
thirteenth of November. A force of three 
thousand Pennsylvania troops had been left 
to hold Fort Washington, on Manhattan 
Island. Washington was in favor of with- 
drawing them at once, but left the matter to 
the decision of General Greene, and Colonel 
Magaw, the commander of the fort, who 
determined to hold it. The result proved 
their error. Fort Washington was attacked 
on the sixteenth of November by a force of 



five thousand Hessians and some English 
troops, under General Knyphausen, and was 
taken by storm. The enemy lost nearly one 
thousand men and took over two thousand 
prisoners. Washington witnessed the cap- 
ture from Fort Lee without the ability to aid 
the garrison. 

Fort Washington having fallen. Fort Lee 
was no longer of service, and the commander- 
in-chief resolved to abandon it before it was 
too late. The removal of the stores was at 
once begun, but before it could be completed 
Lord Cornwallis, with a force of six thousand 
men, crossed the Hudson below Dobb's 
Ferry, and by a rapid march across the coun- 
try endeavored to confine the Americans to 
the strip of land between the Hudson and 
the Hackensack. An immediate retreat from 
Fort Lee became necessary in order to secure 
the bridge over the Hackensack. All the 
heavy cannon at Fort Lee, a considerable 
quantity of provisions and military stores, 
and three hundred tents were abandoned, and 
fell into the hands of the British. The pas- 
sage of the Hackensack was secured, and the 
army began its memorable retreat across New 
Jersey, closely followed by the enemy under 
Cornwallis. 

Dark Days for the American Cause. 

From the Hackensack Washington fell 
back behind the Passaic at Newark. As his 
rear-guard passed out of the town the 
advance of Cornwallis entered Newark. The 
Raritan was crossed at New Brunswick, and 
Washington left a force of twelve hundred 
men at Princeton, under Lord Stirling, and 
pushed on to Trenton to secure the passage 
of the Delaware. 

The British hung closely upon him during 
the whole retreat, the opposing forces being 
often within cannon-shot of each other. On 
the eighth of December, with scarcely three 
thousand men, Washington crossed the 



398 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Delaware at Trenton, and went into camp in 
Pennsylvania. The enemy reached the 
river soon after, but, as all the boats had been 
secured by the Americans, were unable to 
cross over. Lord Cornwallis was very 
anxious to procure boats, cross the river and 
push on to Philadelphia, but Howe decided 
to wait until the river should be frozen, and 
to pass it on the ice. In the meantime the 
Hessians were stationed in Trenton, and 
guarded the river for some distance above 
and below the town. 




GENERAL CHARLES LEE. 

The American war had now entered its 
darkest period for the Americans. New 
York was lost to them, they had been driven 
from New Jersey, and their army seemed 
melting away. During the painful retreat 
across New Jersey, Washington had exerted 
himself to the utmost to call in the other 
detachments of his army. General Schuyler 
was directed to send him the Pennsylvania 
and New Jersey troops in his command ; but 
the enlistments of these troops were rapidly 



expiring, and they could not be induced to 
renew them. General Charles Lee was 
ordered to cross the Hudson and join the 
commander-in-chief with all speed, but he 
moved with a slowness and carelessness that 
were criminal. He remained about a fort- 
night on the east side of the Hudson, and 
then began his march with such slowness 
that he did not reach Morristown until the 
eighth of December. 

On the thirteenth, vv^hile lying carelessly 
apart from his troops, at a small inn at Bask- 
ingridge, he was captured by a 
troop of British cavalry. The 
command passed to General Sul- 
livan, and in a few days he had 
united his forces with those of 
the commander-in-chief General 
Lee had an abiding confidence in 
his own ability, and was reluctant 
to lose his independent command 
by joining Washington. His 
natural self-conceit had been 
greatly increased by his success 
at the South, and he was firmly 
convinced that he alone was 
capable of guiding the American 
cause through the difficulties 
which encompassed it. Influ- 
enced by this feeling, he disre- 
garded the authority of the com- 
mander-in-chief, and subjected 
him to great inconvenience. He 
was not untrue to the cause he had em- 
braced, but his patriotism was of a different 
type from that which animated Washington. 
The enlistments of a large part of the 
troops expired on the first of December, and 
nothing could induce them to remain in the 
army. Whole regiments abandoned the 
service, and the handful of reinforcements 
which was obtained from Philadelphia fell 
far short of supplying their place. The 
people were disheartened, and it seemed 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



399 



that the cause was hopeless. A force of six 
militia was raised in Massachusetts and Con- 
necticut, and was on the point of marching 
to Washington's assistance, when the fleet 
of Sir Peter Parker entered Newport Harbor 
and landed a force on the island of Rhode 
Island, which took possession of Newport. 
In view of this invasion, it was deemed best 
to retain the New England militia at home. 

Taking the Oath of Allegiance. 

Washington was fully alive to the danger 
which threatened the cause ; but he was calm 
and cheerful. During the retreat through 
New Jersey he said to Colonel Reed : 
'' Should wc retreat to the back parts of 
Pennsylvania, will the Pennsylvanians sup- 
port us ? " " If the lower counties are sub- 
dued and give up," said the colonel, " the 
back counties will do the same." Washing- 
ton passed his hand over his throat, and 
said, with a smile : " My neck does not 
feel as though it was made for a halter. We 
must retire to Augusta County, in Virginia. 
Numbers will be obliged to repair to us for 
safety ; and we must try what we can do in 
carrying on a predatory war ; and if over- 
powered, we must cross the Allegheny 
Mountains." 

At this juncture of affairs Lord and Gen- 
eral Howe issued a proclamation, by virtue 
of their authority as commissioners appointed 
by the crown for the settlement of the war, in 
which all persons in America in arms against 
his majesty's government were ordered to 
disperse and return to their homes, and all 
civil officers were commanded to discontinue 
their treasonable practices, and relinquish 
their usurped authority. A full and free 
pardon was offered to every one who would, 
within sixty days, appear before certain 
designated officials, claim the pardon offered, 
and take an oath pledging him to obey the 
laws and submit to the authority of the king. 



Large numbers of persons, most of whom 
were possessed of property which they 
desired to save, at once came forward, made 
their submission and took the required 
oath. Some of these were men who had 
borne a prominent part in the patriot move- 
ment ; among them were two delegates from 
Pennsylvania to the Continental Congress, 
and the president of the New Jersey con- 
vention, which had ratified the Declaration 
of Independence. Within ten days after the 
proclamation was issued, between two and 
three thousand persons submitted and swore 
allegiance to the king. In Philadelphia great 
excitement prevailed, and General Putnam, 
who was in command there, feeling that 
there was danger that the royalists in the 
city might succeed in obtaining control of 
it, advised that, until matters were placed on 
a more certain footing. Congress should hold 
its sessions at some safer place. Accord- 
ingly it adjourned on the twelfth of Decem- 
ber to meet in Baltimore. 

A Gallant Fleet. 

The only quarter in which the Americans 
had been able to oppose anything of a suc- 
cessful resistance to the British was the 
region of Lake Champlain. We have related 
the retreat of Sullivan and Arnold from 
Canada, and the appointment of Gates to the 
command of their forces. The army halted 
at Forts Ticonderoga and Crown Point* 
which it strengthened, and awaited the 
development of the plans of Sir Guy Carle- 
ton, the British commander in Canada. 

That officer had determined to secure the 
control of Lakes Champlain and George, 
and then to push on to the Hudson, open 
communication with the Howes at New 
York, and spend the winter at Albany. He 
would thus entirely sever the communica- 
tion between New England and New York, 
and the Middle and Southern States. Sullivan 



400 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



had wisely destroyed all the boats on Lake 
Champlain which he did not need for 
his own purposes, and as there was no road 
along the shore by which he could advance, 
Carleton was oblicred to construct a fleet 
before he could attempt to ascend the lake. 
He exerted himself with such energy that in 
three months he had a fleet of five large and 
twenty small vessels and a number of armed 
boats assembled at the foot of the lake. 

Gates was informed of Carleton's design, 
and ordered Arnold, who was possessed of 
some nautical knowledge, to construct a 
flotilla and take command of it for the pur- 
pose of contesting Carleton's effort to ascend 
the lake. Arnold set to work with enthu- 
siasm, and soon had a force of vessels afloat 
about half as strong as that of the enemy. 
He chose a favorable position and awaited 
Carleton's approach. A sharp encounter 
occurred between the opposing forces early 
in October near Valcour Island, but was 
indecisive, and at nightfall Carleton took 
possession to cut off Arnold's retreat. The 
night was dark and cloudy, and taking 
advantage of it, Arnold passed the enemy 
and sailed for Crown Point. His vessels 
were in bad condition, however, and two 
were sunk on the voyage. Only six suc- 
ceeded in coming within sight of Crown 
Point, near which they were overtaken by 
Carleton on the sixth of October. 

The Flag-ship Riddled. 

Arnold made a gallant fight with his 
remaining vessels. One was taken with her 
crew, and Arnold's flag-ship, the " Congress," 
was cut to pieces, and half of her crew were 
slain. Resolved not to surrender, Arnold 
ordered the vessels to be run aground, and 
set them on fire. He and his men then 
waded ashore, and by a sharp fire from their 
rifles kept the enemy from the burning gal- 
leys until they were entirely consumed. The 



Americans then hastened to Crown Point, 
where they set fire to the fort and the stores, 
and continued their retreat to Ticonderoga. 
Gates greatly strengthened the defences of 
this post, and when Carleton arrived before 
it, he found it too strong to be attacked. He 
therefore abandoned his attempt to reach the 
Hudson, and returned to Canada. 

A few weeks later, feeling that the lake 
country was safe for the winter, Gates, in 
obedience to orders from Washington, sent 
him part of his force, and shortly afterwards 
marched with the remainder of his troops to 
the assistance of the commander-in-chief. 

New Military Movements. 

Including these troops, Washington's 
force now numbered about six thousand 
men fit for duty. The enlistments of many 
of them would expire on the last day of 
December, and it was of the highest import- 
ance that something should be done to re- 
vive the confidence of the country before 
these men should be lost to the army. The 
circumstances in which Washington was 
placed required a blow to be struck in some 
quarter. A victory would be productive of 
the most important moral results ; a defeat 
could do no more than ruin the cause, and a 
policy of inaction was sure to accomplish that. 

An opportunity at once presented itself. 
The British had ceased their pursuit, and 
though they held New Jersey in strong 
force, had scattered their detachments 
through the state. General Howe was in 
New York, and Lord Cornwallis was at the 
same place, and was about to sail for Eng- 
land. Both commanders believed the Ame- 
rican army to be too seriously crippled to 
assume the offensive during the winter. The 
Hessians, who constituted the advance-guard 
of the royal forces, were stationed along the 
Delaware. Colonel Donop had his head- 
quarters at Burlington, and Colonel Rahl 




26 



40I 



402 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



was at Trenton with a force of fifteen hun- 
dred men. Rahl was a brave and competent 
officer, but he entertained such a thorough 
contempt for the Americans that he neglected 
to protect his position by earthworks or 
other defences. The Hessians kept the 
country in terror ; they were inveterate 
thieves, and plundered both patriot and 
royalist without mercy. They had earned 
the deep and abiding hatred of the Ameri- 
can soldiers by bayoneting the wounded in 
the battles in which they had been engaged. 

Midnight Marches. 

Washington now determined to re-cross 
the Delaware and attack the Hessians at 
different points. A force of twenty-four 
hundred picked troops under his own com- 
mand was to cross the river a few miles 
above Trenton and attack the enemy at that 
place ; and the same time another detach- 
ment under Reed and Cadwallader were to 
cross over from Bristol and drive the Hes- 
sians under Colonel Donop out of Burling- 
ton. These attacks were to be simultaneous, 
and were ordered to be made at five o'clock 
on the morning of the twenty-sixth of De- 
cember. 

The division of Washington was accom- 
panied by a train of twenty-four field-pieces 
under Colonel Knox. The river was high 
and full of floating ice, and the weather was 
cold and stormy. A detachment of boats 
had been collected for the service, and was 
maimed by Colonel Glover's regiment of 
Marblehead fishermen, who had ferried the 
army over the East River in the retreat from 
Long Island. The march was begun just 
after dark on Christmas night, and Wash- 
ington hoped to reach the New Jersey shore 
by midnight ; but the passage of the river 
was difficult and tedious by reason of the 
floating ice and the high wind which re- 
peatedly swept the boats out of their course; 



and it was four o'clock before the artillery 
was landed. The march was at once re- 
sumed. Washington, with the main body, 
moved by a wide circuit to gain the north 
of the town, while a detachment under Sul- 
livan was ordered to advance by the river 
road and attack the enemy from the west and 
south sides. 

A blinding storm of hail and snow delayed 
the advance of the troops, but also concealed 
their movements from the enemy ; and it was 
eight o'clock before Trenton was reached. 
The attack was at once begun, and was 
pressed with vigor. The Hessians were 
completely taken by suprise ; they flew to 
arms promptly, but by this time the Ameri- 
cans had gained the main street, and were 
sweeping it with a battery of six pieces. 
Colonel Rahl was mortally wounded while 
leading his grenadiers to the charge, and his 
men, seized with a panic, endeavored to re- 
treat. Finding that they were surrounded, 
about one thousand of them threw down 
their arms and surrendered. The remainder 
succeeded in escaping and joining Colonel 
Donop at Burlington. 

The magnanimity of Washington was 
shown on this occasion by his paying a 
friendly visit to Colonel Rahl, who was lying 
at Trenton on his dying bed. Washington 
expressed his sympathy for the wounded 
officer, who, upon his death, is believed to 
have been buried in the graveyard of the 
First Presbyterian Church, where his sup- 
posed remains were found fifty years later. 

The Victory at Trenton. 

The Americans lost two men killed, and 
two were frozen to death on the march. 
Several were wounded. They took one 
thousand prisoners with their arms. Thirty- 
two of the captives were officers. 

Washington now learned that the ice was 
so thick in front of Bristol that Reed and 



THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



403 



Cadwalladcr had not been able to get their 
cannon over the river, and had not attacked 
the enemy at Burlington. He therefore 
deemed it best to withdraw into Pennsylva- 
nia, as Donop's force was still intact at Bur- 
lington, and the enemy had another column 



detachments along the river, and had retreat- 
ed in haste to New Brunswick and Princeton. 
The news of the victory at Trenton was 
received with delight in all parts of the 
country, and men began to take hope. Sev- 
eral regiments, whose terms of enlistment 




WASHINGTON CALLS 

at Princeton, a few miles distant. On the 
evening of the twenty-sixth he returned to 
his camp beyond the Delaware. The next 
day he learned from Reed and Cadwallader, 
who had crossed the Delaware on the twen- 
ty-seventh, that Donop had called in all his 



ON COLONEL RAHL. 

expired on the last day of December, were 
induced to remain six weeks longer. Wash- 
ington resolved to make an effort to recover 
New Jersey, and men of influence were sent 
to rouse the militia of that State to take 
up arms for the defence of their homes. 



404 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Altogetner matters assumed a more promis- 
ing aspect than they had worn at any period 
of the war. On the thirtieth of December 
Washington recrossed the Delaware and took 
position at Trenton. 

Honors Conferred on Washington. 

About the same time Congress bestowed 
upon Washington the highest proof of their 
confidence in his wisdom and integrity that a 
free people can ever confer upon a leader. 
On the twenty-seventh of December Congress 
conferred upon General Washington, by a 
formal resolution, unlimited military power 
for six months. The committee, in their let- 
ter informing him of this act, wrote ; " Happy 
is it for this country that the general of their 
forces can safely be entrusted with the most 
unlimited power, and neither personal secu- 
rity, liberty, nor property be in the least 
endangered thereby." The confidence of the 
country was not misplaced. Never was dic- 



tatorial power used more wisely or unselfish- 
ly, and never did its exercise produce more 
beneficial results. 

It was resolved by Congress to secure 
assistance from abroad, and on the thirtieth 
of December Benjamin Franklin, Silas Deane 
and Arthur Lee — the last of whom was 
appointed in place of Mr. Jefferson who 
could not go — were sent as commissioners 
to France to secure the assistance of the 
government of that country. France was 
not yet prepared to go to war with England, 
and the commissioners could do no more 
than secure aid in money, which was expend- 
ed in the purchase of supplies and military 
stores, which were shipped to the United 
States. It was arranged that this money 
should be repaid by Congress in the produce 
of the country, especially in tobacco, which 
was to be shipped to France through a mer- 
cantile house. The assistance thus obtained 
was of the greatest service to the Americans.. 




CHAPTER XXVIII 
The Year 1777 

Howe Attempts to Crush Washington — Battle of Princeton — The British Confined to the Seaboard — Recovery of New 
Jersey — The American Army in Winter Quarters at Morristown — Effects of the American Successes — Difficulty of 
Procuring Troops — Washington Refuses to Exchange Prisoners — His Course Approved by Congress — Measures of 
Congress — Naval Affairs — Tryon Burns Danbury — Gallantry of Arnold — Troubles in the Northern Department — 
Congress Adopts a National Flag — " The Stars and Stripes "^Course of France towards the United States — France 
Decides to Assist the Americans — Lafayette — His Arrival in America — Capture of the British General Prescott — Howe 
Threatens Philadelphia — Washington moves Southward — Battle of the Brandywine — Washington Retreats to the 
Schuylkill — Wayne's Defeat at Paoli — Philadelphia Evacuated by the Americans — It is Occupied by the British — 
Battle of Germantown — The British Attack the Forts on the Delaware — They are Abandoned by the Americans — 
Burgoyne's Army in Canada — Advance of Burgoyne into New York — Investment of Ticonderoga — It is Abandoned 
by the Americans — The Retreat to Fort Edward — Burgoyne reaches the Hudson — Murder of Miss McCrea — Siege of 
Fort Schuyler — Battle of Bennington — Critical Sitaution of Burgoyne — Gates in Command of the American Army — 
Battle of Behmus' Heights and Stillwater — Surrender of Burgoyne's Army — Clinton in the Highlands. 



GREAT was the atonishment of 
General Howe when he learned 
of the battle at Trenton. He 
could scarcely believe that a hand- 
ful of militia had captured a strong force of 
veteran troops led by such a commander as 
Colonel Rahl. He at once took prompt 
measures to repair the disaster. Lord Corn- 
wallis, who was on the eve of sailing to Eng- 
land, was ordered to resume his command 
in New Jersey, and a force of seven thousand 
men was rapidly collected and placed under 
his orders. These troops rendezvoused at 
Princeton. 

Washington was informed of these move- 
ments, and ordered Generals Mifflin and 
Cadwallader to join him without delay. 
They reached Trenton the first of January, 
with thirty-five hundred men. This increased 
the American force to about five thousand 
men fit for duty. Upon the approach of 
Cornwallis' army, Washington took position 
behind the Assunpink, and prepared to dis- 
pute the passage of that stream. The fords 
and bridge over the creek were carefully 
guarded, and were swept by the fire of the 



artillery placed to command them. A force 
under General Greene and Colonel Hand Avas 
thrown forward to hold the enemy in check, 
and so retarded their movements that the 
British army did not arrive before Trenton 
until four o'clock in the afternoon of January 
2, 1777. Cornwallis made several deter- 
mined efforts to force a passage of the creek, 
but was each time driven back by the well- 
directed fire of the provincials. Thinking 
that he could accomplish more the next day, 
the British commander drew off his men, 
resolving to renew the attack in the morning 
when, he boasted, he would " bag the fox." 
Both armies encamped for the night in sight 
of each other, reddening the sky with the 
glow of their camp-fires. 

The situation of the American army was 
now critical in the extreme. A retreat into 
Pennsylvania was impossible, as the Dela- 
ware was full of floating ice, and could not 
be passed in the face of such an army as that 
of Cornwallis. The issue of the next day's 
conflict was, to say the least, doubtful, for 
the army of Cornwallis was composed mainly 
of veteran troops, and he was himself a leader 

40s 



4o6 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



of genuine ability. In this emergency Wash- 
ington determined upon one of the most 
brilliant and well-conceived operations of the 
war. It was known to him that the British 




AMERICAN MARKSMAN IN A TREE. 

had their main depot of supplies at New 
Brunswick, and he supposed from the pres- 
ence of so many troops with Cornwallis that 
this depot had been left unguarded. He 
therefore resolved to break up his camp, and 



march by an unfrequented road around the 
left flank of the enemy to Princeton, capture 
the force stationed there, and then hasten to 
New Brunswick and secure the stores at that 
place. Sending his heavy 
basreaere and stores down 
the river to Burlington, 
Washington silently 
withdrew his army from 
its position at midnight, 
leaving the camp-fires 
burning to deceive the 
enemy, and a small force 
to watch the British and 
destroy the bridges after 
the army had passed on. 
A forced march 
brought the Americans 
within three miles of 
Princeton by daybreak, 
on the morning of the 
third of January. The 
army was divided into 
two divisions, one under 
Washington and the 
other under General Mer- 
cer, which approached 
the town by different 
routes. Three British 
regiments on their way 
to Trenton had passed 
the previous night at 
Princeton, and had re- 
sumed their march at 
dawn. The first of these,, 
under Colonel Mawhood, 
was encountered by the 
division of General Mer- 
cer, about two miles 
from Princeton. As Mawhood supposed 
Mercer's force to be a party retreating from 
Trenton, he at once resolved to attack it. 
His attack was successful. The Americans 
were driven back, and General Mercer was 



THE YEAR 1777. 



407 



wounded, bayoneted, and left on the field 
apparently dead. Mercer's troops fell back 
in confusion, and a body of Pennsylvania 
militia, which had been sent by Washington 
to their assistance, was held in check by the 
fire of the British artillery. 

At this rr^Dment, Washington, who had 
been rendered anxious by the obstinate and 
continued firing, arrived on the field. A 
glance showed him the broken and shattered 
regiments of Mercer falling back in confusion, 
and the Pennsylvania militia wavering under 
the heavy cannonade directed against them. 
Not a moment was to be lost, and putting 
spurs to his horse, he dashed forward in the 
face of the fire of Mawhood's artillery, and 
waving his hat, called upon the troops to 
rally and follow him. The effect was elec- 
trical ; the fugitives rallied with a loud cheer 
and reformed their line, and at the same 
moment a Virginia regiment, which had just 
arrived, dashed out of a neighboring wood 
and opened a heavy fire upon the enemy. A 
little later the American artillery came up, 
and opened a shower of grape upon the 
British. Mawhood was driven back, and 
with great difficulty succeeded in regaining 
the main road, along which he retreated with 
all speed to Trenton. 

General Mercer Mortally Wounded. 

The second British regiment, advancing 
from Princeton to Mawhood's assistance was 
attacked by St. Clair's brigade, and was 
speedily driven across the country towards 
New Brunswick. The third regiment, seeing 
the fate of their comrades, became panic- 
stricken. A portion fled towards New 
Brunswick, and the remainder took refuge 
in the college building at Princeton. They 
surrendered after a few shots from the Ame- 
rican artillery. 

The Americans lost but a few men in this 
battle ; but General Mercer, a brave and 



efficient commander, was mortally wounded, 
and died a few days after the engagement. 
The British lost about one hundred killed 
and three hundred prisoners. 

Eager to secure the stores at New Bruns- 
wick, Washington pushed on with speed in 
that direction, but after passing a few miles 
beyond Princeton decided to abandon the 
attempt. He was sure that Cornwallis would 
pursue him as soon as his retreat from Tren- 
ton was discovered, and his men were too 
much exhausted to reach New Brunswick 
before the arrival of the enemy. They had 
been without rest for a night and a day, and 
some of them were barefooted. His gen- 
erals sustained him in the opinion that it was 
injudicious to continue the movement 
against New Brunswick, and he reluctantly 
abandoned it, and withdrew in the direction, 
of Morristown. 

New Jersey Saved from the Enemy. 

When Cornwallis discovered the with- 
drawal of the Americans on the morning of 
the third of January, he was greatly per- 
plexed to know in what direction they had 
gone. In a little while the sound of the 
cannonade at Princeton revealed to him the 
route taken by them, and he at once under- 
stood the design of Washington. He must 
save his stores at any risk, and he broke up 
his camp and set out for Princeton and New 
Brunswick. The Americans had obstructed 
the Princeton road and had broken down the 
bridge over Stony Creek, a few miles from 
the town. 

Without waiting to rebuild the bridge, the 
British commander forced his men through 
the icy waters, which were breast high, and 
hastened through Princeton with all speeds 
Believing that Washington had hurried on 
to New Brunswick, Cornwallis marched 
direct to that place, and did not notice the 
deflection of the American army from the 



4o8 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



main route. Reaching- New Brunswick, he 
made arrangements to defend the town, 
which he supposed would be attacked. 

In the meantime the American army 
retreated to a strong position at Morristown, 
where the troops erected huts in which to 
pass the winter. Finding that the enemy 
did not attack him, Washington ventured to 
extend his line. His right was at Princeton, 



try beyond their lines, and rarely ventured 
without their camps. 

By the beginning of spring Cornwallis 
had abandoned every post in New Jersey 
save New Brunswick and Perth Amboy. 
From these points he could communicate 
with and draw his supplies fro|n New York 
by water. Thus was New Jersey almost 
entirely redeemed from the enemy. The 




WASHINGTON S QUARTERS AT MORRISTOWN. 



under General Putnam, and his left, under 
General Heath, was in the Highlands. His 
own headquarters were at Morristown. For 
six months neither party attempted any 
momement of importance. Washington was 
not idle, however. Though he had but the 
skeleton of an army at Morristown, he dis- 
played such activity in cutting off the forag- 
ing parties of the British that they were 
unable to draw any, supplies from the coun- 



militia of the state recovered from their 
former despondency and warmly seconded 
the efforts of Washington against the 
British. 

Confidence was returning to the country ; 
and though men felt that the struggle might 
yet be long and arduous, it was not as hope- 
less as they had feared. 

Washington passed the winter in endeav- 
oring to reorganize the army and fit it for 



THE YEAR 1777. 



409 



the work required of it in the spring. The 
policy of short enlistments adopted by Con- 
gress was the source of very great trouble, 
and the expiration of the enlistments of a 
large part of the army during this winter 
caused the commander-in-chief the greatest 
anxiety. He repeatedly condemned this 
policy, and endeavored to procure the sub- 
stitution of a longer term. Great efforts 
were made to procure recruits, but they 
came in very slowly. In order to check the 
ravages of the small-pox in the camp, the 
recruits were inoculated immediately upon 
their arrival. 

Efforts were now made to bring about an 
exchange of prisoners. The British objected 
to an exchange of man for man, on the 
ground that the Americans were rebels, and 
such an exchange would be an acknowledg- 
ment of their belligerent rights. Somewhat 
later General Howe, who had about five 
thousand prisoners in New York, renewed 
the negotiation. The British had treated 
the captured Americans with great severity 
and had confined them in warehouses in 
New York, and in foul hulks anchored in 
the bay. They were improperly fed, and 
were allowed to remain almost naked. Their 
sufferings were fearful, and they were 
reduced and emaciated in strength and body, 
until they were truly said to resemble " walk- 
ing corpses." British cruelty never exhibited 
itself in a more inhuman form than in the 
treatment of these unfortunate captives by 
the royal officials. More than ten thousand 
of them died in New York, during the war, 
from the effects of this treatment. 

When General Howe's proposal to ex- 
change these men for the Hessians taken by 
the Americans was received, it was declined 
by Washington. The Hessians had been 
well fed and well treated by the Americans, 
and were hale and hearty, and Washington 
was unwilling to liberate them for service in 



the British army, and to receive in exchange 
for them half-starved men, who were so 
weak that they could scarcely reach their 
homes. It was a stern necessity, but it was 
recognized by Congress, and Washington's 
view of the matter was sustained. 

The Army Reorganized. 

During the winter five more major-generals 
were commissioned by Congress. They 
were Stirling, St. Clair, Mifflin, Stephen and 
Lincoln. Arnold, who was the senior brig- 
adier in the service, justly conceived that his 
rank and services entitled him to promotion, 
and was indignant at having been passed 
over in the new appointments, and com- 
plained bitterly of the injustice done him. 
Eighteen brigadier-generals were also ap- 
pointed. Among them were George Clinton, 
of New York ; Glover, the commander of 
the Marblehead regiment ; Woodford and 
Muhlenberg, of Virginia; and Hand and 
Anthony Wayne, of Pennsylvania. 

Congress gave great attention to the reor- 
ganization of the army during this session. 
A quartermaster's department was organized, 
with General Mifflin at its head. Four regi- 
ments of cavalry were ordered to be enlisted. 
The hospital service was reorganized and 
placed under the control of Dr. Shippen, of 
Philadelphia ; and Dr. Rush, of Philadelphia, 
one of the signers of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, was appointed surgeon-general of 
the army. 

Efforts were also made to place the navy 
upon a better footing, Several of the frigates 
ordered by Congress to be built had been 
completed and equipped ; but the work on 
the rest was delayed by the want of funds. 
Efforts were made to complete them, as they 
were greatly needed, all the vessels constitut- 
ing the American fleet being at this time 
blockaded in the harbor of Providence, Rhode 
Island, by the enemy. 



4IO 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Since the beginning of the struggle a 
destructive warfare had been carried on by 
the privateers of New England against the 
commerce of Great Britain, especially against 
the vessels of that country trading to the 
West Indies. During the first years of the 
war nearly three hundred of these were cap- 
tured by the privateers. The cargoes of the 
captured vessels were valued at the immense 
sum of five millions of dollars. The Ameri- 
can merchantmen also maintained a regular 
communication with France, Spain and Hol- 
land, and a profitable trade was carried on 
between the United States and those coun- 
tries. It was attended with great risk, how- 
ever, and many of the American vessels were 
captured by the British men-of-war. 

Military Stores Destroyed. 

Washington remained at Morristown some 
time after the spring opened, and exerted 
himself to the utmost to take the field as 
soon as the enemy should develop their plans. 
The first months of the season were employed 
by the British commander in a series of plun- 
dering expeditions. One of these was directed 
against Peekskill, where the Americans had 
collected a large quantity of stores. General 
McDougall, commanding the American force 
at that point, found it impossible to defend 
the stores, and set fire to them and retreated 
to the heights overlooking the town. The 
enemy made no attempt to follow him, and 
returned down the river. General Heath 
had been transferred to the command of the 
forces in Massachusetts, and was succeeded 
in the command of the Highlands by General 
Putnam. 

In the latter part of April General Tryon, 
the last royalist governor of New York, was 
sent by General Howe with a force of two 
thousand men, to destroy a large quantity of 
stores collected by the Americans at Dan- 
bury, in the western part of Connecticut, 



about twenty-three miles from the Sound. 
On the twenty-sixth of April Tryon landed 
near Norwalk, and marched to Danbury, 
where he burned the stores and set fire to 
the town. Thus far he had met with no 
opposition ; but the alarm had spread imme- 
diately after his landing, and the Conneticut 
militia, to the number of six hundred men, 
assembled under Generals Silliman and 
Wooster. Arnold chanced to be at New 
Haven, and collecting a small force of volun- 
teers, hurried to join Silliman and Wooster, 
and the whole command hastened after the 
marauders. 

Tryon Retreats to New York. 

Tryon began his retreat from Danbury 
before daylight on the morning of the twenty- 
seventh, and was soon after attacked by the 
militia. During the twenty-seventh and 
twenty-eighth the British were harrassed at 
every step by the little band of Americans, 
who, though too weak to defeat them in any 
single encounter, hung upon their march and 
inflicted upon them a loss of nearly three 
hundred men. The enemy at last came 
under the protection of the guns of their 
ships and the Americans were forced to 
withdraw. Tryon then re-embarked his 
exhausted troops and returned to New 
York. 

The American loss was slight. The brave 
old General Wooster, a veteran of sixty-eight 
years, was mortally wounded at the head of 
his men and died a few days later. Arnold 
behaved with such distinguished gallantry in 
this affair that Congress rewarded him with 
the rank of major-general and presented him 
with a horse handsomely equipped. Even 
this acknowledgment of his merit was min- 
gled with injustice, for the date of his com- 
mission still left him below the rank he was 
entiled to, and he felt the second slight as 
another undeserved injury. 



THE YEAR 1777. 



411 



The Connecticut militia were very indig- 
nant at the burning of Danbury, and resolved 
to avenge it. In the latter part of May a 
party of one hundred and seventy men, under 
Colonel Meigs, crossed the Sound in whale- 
boats to the east end of Long Island. They 
carried their boats during the night fifteen 
miles across the neck, and launching them 
again, proceeded to Sag Harbor, where they 
destroyed twelve vessels and a large quan- 
tity of stores collected there by the British, 
and made ninety prisoners. They then 
returned to Connecticut without the loss of 
a man. 

General Schuyler Vindicated. 

Recruits came into the American camp 
very slowly, and various expedients were 
adopted by Washington to hasten the enlist- 
ments. At his instance Congress declared 
that all indentured servants who enlisted in 
the army should receive their freedom at 
once. Bounties in land were offered to such 
Hessians as should desert the British service. 
This last measure did not accomplish much 
towards crippling the enemy. 

In the northern department, Schuyler was 
left with a mere skeleton of an army. He 
had but seven hundred men, at the most, at 
Ticonderoga, and he was fearful that Carle- 
ton would learn his weakness, pass Lake 
Champlain on the ice, capture Ticonderoga, 
and push on to Albany, He repeatedly 
urged the commander-in-chief to send him 
reinforcements and supplies, but his request 
could not be granted, as there were none to 
spared from Washington's army. During 
the winter a persistent effort was made to 
drive Schuyler from his command, in order 
that Gates might succeed to it. 

Charges were brought against him with such 
recklessness that he offered his resignation 
to Congress. That body refused to accept 
it ; but as the efforts of his enemies were 



not discontinued, Schuyler went to Phila- 
delphia, in April, 1777, and demanded an 
investigation into his conduct. Gates suc- 
ceeded him in his command. Schuyler was 
fully vindicated by the report of the investi- 
gating committee of Congress, and was 
ordered to resume his command. Gates was 
greatly surprised by the result, and reluct- 
antly relinquished the command of the 
northern department to his rival, and 
repaired to Philadelphia to seek redress at 
the hands of Congress for what he termed 
his wrongs. 




GENERAL PHILIP SCHUYLER. 

Until now the Americans had been with- 
out a national flag. Congress, in June, 1777, 
remedied this very serious want by adopting 
the old "Union Flag," with its thirteen 
stripes; but substituted, in place of St. 
George's Cross, a group of thirteen stars, 
one for each State. Thus the "Stars and 
Stripes " became the national ensign of the 
republic — a star having been added for each 
additional State that has since joined the 
original thirteen. 

One of the first things that occupied the 
attention of Congress after the proclamation 
of the Declaration of Independence was the 



412 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



preparation of a device for a great seal of the 
confederation. This was assigned to a com- 
mittee consisting of Franklin, Jefferson and 
John Adams. The seal as finally adopted 
has never been changed. 




FLAG AND SHIELD. 

The war in America had been watched 
with the deepest interest in Europe, and 
especially by France. The French Govern- 
ment had been convinced long before the 
outbreak of the Revolution that the treat- 
ment which the colonies were receiving- from 




land was alienating the Americans by her 
treatment of them. Choiseul conceived the 
hope that, by offering the Americans free 
trade with France, they would be made to 
resent the course of England even more 
decidedly. 

When the Revolution began the French 
Government was fully prepared for it, and 
was ready to avenge the loss of Canada by 
aiding the new republic in its efforts to throw 
ofi the authority of Great Britain. It was 
merely waiting to see whether the Americans 
were able to maintain the stand they had 
taken. The news of the defeat on Long 
Island, the loss of New York, and the retreat 
through New Jersey, filled the friends of 
America with serious alarm, and it was gen- 
erally believed in Europe that the Americans 
would not be able to withstand the superior 
force of the mother country. 

In the early spring of 1777 it was known 
in Europe that the American army, which 




OBVERSE. 



SEAL OF THE UNITED STATES. 



REVERSE. 



Great Britain would ultimately cause their 
separation from her ; and ten years before 
the war began the Duke de Choiseul, the 
prime minister of Louis XV., had sent Baron 
De Kalb to examine and report the state of 
feelings of the colonists towards Great Britain. 
De Kalb was a shrewd observer, and furnished 
his government with ample proofs that Eng- 



it was supposed had been driven in hopeless 
disorder over the Delaware without the 
means of continuing the war, had suddenly 
rallied and beaten a force of veteran troops 
at Trenton, and again at Princeton, and had 
recovered New Jersey from the enemy. This 
intelligence produced the most profound 
astonishment in Europe, and was received in 



THE YEAR 1777. 



France with genuine satisfaction. The 
Americans were extolled as a race of heroes, 
and the prudence and good generalship of 
Washington were spoken of with the highest 
praise. 

The French Government now felt justified 
in aiding the patriots, 
but it proceeded with 
caution. American pri- 
vateers were secretly- 
fitted out, with the con- 
nivance of the govern- 
ment, and were permitted 
to sell their prizes in 
French ports, and the 
protests of the British 
ambassador against such 
acts were unheeded. The 
government made secret 
grants of arms and mili- 
tary stores to the Ame- 
ricans, and three ship- 
loads were sent out in 
the spring of 1777. Two 
of these vessels were 
captured by the English, 
but the third reached 
America in safety, and 
its cargo went to sup- 
ply the deficiencies of 
the army at Morristown. 
In the spring of this 
year the commissioners 
sent to France by Con- 
gress reached that coun- 
try. They had full pow- 
ers to enter into an alli- 
ance with the French 
King. They were granted several private 
interviews by the Count de Vergennes, the 
French Prime Minister, and were secretly 
encouraged to hope for the success of their 
mission. As yet, however, France was not 
prepared to declare war against Great Britain. 



413 

Though the government delayed its 
action, there were generous hearts in France 
who were determined to give all the aid and 
comfort in their power to the struggling 
patriots. One of these was the youthful 
Marquis dc Lafayette, the heir of a noble 




THE MARQUIS DE LAFAYETTE. 

name, the possessor of wealth and a high 
social position, and the husband of a beauti- 
ful and accomplished wife. He had heard 
at a dinner party given by the French offi- 
cials at Mayence to the Duke of Gloucester, 
a brother of the King of England, the story 



414 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



of the war then going on in America, and its 
causes, related by the lips of the royal 
guest. 

His generous heart at once went out in 
sympathy to the patriots, and he resolved to 
leave his family and all his advantages at 
home and go to the aid of the Americans. 
He revealed his intention to the Count de 
Broglie, a Marshal of France, who regarded 
his enterprise as Quixotic and refused to 
aid him. Finding him determined, the 
count introduced his young friend to the 
Baron de Kalb, an officer of experience and 
merit, who had visited America as Choiseur's 
agent in the last reign. De Kalb introduced 
Lafayette to Silas Deane, then the only 
American Commissioner in France. 

A Young Major-GeneraL 

The news of the loss of New York and of 
New Jersey arrived about this time, but did 
not lessen the ardor of Lafayette ; and 
though the newly-arrived commissioners, 
Franklin and Lee, candidly told him that 
they could not encourage him to hope for a 
successful issue of their cause, he avowed 
his determination to proceed. He pur- 
chased a vessel, which was loaded with arms 
and supplies by the commissioners. The 
French government attempted to prevent 
him from sailing, but he succeeded in get- 
ting off, accompanied by De Kalb and 
several others. He reached Philadelphia, 
offered his services to Congress without pay 
and was commissioned as a major-general in 
the American army, though not yet twenty 
years old. 

Lafayette was not the only foreigner whose 
services were accepted by Congress. De 
Kalb, Count Pulaski and Thaddeus Kos- 
ciusko, natives of Poland, and Conway, an 
Irishman who had seen thirty years' service 
in the P'rench army, and who, in an evil 
hour for this country, came to America ; and 



later still Baron Steuben, one of Frederick 
the Great's veterans, and who did good ser- 
vice to the cause by introducing into the 
American ranks the drill and discipline of 
the Prussian army, were commissioned and 
assigned to duty by Congress. 

Capture of a British General. 

About the middle of May Washington 
broke up his camp at Morristown and occu- 
pied the heights of Middlebrook in order to 
watch the British to better advantage. Howe 
made repeated efforts to draw him from this 
strong position into the open field, where 
the superior discipline of the royal troops 
would give him an advantage, but Washing- 
ton out-generaled him completely, and 
Howe finding it impossible to bring on an 
engagement, withdrew his army to Staten 
Island. 

While these movements were in progress 
the British sustained a serious loss in the 
capture of General Prescott, one of their 
principal officers, who had earned the dislike 
of the Americans by his arbitrary and con- 
temptuous treatment of them. He was 
commanding the British forces at Newport, 
and had his headquarters on the outskirts of 
the town. On a dark night in July a com- 
pany of picked men, under Colonel Barton, 
crossed Narragansett Bay in whale boats, 
and passing silently through the British fleet 
landed near Prescott's quarters. The senti- 
nel at the door was secured and the as- 
tounded general was roused from his bed 
and hurried away without being allowed 
time to dress. He was conveyed within the 
American lines, and was afterwards ex- 
changed for General Charles Lee. 

Washington now learned of the invasion 
of New York by the army of General Bur- 
goyne, to which we shall refer further on. 
It was evident that Burgoyne was trying to 
reach the Hudson. Washington's spies in 



> 
w 

H 
O 

O 
W 

w 




415 



4i6 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



New York informed him that Howe was 
preparing to send off the larger part of his 
force by water, and the commander-in-chief 
was perplexed to know whether Howe 
intended ascending the Hudson to co-operate 
with Burgoyne, or to transport his army to 
Philadelphia by water. Toward the last of 
July Howe sailed with his fleet from New 
York and stood out to sea. 

Philadelphia Fortified. 

Ten days later his ships were reported off 
the mouth of the Delaware. Washington 
now felt confident that his design was to 
attack Philadelphia, and crossed the Dela- 
ware with his army and marched to German- 
town to await the development of the enemy's 
plans. About the same time the British fleet 
stood out to sea again. Its destination was 
uncertain, and Washington held his army in 
readiness to march at a minute's notice to 
the threatened point. 

While awaiting the movements of Sir Wil- 
liam Howe, Washington visited Philadelphia, 
where Arnold was in command and was en- 
gaged in fortifying the city, to consult with 
Congress and push forward the measures for 
the defence of the place. While there he 
met the newly arrived Lafayette. Washing- 
ton was an acute judge of men, and at his 
first interview with Lafayette was deeply im- 
pressed with the noble and earnest character 
of the young soldier, and conceived for him 
a warm regard, which ended only with his 
life. 

In the midst of the uncertainty attending 
Howe's movements Washington received 
urgent appeals from Schuyler for assistance. 
He sent him two brigades from the High- 
lands, and ordered Colonel Morgan to join 
him with his riflemen, who were regarded as 
more than a match for the Indians of Bur- 
goyne's army, Arnold was also sent to 
assume command of a division in the north- 



ern army, as he "^as familiar with the country.. 
Putnam was ordered to prevent Sir Henry 
Clinton, who had been left at New York, 
from ascending the Hudson and forming a 
junction with Burgoyne, and General Lincoln, 
commanding the militia of Massachusetts, 
was directed to march with a portion of his 
force to Schuyler's assistance. 

As nothing had been heard of the British 
fleet, Washington was about to move from 
Germantown into New Jersey once more, 
when news was received that the enemy had 
ascended the Chesapeake to its head, and had 
landed their forces at Elkton, in Maryland, 
about sixty miles from Philadelphia. The 
Delaware had been obstructed and fortified a 
short distance below Philadelphia, and Howe 
had ascended the Chesapeake in order to 
secure an undisputed landing. He intended 
to march his army across the country towards 
Philadelphia, while the fleet should return to 
the Delaware and aid the army in reducing 
the forts on that river. He had eighteen 
thousand men with him, and effected his 
landing in Elkton without opposition on *he 
twenty-fifth of August, and at once began his 
advance toward Philadelphia. 

Battle of the Brandywine. 

Washington had but eleven thousand effec- 
tive men with him, and was in no way pre- 
pared to undertake a campaign in the open 
country. Nevertheless, he advanced at once 
to dispute the progress of the enemy, and by 
forced marches succeeded in reaching the 
vicinity of Wilmington before the arrival of 
the British. Upon examining the country he 
decided to contest the passage of the Brandy- 
wine Creek, and stationed his army along its 
left bank. 

The British were advancing by the main 
road to Philadelphia, which crossed the 
Brandywine at Chadd's Ford, and as Wash- 
ington supposed their main effort would be 



made at this point, he stationed the greater 
part of his army to cover it. On the eleventh 
of September the British army reached the 
creek. Howe ordered General Knyphausen 



THE YEAR 1777. 417 

Washington was deceived by the officer sent 
to ascertain if the enemy were threatening his 
right, and was left in ignorance of Cornwallis' 
movement until it was too late to prevent it. 




LAFAYETTE AND WASHINGTON. 



to make a feint at Chadd's Ford as if he were 
about to force a passage, while he sent Corn- 
wallis with a strong column to pass the creek 
higher up and turn the American right flank. 

This plan was successfully carried out 
27 



Being outflanked,the American army was com- 
pelled to fall back with a loss of twelve hundred 
men. The troops did not know they had suf- 
ered a reverse, but supposing they had merely 
experienced a check were in high spirits. 



4i8 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Lafayette was wounded in this battle, and 
Pulaski so greatly distinguished himself that 
he was subsequently rewarded by Congress 
with the rank of brigadier-general and the 
command of the cavalry. 

Sir William Howe did not push his advan- 
tage, but remained for two days near the 
battle-field. Washington in the meantime 
retreated to Chester, and then to the Schuyl- 
kill, which he crossed on the twelfth of Sep- 
tember, and proceeded to Germantown, where 
the army went into camp. The men were in 
■excellent spirits, and a day or two later 
Washington recrossed the river and moved 
towards the enemy, whom he encountered 
about twenty-five miles from Philadelphia on 
the sixteenth. A violent rain storm pre- 
vented the two armies from engaging, and 
injured the arms and ammunition of the men 
so much that Washington deemed it best to 
withdraw to Pott's Grove, on the Schuylkill, 
about thirty miles from Philadelphia. At the 
same time he detached General Wayne, with 
a force of fifteen hundred men, to gain the 
enemy's rear and cut off their wagon train. 
A Tory carried information of this movement 
to the British commander, and Wayne was 
himself surprised at Paoli tavern, on the 
twentieth of September, and defeated with a 
loss of three hundred men. 

Philadelphia and the British. 

It being impossible to save the city of 
Philadelphia from capture the military stores 
were removed, and a contribution was levied 
upon the people to supply the army with 
clothing, shoes and other necessaries during 
the winter. Congress, in view of the great 
danger which threatened the country, con- 
ferred dictatorial powers upon Washington 
for sixty days, and then extended this 
time to a period of four months. Con- 
gress then adjourned to meet at Lancaster, 
from which, a few days later, it transferred 



its sessions to York, beyond the Susque- 
hanna. 

Howe crossed the Schuylkill by a night 
march, and on the twenty-sixth of Septem- 
ber entered Philadelphia. The bulk of his 
army was stationed at Germantown, and a 
small detachment was left to hold the city. 

The Americans, though they had lost 
Philadelphia, still held the forts on the Dela- 
ware, a short distance below the mouth of 
the Schuylkill. The work on the Pennsyl- 
vania side was called Fort Mifflin, and was 
built on a low mud island. Immediately 
opposite, at Red Bank, on the New Jersey 
shore, was Fort Mercer. Both works were 
armed with heavy guns, and commanded the 
river perfectly. The channel was obstructed 
with heavy logs fastened together and sunk 
in the stream so securely as to render their 
removal difficult. Above these obstructions 
were several floating batteries. 

A Victory Given Away. 

After landing the British army at Elkton, 
Lord Howe carried his fleet down the Chesa- 
peake, and entering the Delaware took posi- 
tion below the forts to await the co-operation 
of the army in the attack upon them. 

Washington having learned that Howe 
had withdrawn a part of his force from Ger- 
mantown to aid in the operations against the 
fort, resolved to surprise the remainder. A 
night march of fourteen miles brought the 
American army to Germantown at sunrise 
on the morning of the fourth of October. A 
heavy fog hung over the country and pre- 
vented the commander-in-chief from seeing 
either the position of the enemy or that of 
his own troops. 

The British were taken by surprise, and 
were driven in disorder. The victory seemed 
within the grasp of Washington, when the 
Americans abandoned the pursuit to attack 
a stone house in which a few of the enemy 



THE YEAR 1777. 



419 



had taken refuge. While thus engaged they 
were seized with an unaccountable panic, 
which threw them into confusion. The 
British rallied, and, assailing the Americans 
in their turn, drove them from the field with 
a loss of one thousand men. Washington 
was greatly mortified by this failure. He 
wrote to Congress : " Every account confirms 
the opinion I at first entertained, that our 
troops retreated at the instant when victory 
was declaring herself in our favor." 

Howe now drew in his army nearer to 
Philadelphia, and prepared for an immediate 
attack on the forts on the Delaware. These 
held that river so securely that the British 
fleet was not able to bring supplies up to the 
city. The provisions of the army were nearly 
exhausted, and if the forts could not be 
reduced it would be necessary to evacuate 
Philadelphia in order to obtain food. On 
the twenty-second of October, Count Donop 
was sent with a force of twelve hundred 
picked Hessians to storm Fort Mercer, at 
Red Bank, while the fleet reduced Fort Mif- 
flin. Donop's attack was repulsed with a 
loss of four hundred men, the Hessian com- 
mander himself being among the slain. In 
the attack on Fort Mifflin the British lost 
two ships, and the remainder were more or 
less injured by the fire of the American 
guns. 

Washington at Valley Forge. 

Shortly after this repulse, the British 
erected batteries on a small island in the 
Delaware, which commanded Fort Mifflin, 
and on the tenth of November opened a 
heavy bombardment of the fort from these 
works and from their fleet. The bombard- 
ment was continued until the night of the 
fifteeenth. The works being nearly des- 
troyed, Fort Mifflin was abandoned on the 
night of the sixteenth, and on the eighteenth 
the garrison was withdrawn from the fort at 



Red Bank. The British now removed the 
obstructions from the river, and their fleet 
ascended to Philadelphia. General Howe 
constructed a strongly fortified line from the 
Schuylkill to the Delaware, above Philadel- 
phia, and went into winter quarters with his 
army behind these defences. 

The season being loo late for active opera- 
tions, Washington withdrew his army to 
Valley Forge on the Schuylkill, about twenty 
miles from Philadelphia, and went into 
winter quarters. From this position he 
could protect Congress, sitting at York. 

Burgoyne's Great "War Feast." 

In the northern department the year had 
been marked by the most important events. 
Sir Guy Carleton was succeeded in the com- 
mand of the British forces in Canada by 
General Burgoyne, an officer of ability and 
integrity. He was strongly reinforced and 
soon had under his command a finely 
equipped army of ten thousand men. Bur- 
goyne gave a great " war feast " to the In- 
dians, who, in answer to his appeal on this 
occasion, promised to aid him, thinking that 
with his fine large army he would be able to 
whip the rebels in a short time. 

About eight thousand of Burgo}'ne's 
troops were British and Hessian regulars, 
the remainder Canadians and Indians. The 
army was plentifully supplied with artillery 
of the most improved pattern, which was 
under the immediate command of General 
Philips, a veteran who had served with great 
distinction in the seven years' war. The 
second in command of the army was General 
Frazer, an officer of acknowledged skill, who 
was greatly beloved by the troops. Baron 
Reidesel, the commander of the Hessians, 
was also an old soldier. Altogether, the force 
under Burgoyne was the most splendid body 
of troops Great Britain had yet assembled in 
America. With this army Burgoyne was to 



420 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



advance by way of Lake Champlain to the 
Hudson, while a detachment under General 
St. Leger was to move eastward by way of 
Oswego and descend the Mohawk to the 
Hudson. Having secured the Hudson, Bur- 
goyne was to open communication with Sir 
Henry Clinton in New York, capture the forts 
in the Highlands and so cut off New England 
from the Middle and Southern States. 

To oppose his advance General Schuyler 



that post. Opposite Fort Ticonderoga, on 
the right-hand side of the outlet of Lake 
George, is a lofty hill known as Mount 
Defiance. The Americans had neglected to 
fortify this hill, thinking it inaccessible to 
artillery. General Philips was of a different 
opinion, and in three days of hard labor suc- 
ceeded in dragging his guns to the summit 
of Mount Defiance, from which they com- 
manded the forts on both sides of the lake 




GENERAL BURGOYNE ADDRESSING THE INDIANS. 



had a weak army between Albany and Lake 
Champlain. General St. Clair, with a detach- 
ment of three thousand men held Ticonde- 
roga, and though he seriously feared that 
his force was too weak to offer much resist- 
ance, trusted to the natural strength of his 
position and hoped to be able to hold Ticon- 
deroga until aid could reach him. 

On the second of July Burgoyne's army 
appeared before Ticonderoga and invested 



St. Clair now saw that the forts were unten- 
able and that he must evacuate them at 
once in order to save his army. Sending 
his baggage and stores in boats up the lake 
to Skenesborough, now Whitehall, he 
evacuated Fort Ticonderoga and crossed 
over to Fort Independence, on the opposite 
side of the lake. 

His withdrawal was discovered before it 
was completed, and the British at once 



THE YEAR 



1777. 



421 



followed in pursuit. Burgoyne ordered Gen- 
eral Frazer to follow St. Clair's command, 
while he himself passed up the lake and des- 
troyed the stores at Skenesborough. Upon 
his approach, on the afternoon of the seventh, 
the American force at Skenesborough set 
fire to the stores and retreated rapidly to 
Fort Anne, which was reached the next 
morning. The British appeared before this 
fort the same day, but were held in check, 
and that night the 
Americans set fire to 
Fort Anne and re- 
treated to Fort Ed- 
ward, sixteen miles 
further. 

On the afternoon of 
the seventh General 
Frazer came up with 
St. Clair's rear guard 
at Hubbardton and 
defeated it with severe 
loss. St. Clair con- 
tinued his retreat 
through the woods, 
and a week later 
reached Fort Edward 
with his exhausted 
troops. 

General Schuyler 
liad advanced to Fort 
Edward with a force 
of five thousand men, 

nearly all of whom were militia. Many were 
without arms, and there was was a woful 
scarcity of ammunition and provisions in his 
camp, Schuyler was joined here by the rem- 
nant of Saint Clair's command, and as Bur- 
goyne had halted for a few days at the head 
of Lake Champlain, which was twenty-four 
miles distant from Fort Edward, Schuyler set 
his men to work to obstruct the road between 
those two points by felling trees across it and 
and destroying bridges. So thoroughly was 



this work done that Burgoyne's army con- 
sumed a fortnight in its advance from Skenes- 
borough to the Hudson. It reached the neigh- 
borhood of Fort Edward on the twenty-ninth 
of July. Schuyler at once abandoned the fort, 
and fell back to Saratoga, from which he 
moved to Stillwater, near the mouth of the 
Mohawk. 

The loss of Ticonderoga and the northern 
forts was regarded by Congress as an evidence 




RUINS OF FORT TICONDEROGA. 

of the incapacity of Schuyler and his subor- 
dinates, and so little allowance was made for 
the serious disadvantages under which those 
officers labored, that Congress ordered all the 
northern generals to be recalled and their 
conduct investigated. It was not until Wash- 
ington called the attention of Congress to the 
fact that a compliance with this order would 
leave the northern army without officers, that 
that body consented to suspend its unwise 
decree. 



422 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



The prejudice against Schuyler, though 
unjust, was deep, and his removal from his 
command was resolved upon. Washington 
declined to deprive him of his command, as 
his confidence in Schuyler was unshaken, and 
Congress took the matter in its own hands. 
" The eastern influence prevailed," says Irv- 
ing, " and Gates received the appointment so 
long the object of his aspirations, if not in- 
trigues." 

Upon reaching Fort Edward, Burgoyne, 
confident that the game was in his own hands, 
issued a proclamation calling upon the people 
to send representatives to a convention to 
meet at Castleton to provide for the re-estab- 
lishment of the royal authority. This was 
met by a proclamation from Schuyler, who 
declared that he would punish as traitors all 
who should comply with Burgoyne's call, or 
in any way give aid and comfort to the enemy. 
There was not much need for this threat, for 
the militia of the northern district were 
rapidly rallying to Schuyler's aid. The 
people of the whole region were profoundly 
excited, and they were determined that 
the British army should never leave their 
country. 

Story of Jenny McCrea. 

Much of this feeling was caused by the 
outrages of the Indians in Burgoyne's army, 
who prowled about the country, murdering 
and plundering the people who were exposed 
to their fury. One of their crimes roused 
the whole northern region to action. A beau- 
tiful young girl, Jenny McCrea by name, was 
visiting a friend near Fort Edward. She was 
betrothed to a young Tory who had fled to 
Canada some time since, and was now serving 
as a lieutenant in Burgoyne's army. When 
her friends removed from Fort Edward to 
Albany, to avoid the danger which threat- 
ened them, she lingered behind in spite of 
their invitation to accompany them, hoping 



to meet her lover upon the advance of Bur- 
goyne's forces. 

The house in which she was staying was 
attacked by a party of Indians, and she was 
taken prisoner. , Anxious for her safety she 
promised her captors a liberal reward if they 
would conduct her to her lover in the Brit- 
ish camp. On the way they quarrelled over 
the promised reward, and in their rage mur- 
dered the poor girl and carried her scalp into 
the British camp. Burgoyne was horror- 
struck at the atrocious deed, and promptly 
disavowed it; but the news of the murder 
roused a stern desire for vengeance through- 
out the northern department. The terrible 
scenes of the old French war were not for- 
gotten, and the people were fearful they would 
now be revived under British influence unless 
Burgoyne's army were destroyed. Thousands 
flocked to the American camp, with such 
arms as they could procure, eager to crush 
the enemy. 

The Brave Herkimer. 

In the meantime St. Leger had moved 
from Oswego into the valley of the Mohawk, 
and had laid siege to Fort Schuyler or Stan- 
wix, on the site of the present city of Rome. 
The fort was commanded by Colonel Gan- 
sevoort. The siege was begun on the third 
of August, and a few days later news was 
received by the little garrison that General 
Herkimer, with eight hundred militia, was 
advancing to their assistance. On the sixth 
of August Herkimer reached a place called 
Oriskany, where, owing to the impatience of 
his men, he fell into an ambush of Tories 
and Indians. The fight which ensued was 
one of the most desperate of the war ; quar- 
ter was neither asked nor given by either 
party. 

Herkimer was mortally wounded, but con- 
tinued to cheer on his men, until a successful 
sally from the fort compelled St. Leger to 



THE YEAR 1777. 



423 



recall the force engaged with Herkimer to 
defend his own camp. The American militia 
then retreated, carrying with them their 
commander, who died a few days later. Fort 
Schuyler was left in a critical condition, and 



hastily abandoned his camp, and retreated 
into Canada with the remainder of his force. 
Burgoyne had now reached the Hudson, 
and had full command of Lakes George and 
Champlain ; but the people of the country 




HERKIMER MORTALLY WOUNDED. 



Arnold was sent at his own request to its 
relief. He caused the strength of his force 
to be greatly exaggerated, and spread a 
report that Burgoyne had been defeated. 
The Indians deserted St. Leger rapidly upon 
hearing these reports, and that commander 



were hostile to him, and he found it hard to 
procure either cattle or horses. Though his 
camp on the Hudson was but eighteen miles 
from Lake George, this lack of animals made 
it almost impossible to transport his supplies 
across the intervening country, and his 



424 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



army was beginning to run short of provi- 
sions. 

To obtain horses and provisions, Bur- 
goyne, early in August, sent a force of five 
hundred Germans and a detachment of 
Indians and Tories, under Lieutenant- Colonel 
Baum, to seize the stores collected by the 
Americans at Bennington, Vermont, and to 
collect such horses and cattle as they could 
on the march. He was told that the people 




GKNERAL JOHN STARK. 

of the neighborhood were largely devoted 
to the king, and that the stores were 
unguarded. 

The news of the approach of this force 
spread rapidly through the country, and the 
Green Mountain Boys, as the Vermont militia 
were termed, flew to arms. Colonel Stark, 
who had retired from the Continental army on 
account of having been neglected in the 
recent promotions, was in the neighborhood, 
and was offered the command of the gather- 



ing forces. He accepted it promptly, and 
issued a warning to the people along the 
route of the British to drive off their horses 
and cattle, and to conceal their grain and 
wagons to prevent their capture by the 
enemy. A messenger was sent with all speed 
to Manchester to Colonel Seth Warner, urg- 
ing him to march at once with his regiment 
to Bennington, where he was needed. 

Battle of Bennington. 

Baum had advanced to within six miles of 
Bennington when he heard of the approach 
of the militia under Stark. He halted, in- 
trenched his position, and sent to Burgoyne 
for reinforcements. Colonel Breyman with 
five hundred Hessians and two pieces of 
artillery was despatched to his assistance. 

Stark was prevented from making an im- 
mediate attack upon Baum by a furious 
rain-storm, which also delayed the march of 
Breyman and Warner. During the night of 
the fifteenth of August Stark was joined by 
the militia from Berkshire, Massachusetts. 
They were anxious to engage the enemy at 
once, and were impatient at the delay caused 
by the storm. One of their number. Parson 
Allen, approached Stark. " General," said 
he, " the people of Berkshire have often 
been called out to no purpose ; if you don't 
give them a chance to fight now they will 
never turn out again." Stark remarked his 
earnestness, and said, with a smile, " You 
would not turn out now, while it is dark 
and raining, would you ?" " Not just now," 
answered the parson. " Well," said Stark, 
" if the Lord should once more give us sun- 
shine, and I don't give you fighting enough, 
I'll never ask you to turn out again." 

The morning of the sixteenth came bright 
and clear, and Stark at once began his 
advance upon the enemy. Arriving in sight 
of the British works, he pointed them out to 
his men. " There are the red coats ! We 




o 

Eh 
C5 

pq 
o 

f^ 
Eh 
Eh 
<1 
ffl 



THE YEAR 1777. 



425 



must beat them to-day or Molly Stark sleeps 
a widow to-night." A spirited attack was 
made upon the British lines, both in front 
and in the rear, and after two hours' hard 
fighting they were carried by storm. Baum 
fell mortally wounded and his men laid 
down their arms. The Indians and Tories 
had escaped to the woods at the opening of 
the battle. 

The fighting had scarcely ended when the 
force under Colonel Breyman appeared and 
at once engaged the Americans. At the 
same moment Warner's regiment, which had 
pushed forward all night in the rain, reached 
the field. The battle was continued until 
nightfall, when Breyman abandoned his 
artillery and made a hurried retreat to Bur- 
goyne's camp on the Hudson. The Ameri- 
cans had fourteen killed and forty wounded. 
They took six hundred prisoners, one thou- 
sand stand of arms and four pieces of 
cannon. 

Burgoyne in Straits. 

Burgoyne now found himself in a most 
critical condition. He had reached the 
Hudson, but his troops were short of pro- 
visions ; his efforts against Fort Schuyler 
and Bennington had failed, and his force 
was being reduced by the desertions of the 
Indians. Burgoyne, who was a man of 
humanity and true soldierly spirit, had no 
sympathy with the barbarous policy of his 
government in employing the savages against 
the Americans, and had sternly cut short 
their cruelties. The Indians had taken 
offence at his course and were leaving his 
army in great numbers. He made no effort 
to detain them, preferring to lose their ser- 
vices rather than allow them to continue their 
atrocities. On the other hand the American 
army was daily growing stronger. The 
militia were flocking to it in great numbers, 
and reinforcements were received from the 



Highlands. The militia of New Hanpshire 
and Massachusetts were threatening Ticon- 
deroga, the capture of which post would cut 
off his communications with Canada. The 
contrast between the present condition of 
the British army and that of a few weeks 
before was marked indeed. 

A Jealous General. 

Matters were in this state when General 
Gates arrived, late in August, and assumed 
the command of the army, which was now 
six thousand strong, and receiving reinforce- 
ments every day. Schuyler, superior to all 
sense of personal wrong, cheerfully rendered 
him all the assistance in his power in 
mastering the question before him"; but 
Gates repaid his generosity with charac- 
teristic jealousy. He did not even invite 
Schuyler to his first council of war held a 
few days later. He at once left the position 
at the mouth of the Mohawk, and on the 
twelfth of September advanced to Behmus' 
Heights, a spur of hills bordering the Hud- 
son. The army now numbered nine thou- 
sand effective men, indifferently armed, but 
resolved to conquer. "Gates had no fitness 
for command," says Bancroft, " and wanted 
personal courage." He intrenched his posi- 
tion, and for the defence of his right and left 
flanks erected strong batteries. 

Burgoyne by great exertion succeeded in 
bringing up a month's provisions from Lake 
George for his army, which was now reduced 
to about six thousand men. He resolved to 
adhere to his original plan, and endeavored 
to force his way to Albany, and on the thir- 
teenth of September crossed the Hudson at 
Schuylerville, and encamped on the plains of 
Saratoga, intending to decide the campaign 
by a general engagement. 

On the morning of the nineteenth of Sep- 
tember he advanced against the American 
position. Gates wished to await the attack 



426 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



of the enemy in his intrenched position, but 
Arnold urged him to throw forward a force 
to hold them in check, and not permit them 
to turn the American left, as they evidently 
intended. After considerable solicitation he 
obtained the desired permission from Gates, 




GENERAL HORATIO GATES. 

and moved forward to check the advance of 
the British. A determined conflict immedi- 
ately ensued and continued until nightfall. 
It was one of the most stubbonly contested 
engagements of the war, and its result was 
mainly due to the skill and courage of Ar- 



nold, who held the enemy in check during 
the day, and prevented the success of their 
plan for turning Gates' left flank. The Brit- 
tish remained in possession of the field at 
night, and the Americans rejoined their main 
body. The latter regarded the battle as a 
victory, as they had 
accomplished all they 
had expected. 

Burgoyne's diffi- 
culties thickened rap- 
idly. On the seven- 
teenth a detachment of 
Massachusetts militia 
seized the posts at the 
outlet of Lake George 
and captured a fleet of 
three hundred boats 
loaded with supplies 
for Burgoyne's army, 
and took three hun- 
dred prisoners. This 
force then united with 
another and laid seige 
toTiconderoga. These 
successes completely 
destroyed Burgoyne's 
communication with 
Canada, and with it 
his means of supply- 
ing his army. In this 
emergency he was 
greatly encouraged 
by the receipt of a 
letter from Sir Henry 
Clinton at New York, 
informing him that he 
(Clinton) would in a 
few days make an effort to ascend the Hud- 
son and open communication with him. 

Burgoyne thereupon resolved to endeavor 
to hold his positon until the arrival of Clinton. 
Three weeks passed away in inaction, and 
though skirmishes between the advanced 



THE YEAR 1777. 



427 



parties were frequent, neither commander 
cared to attack the other; Burgoyne because 
he was anxious to defer a decisive engage- 
ment, Gates because he was scantily suppHed 
with ammunition. 

Arnold Agairr at the Front. 

The success of the battle of Behmus' 
Heights was generally attributed by the 
troops to Arnold, who was very popular with 
them. Gates' jealously was most probably 
aroused by this belief, and he unceremoni- 
ously deprived Arnold of his command. 
During this delay the American army was 
increased by the arrival of the Massachusetts 
militia and other reinforcements, to about 
eleven thousand men. 

Burgoyne's situation was now more critical 
than ever. His best officers favored a retreat 
to Fort Edward ; but the British commander 
decided before undertaking that movement 
to reconnoitre the American position in 
strong force. If it was found that it could 
not be attacked, he was willing to retreat to 
Fort Edward. A force of fifteen hundred 
picked men and ten pieces of cannon, com- 
manded by the most experienced officers in 
the army, was sent on the seventh of October 
to reconnoitre the American position. Gates, 
by the advice of Morgan, attacked this force 
on both flanks, and sent Morgan with his rifle- 
men to cut the enemy off from their camp. 

The sound of the firing roused Arnold, 
who was brooding over his wrongs. He 
mounted his horse and rode at full speed to 
the battle-field in spite of the efforts of Gates 
to stop him. He reached the scene of action 
and was reconized by the troops, who re- 
ceived him with cheers. Without orders or 
any definite command, he placed himself at 
the head of the troops and led them against 
the enemy. The British, led by General 
Frazer, held their ground manfully, but at 
length Frazer was mortally wounded by one 



of Morgan's riflemen, and his line gave way. 
Burgoyne fearlessly exposed himself in the 
efforts to rally his men, but was at length 
obliged to order a retreat to the camp. 

This was accomplished with extreme diffi- 
culty, and the Americans, following in close 
pursuit, made a determined attack upon the 
British intrenchments, which were stubborn- 
ly defended. In this attack Arnold displayed 
great heroism, and was wounded within the 
enemy's works. Though they failed to cap- 
ture the whole line, the Americans carried 
the camp of Colonel Breymen's regiment of 
Hessians, the key to Burgoyne's position, 
and took a number of prisoners. 

Success of the Federals. 

The Americans bivouaced on the field, in- 
tending to renew the battle the next day, but 
during the night Burgoyne abandoned his 
sick and wounded, and silently withdrew from 
his intrenchments. The roads being rendered 
bad by the rains, he halted and took posi- 
tion about two miles from the town of Sara- 
toga. On the night of the ninth, finding that 
the Americans held the Hudson in such 
heavy force as to render its passage impracti- 
cable, he retreated to Saratoga. He then 
sent out a detachment to rebuild the bridges 
on the road to Fort Edward, but found the 
road in the possession of the Americans, who 
also held Fort Edward, and had captured all 
the boats laden with provisions for his army. 
He was thus left with but three days rations 
for his men. On the twelfth the Amer- 
ican army, which had followed the British 
closely, invested their position, and opened 
a heavy fire on their camp. On the thir- 
teenth Burgoyne called a council of his offi- 
cers, and it was resolved to open negotiations 
with Gates. 

He proposed to Gates to surrender his 
army on condition that they should he 
allowed to sail for England from the port of 



428 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Boston, first pledging themselves not to 
serve again in North America during the 
war. Gates had heard of the successes of 
Clinton on the Hudson, and was fearful that 
he would reach Albany. He therefore 
weakly agreed to Burgoyne's proposal, and 
consented that the British army should 
march out its camp with the honors of war ; 
that the troops should be taken to Boston 
and sent to England, and that they should 
pledge themselves not to serve again in 
America during the war. These matters 
being arranged the British army surrendered 
on the seventeenth of October, and was fed 
by the Americans, for its provisions were 
•exhausted. About six thousand prisoners 
Avere surrendered, together with nearly five 
thousand muskets, forty-two brass field- 
pieces and a large quantity of military stores. 
Upon the surrender of Burgoyne the British 
garrison at Ticonderoga evacuated that 
place and retreated into Canada. 

Surrender of Burgoyne. 

Congress refused to ratify the terms 
granted to Burgoyne by Gates. It was 
plain that if they were sent to England they 
could release an equal number of troops 
there, who could be sent to the aid of Sir 
Henry Clinton in New York. This would 
deprive the United States of one of the 
most important results of the surrender. 
Burgoyne and two attendants were permitted 
to return to England, but the captive troops 
were held as prisoners of war, and the next 
year were marched to Charlottesville, Vir- 
ginia, and quartered in log huts, where the 
greater part of them remained until near the 
close of the war. 

Some time before Burgoyne's surrender 
Sir Henry Clinton, having received rein- 



forcements from England, resolved to under- 
take the capture of the forts in the High- 
lands of the Hudson, the garrisons of which 
had been greatly weakened by the detach- 
ments sent from them to Washington and 
Gates. On the sixth of October he attacked 
and captured Forts Montgomery and Clin- 
ton. General George Clinton, who com- 
manded at these forts, finding he could not 
hold them, sent to General Putnam for 
assistance, but his messenger deserted to 
the enemy and the forts were abandoned. 
General Tryon was sent to occupy Kingston, 
which he ordered to be burned. When the 
enemy heard of Burgoyne's surrender they 
retreated, setting fire to the house of every 
patriot along the river. Clinton then dis- 
mantled the captured forts and returned to 
New York, taking with him all the heavy 
cannon and stores. 

The capture of Burgoyne's army was 
hailed with delight throughout the country. 
It was the most important success of the 
war, and put an end to the danger of invasion 
from Canada. Gates was greatly puffed up 
by his triumph, and imagined himself the 
hero of the war. He sent his official report 
of the surrender to Congress direct, and not 
through the commander-in-chief, as his duty 
required, thus offering a grave insult to 
Washington. 

General Schuyler now demanded an inves- 
tigation of his conduct previons to his 
relinquishment of his command to Gates. 
He was thoroughly acquitted of the charges 
of mismanagement brought against him by 
his enemies, and was strongly urged by 
Congress to remain in the army. He 
declined to do so and resigned his commis- 
sion ; but was soon afterwards returned to 
Congress from the State of New York. 



CHAPTER XXIX 
Aid from Abroad 

Sufferings of the Army at Valley Forge — Appeals of Washington to Congress — The British in Philadelphia — The Con- 
way Cabal — Its Disgraceful Failure — Efforts to Improve the Army — Worthlessness of Continental Bills — General Lee 
Exchanged — Effect of Burgoyne's Surrender Upon England — The King is Forced to Agree to Measures of Concilia- 
tion — Action of France — Louis XVI. Recognizes the Independence of the United States — Alliance Between the 
United States and France — Failure of the British Measures of Conciliation — Clinton Evacuates Philadelphia — Battle 
of Monmouth — General Lee Dismissed from the Army — Attack Upon Newport — Its Failure — Withdrawal of the 
French Fleet to the West Indies — Outrages of the British on Long Island Sound — Massacre of Wyoming— The 
Winter of 1 779-80 — The Army in Winter Quarters — Robert Morris — Condition of Congress — Georgia Subdued by 
the British — Prevost attempts to Take Charleston — Siege of Savannah — Its Failure — Capture of Stony Point — Capture 
of Paulus Hook — The Indians Punished — Naval Affairs — Exploits of John Paul Jones — Evacuation of Newport — 
Settlement of Kentucky — Conquest of the Illinois Country by George Rogers Clarke — Settlement of Tennessee. 



THE sufferings of the American army 
during the long winter at Valley 
Forge were very great. Many 
were barefooted, and their marches 
through the frost and snow could be traced 
by the blood from their feet. They were 
without clothing, without food and were 
utterly unable to keep the field. Yet in 
spite of these sufferings many persons 
severely censured the commander-in-chief 
for going into winter quarters without 
attacking Philadelphia. 

In reply to one of these remonstrances 
from the Legislature of Pennsylvania, Wash- 
ington wrote to Congress on the twenty- 
third of December, 1777 : " Men are confined 
to hospitals or in farmers' houses for want 
of shoes. We have this day no less than 
two thousand eight hundred and ninety- 
eight men in camp unfit for duty because 
they are barefoot and otherwise naked. Our 
whole strength in Continental troops 
amounts to no more than eight thousand 
two hundred in camp fit for duty. Since the 
fourth instant our numbers fit for duty from 
hardships and exposures have decreased 
nearly two thousand men. Numbers still 
are obliged to sit all night by fires. Gen- 



tlemen reprobate the going into winter quar- 
ters as much as if they thought the soldiers 
were made of stocks and stones. I can 
assure those gentlemen that it is a much 
easier and less distressing thing to draw 
remonstrances in a comfortable room by a 
good fireside than to occupy a cold, bleak 
hill, and sleep under frost and snow without 
clothes or blankets. However, although 
they seem to have little feeling for the naked 
and distressed soldiers, I feel superabund- 
antly for them, and from my soul I pity 
those miseries which it is neither in my 
power to relieve nor prevent." 

Congress did little or nothing to relieve 
the sufferings of the army. It promised the 
troops one month's extra pay, but made na 
effort to provide food or clothing for them. 
It authorized Washington to impress what- 
ever articles he needed, but he remonstrated 
against this arbitrary use of power, as he 
was convinced that it would not supply 
the wants of the army, but would certainly 
anger the people of the country. Congress 
towards the close of the winter manifested 
so much hostility to the army because of its 
appeals for food and clothes, that Washing- 
ton earnestly remonstrated against this feeling^ 

429 



430 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



and reminded that body that the troops were 
" citizens, having all the ties and interests of 
citizens." 

It is not too much to say that the personal 
influence of Washington went further than 
anything else in keeping the army together 
during this trying winter. Under any other 
commander the troops would have dispersed. 
Encouraged by the calm and lofty patience 
of Washington, the troops remained faithful 
to their cause and bore their sufferings with 
a heroic fortitude which their descendants 
will ever bear in grateful honor. 

All this while the British army was com- 
fortably quartered in Philadelphia, and the 
officers were billeted upon the inhabitants. 
They were amply supplied with every com- 
fort, and their leisure time was given up to 
pleasure and dissipation on a scale the 
Quaker City had never dreamed of " By a 
proportionate tax on the pay and allowances 
of each officer a house was opened for daily 
resort and for weekly balls, with a gaming 
table which had assiduous votaries, and a 
room devoted to the game of chess. Thrice 
a week plays were enacted by amateur per- 
form.ers. . . . The officers, among whom 
all ranks of the British aristocracy were 
represented, lived in open licentiousness." 
The contrast between the pleasures and ease 
of these well-fed troops and the sufferings 
and privations of the ragged patriots at 
Valley Forge was marked indeed ; and 
when it is remembered that the comforts of 
the British could have been purchased by 
the patriots at the price of desertion their 
heroic constancy becomes more striking. 

The Conway Plot. 

The patriotism of Washington was not 
appreciated by all parties. A number of dis- 
contented members of Congress and officers 
of the army were anxious that he should be 
removed or forced to resign in order that 



their favorite General Gates might be pro- 
moted to the chief commander of the army. 
One of the prime movers of the intrigue was 
an Irish adventurer named Conway, who had 
been promoted to the rank of brigader-gen- 
enal, from which circumstance the plot is 
known as the " Conway Cabal." The entire 
truth concerning this plot will never be known 
for after its failure the actors in it were only 
too glad to disavow their connection with it. 
The conspirators did not dare to make an 
open attack upon the commander-in-chief, 
but undertook by mean of anonymous letters 
underhanded appeals to the officers and men 
of the army, and comparisons between Gates 
success and what they termed Washington's 
failure, to destroy the confidence of the troops 
in their leader, and to disgust him with his 
command and so drive him to resign it. 

A Conspiracy Thwarted. 

Generals Mifflin and Gates were very ac- 
tive in this conspiricy, and even Sullivan and 
Wayne were in favor of making Gates com- 
mander-in-chief. Dr. Benjamin Rush wrote 
a letter, to which he did not dare to sign his 
name, to Patrick Henry, then governor of 
Virginia, representing the army of Washing- 
ton as without a head, and disparaging Wash- 
ington as no general. " A Gates, a Lee or a 
Conway," he added. " would in a few weeks 
render them an irresistible body of men. 
Some of the contents of this letter ought to 
be made public in order to awaken, enlighten 
and alarm our country." Patrick Henry 
took no notice of this paper save to forward it 
to Washington. A similar anonymous docu- 
ment was forwarded to Henry Laurens, the 
president of Congress, who also sent it to 
Washington. Great efforts were made to win 
over Lafayette to the plot, but without the 
least success. 

Washington was to a great extent aware 
of the plot against him but took no public 



AID FROM ABROAD. 



431 



notice of it. He was deeply pained by the 
unjust censure to which he was subjected, 
but he never for a moment harbored the 
thought of laying down the great work he 
had assumed. He knew his course would 
bear the most rigid inspection. He knew 
that the capture of Burgoyne's army which 
had made Gates the hero of the hour, was 
due to no skill on the part of that officer 
but was the result of the plan of defence 
Washington had long before arranged with 
General Schuyler. In his efforts to contend 
against General Howe he was under many 
disadvantages, not the least of which was the 
fact that his army was encamped in a region 
abounding in Tories who refused him any sup- 
port and constantly aided the British. His 
army was imperfectly disciplined ; it was infer- 
ior in numbers and equipment to the enemy ; 
and was in no condition to meet Howe in the 
open field, still less to undertake the difficult 
task of driving him from his intrenchments 
at Philadelphia. 

Conway in Disgrace. 

"Had the same spirit pervaded the people of 
this and the neighboring States, as the States 
of New York and New England," said Wash- 
ington, " we might have had General Howe 
nearly in the same situation as General Bur- 
goyne." Washington knew that the salva- 
tion of the country demanded his presence at 
the head of the army. He trusted to time for 
his vindication, and was chiefly anxious that 
the enemy should not learn of the dissensions 
in the councils and camp of the Americans. 
He firmly opposed the appointment of Con- 
way to the post of " inspector of the armies 
of the United States," but Congress, under 
the influence of the cabal, appointed Canway 
to that place with the rank of major-general. 

In a little while the actions of the conspir- 
itors became known and aroused such a storm 
of indignation from the officers and men of 



the army, from the legislatures of the States, 
and from the great mass of the people that 
Gates and Conway and their associates cow- 
ered before it, and Congress became heartily 




AN AMERICAN RIFLEMAN. 

ashamed of having given the plot any en- 
couragement. The only effect of the con- 
spiricy was to raise Washington higher in the 
confidence and affection of his countrymen. 
The members of the conspiricy were ever 



432 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



afterwards anxious to deny their share in it. 
The punishment of Gates came as soon as 
he was entrusted with an independent com- 
mand, as we shall see. As for Conway, he 
was despised by the better part of the officers 
of the army, and found his position so unenvia- 
ble that he addressed a note to Congress 
complaining that he had been badly treated, 
and intimated his intention to resign because 
he was not ordered to the northern depart- 
ment. Congress was by this time ashamed 
of having bestowed upon him such unde- 
served honors, and gladly interpreted his let- 
ter as an actual resignation of his rank, and 
at once ended the difficulty by accepting it. 

Challenged to a Duel. 

Conway was profoundly astonished. He 
was confident that Congress would be terri- 
fied by his threat to resign, and urge him to 
remain in the service, and was utterly unpre- 
pared for the action of that body. He hast- 
ened to explain his letter but was not listened 
to. Some time after he ventured to de- 
nounce the commander-in-chief, and was 
challenged to a duel by General Cadwallader 
\vho had already charged him with cowardice 
at the battle of Germantown. Conway was 
wounded ; and beleiving himself near death 
wrote to Washington, apologizing for his 
conduct towards him. " You are," he said, 
" in my eyes the great and good man. May 
you long enjoy the love, veneration and es- 
teem of these States whose liberties you have 
asserted by your virtues." His wound was 
not mortal as he had supposed, and he recov- 
ered, and soon left the country. 

The winter was passed by Washington in 
an effort to increase the army, and render it 
more efficient. Baron Steuben-, a Prussian 
officer, who had served under Frederick the 
Great, was appointed inspector, with the rank 
of major-general. He introduced into the 
army the drill and discipline of the Prussian 



service, and greatly increased its efficiency. 
The various States, save Georgia and South 
Carolina, were called upon by Ccngress to 
contribute their quota of troops to the army. 
In consideration of their large slave popula- 
tion, and the neccessity of retaining their 
troops for their own defence, those States 
were excused from compliance with this de- 
mand. 

Congress and the Army. 

Count Pulaski succeeded in raising an in- 
dependent body of cavalry, and Major Henry 
Lee organized a regiment of light horse, 
which under his command subsequently be- 
came noted as one of the most efficient corps 
of the army. Congress proposed to in- 
crease the force of the army to sixty thous- 
and men, but was never able to bring it to 
more than half that number. 

The inability of Congress to pay the troops- 
compelled many of the officers to leave the 
army, in order to provide for their families, 
who were suffering. Congress called upon 
the States to raise the money for the public 
expenses by taxing their people, but some of 
them neglected to respond to this appeal, and 
the remainder were too poor to render such as- 
sistance. Congress issued new bills of credit 
but the value of the " Continental Currency," 
as this money was called, had depreciated so 
greatly that a pair of shoes could not be 
bought for less than from five to six hundred 
dollars in these bills. The Tories and the 
British depreciated them still further by flood- 
ing the country with counterfeits. 

A great improvement was made in the 
supply of provisions furnished the army by 
the appointment of General Greene, at the 
request of Washington, to the post of quarter- 
master-general, which had been held by Gen- 
eral Mifflin, who had neglected its duties 
on all occaisons. At the urgent solicitation 
of the commander-in-chief, Greene assumed: 



AID FROM ABROAD. 



433 



the distasteful position for one year, and dis- 
charged its duties with a skill and precision 
which kept the army so well supplied with 
provisions and ammunition that it was never, 
during his administration, obliggd to aban- 
don a movement because of a lack of these 
necessities. 

A Traitor in the Camp. 

In April, 1778, General Prescott was 
exchanged for General Charles Lee, who at 
once returned to duty in the army. During 
his captivity Lee, who was willing to ruin 
the cause if he could benefit himself, pro- 
posed a plan to the British ministry by which 
they could, in his opinion, bring the war to 
a successful close. The ministers did not 
see fit to adopt Lee's plan, but filed it away 
among the British archives, and the traitor 
was exchanged and permitted to resume his 
command in the American army, to become 
again a source of trouble and loss to it. 

In the meantime the American cause had 
assumed a new phase abroad. The English 
government had confidently expected that 
Burgoyne's expedition would be successful, 
and the result of his operations was watched 
by France with the deepest anxiety. When 
news arrived of the defeat of Burgoyne the 
astonishment of King George and his min- 
isters was equalled only by their mortifica- 
tion. It was resolved to wipe out the 
humiliation by a more vigorous prosecution 
of the war. It was rumored that France 
was about to aid the Americans, and that 
Holland was on the point of loaning them 
money. 

These rumors aroused the English people 

to a heartier support of the governm.ent 

than they had yet given it, and many of the 

principal cities offered to raise troops to 

supply the places of those who had been 

surrendered by Burgoyne. At the same 

time the friends of America were greatly 
28 



encouraged and resolved to make a new 
effort to put a stop to the war by offering 
America such terms as would either induce 
her to renew her former connection with 
Great Britain or to become the ally and 
friend of that country. A considerable sum 
of money was subscribed by these for the 
relief of the American prisoners, who were 
left by the government without even the 
necessaries of life. 

Trouble in Parliament. 

When Parliament assembled a strong 
attack was made upon the policy of the 
king by the friends of America. The em- 
ployment of the Hessians, and, above all, of 
the barbarous Indians of North America, 
whose cruelties shocked the English people, 
was severely denounced. The mercantile 
class was seriously discontented. Its trade 
with America was destroyed, and the activity 
of the American cruisers was so great that 
six hundred English vessels had already 
been captured ; and it was necessary to con- 
voy merchantmen by vessels of war from 
one port of the kingdom to another. Thus 
far the war had caused an expenditure of 
twenty thousand lives and one hundred mil- 
lions of dollars, and the conquest of America 
was as far off as at the commencement of 
hostilities. 

Under this pressure the king was con- 
strained to yield, and, in February, 1778, 
Lord North presented to Parliment two bills 
by which his majesty hoped to maintain his 
authority in America, and conciliate his re- 
volted subjects. The first of these renounced 
all intention on the part of Great Britian to 
levy taxes in America ; the other appointed 
five commissioners to negotiate with the 
Americans for the restoration of the authority 
of England and the close of the war. The 
consent of the king to these measures was 
wrung from him by the complaints of a large 



434 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



part of the English people, and by his fear 
that France would openly aid the United 
States. These bills involved a direct sur- 
render of the whole ground of the war; but 
indicated no change of opinion on the 
part of the king. 

This action on the part of Great Britian 




LOUIS XVI. 

aroused the French government to a more 
energetic course. Louis XVI. was opposed 
to treating with the United States ; but the 
French ministers were aware that a prompt 
recognition on their part of the independence 
of the republic would effectually neutralize 
the measures of Great Britain, and prevent a 



reconciliation. France was perfectly willing 
that America and England should weaken 
each other by their contest, but she was re- 
solved that Great Britain should never recover 
her colonies. The capture of Burgoyne's 
army had demonstrated the ability of Amer- 
ica to continue the war, and the French minis- 
ters resolved to lose no time in 
concluding an alliance with her. 
On the seventeenth of Decem- 
ber, 1777, the Count de Ver- 
gennes caused Franklin and 
Deane to be informed of the 
king's intention not only to 
acknowledge but to support the 
independence of America, and 
on the sixth of February a treaty 
of friendship and commerce, and 
a second treaty of defensive alli- 
ance, were concluded between 
the United States and France. 
The latter bound the United 
States to support France in case 
Great Britain should declare war 
against her. The King of France 
acknowledged the independence 
of the United States of America, 
and agreed to assist them with 
his fleet and army. No peace 
was to be made without mutual 
consent, and not until the inde- 
pendence of the United States 
should be acknowledged by 
Great Britain. These treaties 
were ratified by Congress, and 
were hailed with joy by the 
Americans, whose confidence 
was revived by the assurance of the assist- 
ance of one of the most powerful states of 
Europe. 

When the news of the treaties was received 
in England, the friends of America the 
government to abandon the war, and acknow- 
ledge the independence of the United States, 



AID FROM ABROAD 



as the only way of retaining the good feeling 
and trade of that country. The government 
would not even entertain the proprosition. 
The most it would do was to pass the concil- 
iatory bills of Lord North. If they failed to 
accomplish the desired end the war must go 
on. In March France 
formally communi- 
cated to England her 
treaties with America. 
This was regarded by 
England as a declara- 
tion of war, and the 
British ambassador 
was at once recalled 
from Paris. 

In June the Bri- 
tish commissioners, 
appointed to treat 
under Lord North's 
conciliatory measures, 
arrived in America 
and opened negotia- 
tions. Congress de- 
manded as a prelude 
to any negotiations, 
that the independence 
of the United States 
should be recognized 
by England, and her 
fleets and armies with- 
drawn from America. 
The commissioners 
having no authority to 
treat upon any such 
basis returned to Eng- 
land, having first made 
several ineffectual ef- 
forts to detach prominent Americans from 
the cause by bribery. 

The course of Sir William Howe had not 
pleased the British government, and he was 
removed from his command on the eleventh 
of May, 1788, and was replaced by Sir 



435 

Henry Clinton. About the same time Clin- 
ton was informed by his government that a 
large French fleet might be expected at any 
moment on the American coast, and was 
ordered to evacuate Philadelphia and concen- 
trate all his forces at New York. 




SIR HENRY CLINTON. 

He accordingly sent his sick and wounded 
and most of his stores, with his fleet around 
to New York by sea ; while, with his army, 
twelve thousand strong, he left Philadelphia 
on the eighteenth of June, and, crossing the 
Delaware, began his march through New 



436 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Jersey to New York. As soon as Washing- 
ton learned of his movement he broke up 
his camp, on the twenty-fourth of June, and 
crossed the Delaware in pursuit of the Brit- 
ish army. The intense heat of the weather, 
► and the heavy train which the British carried 
with them, caused them to move very slowly, 
and Washington soon overtook them. A 
council of war was called, at which General 
Charles Lee, who held the second rank in 
the American army, urged that Washington 
should confine his efforts to harassing the 
British on the march. It was resolved, how- 
ever to attack the enemy and force them to 
a general engagement. Lee at first declined 
to take any part in the battle, but at the last 
moment changed his mind, and solicited a 
command. 

Retreat of Clinton. 

Upon the adjournment of the council of 
war, on the twenty-seventh of June, Wash- 
ington sent Lafayette, with two thousand 
men, to occupy the hills near Monmouth 
Court-house and confine the enemy to the 
plains. On the morning of the twenty-eight,h 
of June Lee, who had asked for a command, 
was sent forward by Washington with two 
brigades to attack the enemy. Upon coming 
up with Lafayette, who was his junior, Lee 
assumed the command of the whole advanced 
force and marched in the direction of the 
enemy, who had encamped on the previous 
night near Monmouth Court-house, and had 
resumed their march early on the morn- 
ing of the twenty-eighth. As soon as Clin- 
ton heard of Lee's advance he determined 
to drive him back, and for this purpose 
wheeled about with his whole rear division, 
and made a sharp attack upon Lee, who fell 
back to higher ground. A misunderstand- 
ing of his order caused one of his subordi- 
officers to abandon his position and Lee's 
whole force fell back in some confusion. 



In the excitement of the moment Lee 
forgot to send word to Washington of his 
movement, and the first the commander-in- 
chief, who was advancing with the main 
body, knew of it was the right of Lee's 
command falling back rapidly and in dis- 
order. Riding up to the fugitives he asked 
them why they were retreating, and was 
answered that they did not know, but had 
been ordered to do so. Suspecting that 
the retreat had been ordered for the purpose 
of ruining the plan of battle, Washington 
hastened forward until he met General Lee 
and sternly demanded of him : " What is 
the meaning of all this, sir? " Lee was dis- 
concerted for a moment, and then answered 
that the retreat was contrary to his orders ; 
and moreover, that he did not wish to en- 
counter the whole British army. " I am 
sorry," said Washington, " that you under- 
took the command unless you meant to fight 
the enemy." Lee answered that he did not 
think it prudent to bring on a general 
engagement. Washington replied, sternly : 
" Whatever your opinion may have been, I 
expect my orders to be obeyed." 

Fugitives Made to Halt. 

Washington at once reformed the men on 
a commanding eminence, and hurried the 
main body of the Americans forward to their 
support. The British soon appeared in 
force and endeavored to dislodge the Ameri- 
cans from their position, and failing in this, 
attempted, but without success, to turn their 
left flank. The battle lasted till nightfall, 
and the American army bivouaced on the 
field, expecting to renew the engagement 
the next morning ; but during the night 
Clinton skilfully withdrew from his lines and 
continued his retreat. The weather was so 
warm that Washington did not deem it 
prudent to continue the pursuit, and Clinton 
was allowed to regain New York without 



AID FROM ABROAD. 



437 



further molestation. The Americans lost 
about two hundred men in this engagement, 
a number of whom died from the effects of 
the extreme heat. The British lost three 
hundred men. During the retreat two 
thousand Hessians deserted from the British 
ranks. 

Lee Dismissed from the Army. 

As General Lee possessed a large share of 
the confidence of the commander-in-chief, 
he might have saved himself from the con- 
sequences of his fault, had he sought to ex- 
plain his conduct in a proper manner. On 
the day after the battle he addressed an 
insulting letter to Washington, and met the 
reply of the commander-in-chief with 
another letter still more disrespectful in tone, 
demanding a court of inquiry. The court 
found him guilty of disobedience of orders, 
and of disrespect to the commander-in-chief, 
and sentenced him to be suspended from his 
rank for one year. Towards the close of his 
term of punishment he addressed an insolent 
letter to Congress, in consequence of some 
fancied neglect, and was dismissed from the 
army, A few years later he died in Phila- 
delphia. 

After the battle of Monmouth Washington 
halted for a short time to refresh his men, 
and then marching to the Hudson crossed 
that stream and took position at White 
Plains, in New York, to be ready to co- 
operate with the French fleet, which was 
daily expected, in an attack upon the city of 
New York. The French fleet under Count 
D'Estaing, with four thousand troops on 
board, had arrived in the Delaware just after 
Lord Howe had sailed for New York, Fail- 
ing to find the enemy in the Delaware, 
D'Estaing sailed for New York, but Lord 
Howe withdrew his vessels into Raritan 
Bay, and as the larger French ships could 
not cross the bar, the contemplated attack 



upon New York was abandoned, to the 
great regret of Washington, 

The French fleet brought the American 
commissioners who had negotiated the treaty 
with France, and also Monsieur Gerard, the 
first ambassador from the French king to 
the United States. 

In place of the combined attack upon New 
York it was resolved by Washington, in con- 
cert with the French admiral, to attack 
Newport and drive the British out of Rhode 
Island. The British had established one of 
their principal depots of supplies at this 
point, and had there a force of six thousand 
men under General Pigot. It was arranged 
that a force of American troops under 
General Sullivan should attack the enemy 
by land, while the French fleet and army 
should cooperate with Sullivan from the 
sea. On the twenty-ninth of July D'Estaing 
reached Narragansett Bay with his fleet, and 
on the eighth of August entered Newport 
harbor, in spite of the fire of the British 
batteries. A whole week had been lost, 
however, by the failure of the American 
troops to reach the positions assigned them 
as promptly as the French fleet. The delay 
was unavoidable, but it ruined the enterprise. 

The Fleet Scattered. 

On the ninth Lord Howe arrived off New- 
port harbor with his fleet to the assistance of 
General Pigot. On the tenth D'Estaing 
sailed out to engage the British fleet, but 
before this could be effected a sudden and 
terrible storm scattered both fleets. Howe 
returned to New York, and D'Estaing made 
his way back to Narragansett bay in a crippled 
condition. Instead of landing the four thous- 
and French troops he had brought with him, 
the French admiral sailed to Boston with his 
whole force to refit. 

Sullivan in the meantime had crossed from 
the mainland to the island of Rhode Island 



438 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



and had taken position before the British in- 
trenchments in front of Newport. Here he 
awaited the return of the French fleet, and 
in the meanwhile kept up a steady fire upon 
the British works. Upon D'Estaing's return 
he informed SulHvan of his intention to sail to 
Boston to refit his ships. Sullivan earnestly 
begged him to remain two or three days, as 
the British must certainly surrender by the 
end of that time. D'Estaing refused to do 
so. Sullivan then asked that the French 
troops might be left to cooperate with him 
and this also was refused. Left alone, Sulli- 
van was obliged to retreat to the mainland, 
as he learned that aid was on its way from 
New York to Pigot. He effected this move- 
ment with skill and success, on the night of 
the thirtieth of August. The next day Sir 
Henry Clinton reached Newport with a 
squadron of several ships and a reinforce- 
ment of four thousand men. 

Brutal Warfare. 

As he had arrived too late to attack the 
force under Sullivan, Clinton sent the troops 
he had brought with him, under Major-Gen- 
eral Grey,to ravage the coasts to the eastward. 
Grey destroyed a large number of vessels 
along the coasts, and stripped Fair Haven, 
New Bedford, and the island of Martha's 
Vineyard of everything that could be carried 
off, and returned to New York laden with 
plunder. 

Late in October a British fleet which had 
been dispatched from England under Ad- 
miral Byron in pursuit of D'Estaing, arrived 
off Boston harbor. Byron was unwilling to 
venture within the harbor, and the French 
would not leave their place of security, and 
the English remained off Boston until a storm 
arose and scattered their fleet. On the first of 
November the French, taking advantage of 
the enforced withdrawal of their enemy, 
stood out to sea and sailed for the West 



Indies, and on the same day Clinton des- 
patched a force of five thousand British 
troops from New York to the West Indies. 

Brutal as was the conduct of General Grey, 
it had been already surpassed by the British 
and their Indian allies in Pennyslvania. The 
inhabitants of Wyoming valley, a beautiful 
region on the Susquehanna, had driven away 
the Tories from that region, and these had 
resolved upon revenge. Early in July a force 
of about eleven hundred Tories and Indians, 
under Colonel John Butler and the Indian 
chief Brandt, entered the Wyoming valley. 
Nearly all the able-bodied settlers were ab- 
sent with the American army, and upon 
hearing of the approach of the enemy a 
small force had been despatched by Wash- 
ington under Colonel Zebulon Butler, to the 
assistance of the settlers. 

This force was defeated by the Tories and 
Indians, who then proceeded to lay waste 
the valley and murder the inhabitants. They 
performed their bloody work in the most 
barbarous manner, and the beautiful valley 
was made a desolation. In the following 
month Cherry Valley in New York was rav- 
aged with equal cruelty by a force of Tories 
and Indians, and the inhabitants were either 
murdered or carried into captivity. The 
entire region of the upper Susquehanna and 
Delaware and the valley of the Mohawk 
were at the mercy of the savage allies of 
Great Britain. 

Battle of Savannah. 

In the latter part of November, Sir Henry 
Clinton sent a force of two thousand men 
from New York under Colonel Campbell to 
attack Savannah, Georgia, which was held 
by a garrison of one thousand men under 
General Robert Howe. The British carried 
the American position after a sharp engage- 
ment, and on the twenty-ninth of December, 
Savannah surrendered to them. General 



AID FROM ABROAD. 



439 



Prevost, the English commander in Florida, 
now repaired to Savannah, and assumed the 
command. On his march across the country 
he captured Sunbury, a fort of considerable 
importance. Upon reaching Savannah he 
sent Colonel Campbell to seize Augusta, 
which was quickly secured and fortified. 



ton established his headquarters at Middle- 
brook, New Jersey, near the centre of his 
line. The winter passed away without any 
event of importance. The British held New 
York and Newport with too strong a force 
to make an attack upon either post success- 
fully, and the withdrawal of the French fleet 




INDIAN SCALP DANCE. 



Georgia was thus entirely subdued by the 
British by the middle of January, 1779. 

After the failure of the attack upon New- 
port the American Army went into winter 
quarters, occupying a series of cantonments 
extending from the eastern end of Long 
Island sound to the Delaware. This dispo- 
sition enabled them to oppose a force to the 
British at every important point. Washing- 



to the West Indies left Washington without 
any means of encountering the naval force 
of the enemy. 

The season was not without its trials, how- 
ever. Washington wrote at the beginning 
of the year 1779, " Our affairs are in a more 
distressed, ruinous, and deplorable condition 
than they have been since the commence- 
ment of the war." The currency of the 



440 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



country grew more worthless every day. 
During the year 1779 the enormous sum of 
one hundred and thirty-one million of dol- 
lars was issued in continental bills. The 
magnitude of the volume of the currency 
only served to depreciate it more and more, 
and though supplies and articles of trade 
were plentiful, their owners refused to accept 
the depreciated bills of Congress, and would 
sell for gold and silver only. " A wagon 
load of money," Washington wrote to the 
president of Congress, '* will not purchase a 
wagon-load of provisions." During the year 
the currency depreciated from eight dollars 
foi one dollar to forty-one dollars and fifty 
cents for one dollar. Congress had so little 
specie that everything must have gone to 
ruin but for the exertions' of Robert Morris, 
a member of Congress from Pennsylvania, 
and a leading merchant of Philadelphia, who 
borrowed large sums of coin on his own 
credit, and loaned them to the government. 
This he continued to do throughout the 
war. 

Congress had long before this been de- 
prived of many of its ablest members, who 
had resigned their seats in order to accept 
appointments in their own States, or to enter 
the army. Their places were filled with 
weaker men, and many dissensions mark the 
deliberations of the Congress of this period. 
Many members of Congress and a large 
part of the people seemed to regard the alli- 
ance with France as decisive of the war, and 
were disposed to relax their efforts. 

France and Canada. 

During the winter it was proposed to join 
the French in an expedition for the recovery 
of Canada for France, and the scheme found 
favor with a majority of the delegates in Con- 
gress. Washington opposed it with firm- 
ness. He pointed out to Congress the diffi- 
culty of the undertaking, and declared his 



conviction that it was not to the interest of 
the United States that a power different in 
race, language and religion from the people 
of this republic should have a footing upon 
this continent. In addition to this he did not 
desire the people of the United States to 
increase their obligations to a foreign, even 
though a friendly, power. 

The American forces in the Southern 
States were commanded by General Benjamin 
Lincoln, The Tories were very numerous 
and very active in this region, and the feel- 
ing between them and the patriots was one 
of the bitterest hostility, and often manifested 
itself in bloody and relentless conflicts. 
Seven hundred Tories under Colonel Boyd 
set out in February, 1779, to join Colonel 
Campbell at Augusta. On the fourteenth 
they were attacked at Kettle Creek by a force 
of patriots under Colonel Pickens, and were 
defeated with heavy loss. Pickens hung five 
of his prisoners as traitors. 

Fighting at Charleston. 

General Lincoln now sent General Ashe 
with two thousand men to drive the British 
out of Augusta. Upon hearing of his approach 
Colonel Campbell evacuated Augusta and 
fell back to Brier Creek, a small stream 
about halfway to Savannah. Ashe followed 
him, but without observing proper caution, 
and on the third of March was surprised and 
routed by Campbell, with the loss of nearly 
his entire force. This defeat encouraged 
General Prevost to attempt the capture of 
Charleston. 

He marched rapidly across the country 
to Charleston, and demanded its surrender. 
Lincoln, who had been reinforced, no sooner 
heard of this movement than he hastened by 
forced marches to the relief of Charleston 
and compelled Prevost to retire to St. John's 
island, opposite the mainland. The British 
threw up a redoubt at Stone ferry to protect 



AID FROM ABROAD. 



441 



the crossing to this island. It was attacked 
on the twentieth of June by the forces of 
General Lincoln, who were repulsed with 
heavy loss, A little later Prevost withdrew 
to Savannah, The intense heat of the wea- 
ther suspended military operations in the 
south during the remainder of the summer. 

In September, 1779, the French fleet under 
Count D'Estaing arrived off the coast of 
Georgia from the West Indies, and the admi- 
ral agreed to join Lincoln in an effort to 
recapture Savannah. The American army 
began its investment of the city on the 
twenty-third of September, and every- 
thing promised favorably for success ; 
but D'Estaing became impatient of the 
delay of a regular siege, and declared 
that he must return to the West Indies 
to watch the British fleet in those waters. 
Savannah must either be taken by assault, 
or he would withdraw from the siege. 
To please him Lincoln consented to storm J 
the British works, and the assault was 
made on the ninth of October, but was 
repulsed with severe loss. D'Estaing 
himself was wounded, and the chivalrous 
Count Pulaski was killed. Lincoln now 
retreated to Charleston, and the French 
fleet sailed to the West Indies, having a 
second time failed to render any real 
assistance to the Americans. This dis- 
aster closed the campaign for the year 
in the south. 

In the meantime Sir Henry Clinton had 
been ordered by his government to harass 
the American coast, and in accordance with 
these instructions despatched a number of 
plundering expeditions from New York 
against exposed points. One of these was 
sent in May, under General Mathews, into 
the Chesapeake, Mathews entered the Eliza- 
beth river, plundered the towns of Norfolk 
and Portsmouth, and burned one hundred 
and thirty merchant vessels and several ships 



of war on the stocks at Gosport, near Ports- 
mouth. He then ascended the James for 
some distance and ravaged its shores. He 
destroyed in this expedition two millions of 
dollars worth of property, and carried off 
about three thousand hogsheads of tobacco. 
Upon the return of this expedition, Clinton 
ascended the Hudson for the purpose of 
destroying two forts which the Americans 
were constructing a short distance below 
West Point, for the protection of King's 
Ferry, an important crossing-place between 




GENERAL BENJAMIN LINCOLN, 

the Eastern and Middle States. One of these, 
which was being built at Stony Point, was 
abandoned. The work on Verplanck's Point, 
on the east side of the Hudson, immediately 
opposite, was compelled to surrender early 
in June. 

Returning to New York, Clinton sent 
General Try on with twenty-five hundred 
men to plunder the coast of Long Island 
Sound. He plundered New Haven, burned 
Fairfield and Norwalk, and committed other 
outrages at Sag Harbor, on Long Island. In 




442 



GALLANT CHARGE OF COUNT PULASKL 



AID FROM ABROAD 



the course of a few days this inhuman wretch 
burned two hundred and fifty dwelling- 
houses, five churches, and one hundred and 
twenty-five barns and stores. Many of the 
inhabitants were cruelly murdered, and a 
number of women were outraged by the 
British troops. Tryon would have carried 
his outrages further had he not been recalled 
to New York by Clinton, who feared that 
Washington was about to attack him. 

The loss of Stony Point was a serious 
blow to Washington, as it compelled him to 
establish a new line of communication 
between the opposite sides of the 
Hudson by a longer and more tedious 
route through the Highlands. He 
resolved, therefore, the recapture of the 
post from the British at all hazards. 
The British had greatly strengthened 
the fort, which the Americans had left 
unfinished, and the only way in which 
it could be captured was by a surprise. 
It was a desperate undertaking, and 
Washington proposed to General An- 
thony Wayne to attempt it. 

Wayne readily consented, and the 
two generals made a careful recon- 
noissance of the position. It was 
agreed to make the attempt at mid- 
night, and in order to guard against 
a betrayal of the movement every 
dog in the vicinity was put to death. 
A negro who visited the fort regularly 
to sell fruit, and who had been for some time 
acting as a spy for the Americans, agreed to 
guide them to the work. 

At midnight on the fifteenth of July the 
storming party, guided by the negro, ap- 
proached the fort in two divisions. Not a 
man was permitted to load his musket, lest 
the accidental discharge of a gun should ruin 
the movement. The negro, accompanied 
by two soldiers who were disguised as 
farmers, approached the first sentinel and 



443 

gave the countersign. The sentinel was at 
once seized and gagged, and the same was 
done with the second sentinel. The third, 
however, gave the alarm, and the garrison 
flew to arms and opened a sharp fire upon 
the Americans. The latter now dashed for- 
ward at a run, scaled the parapet, and in 
a few moments the two opposite divisions met 
in the centre of the fort. 

The Americans took more than five hun- 
dred prisoners and all the supplies and 
artillery of the fort fell into their hands. 




GENERAL ANTHONY WAYNE. 

Though they were justly exasperated by the 
brutal outrages of the British., which we 
have related, they conducted themselves 
towards their prisoners with a noble 
humanity. The British historian, Stedman, 
declares, " They (the Americans) would 
have been fully justified in putting the gar- 
rison to the sword ; not one man of which 
was put to death but in fair combat." It 
was one of the most brilliant expeditions of 
the war. Wayne now proceeded to prepare 



444 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



for the reduction of the fort at Verplanck's 
Pohit, but while he was thus engaged a 
heavy British force ascended the ri.ver to its 
rehef, and he was obHged to forego his 
attack and also to abandon Stony Point. 

On the night of the eighteenth of June 
Major Henry Lee made a bold dash at the 
British fort at Paulus Hook, now Jersey 
City, and captured it, taking one hundred 
and fifty-nine prisoners. The British made 
great efforts to intercept him, but he effected 
his retreat in safety, bringing off his 
prisoners and losing only two men. For 




LIEUTENANT-COLONEL HENRY LEE. 

these galtant exploits both Wayne and Lee 
were each voted a gold medal by Congress. 
Towards the close of the summer of 1779 
Washington resolved to inflict upon the 
Indians a severe punishment for their out- 
rages upon the whites, and especially for 
massacres of Wyoming and Cherry Valley 
in the previous year. Early in August 
General Sullivan was sent into Western 
New York with three thousand men, with 
orders to ravish the country of the Six 
Nations. He was joined by General James 
Clinton with two thousand men, and on the 
twenty-ninth of August attacked and de- 



feated a force of seventeen hundred Indians 
and Tories at Newtown, now Elmira. Sulli- 
van followed up his victory by pushing for- 
ward into the Indian country and laying it 
waste with fire and sword. In the course of 
a few weeks he destroyed more than forty 
Indian villages and burned all the cornfields 
and orchards. The beautiful valley of the 
Genesee was made a desert, and to avoid 
starvation the Indians and their Tory allies 
were obliged to emigrate to Canada. They 
were quieted but for a time by the terrible 
vengeance of the Americans, and soon re- 
newed their depredations, and continued 
them to the end of the war. 

Congress had made great efforts to 
increase the force of the navy, and the num- 
ber of American men-of-war had been 
materially enlarged. Many of them had 
been captured, however, by the enemy, and 
the navy was still weak and unable to render 
much service to the cause, 

American Cruisers. 

The privateers were unusually active, and 
were hunted with unremitting vigilance by 
the English war vessels. They managed to 
inflict great loss upon the commerce of 
Great Britain, however. A number of 
American cruisers were fitted out in France, 
and kept the English coast in terror. 

John Paul Jones, a native of Scotland, 
who had been brought to Virginia at an 
early age, was one of the first naval officers 
commissioned by Congress. He was given 
command of the " Ranger," a vessel of 
eighteen guns, and by his brilliant and daring 
exploits kept the English coast in a state of 
terror, and even ventured to attack exposed 
points on the coast of Scotland. In 1779 
he was given command of a small squadron 
of three ships of war fitted out in France, 
and sailing from L'Orient, proceeded on a 
cruise aloncr the coast of Great Britain. 




PAUL JONES SEIZING THE SILVER PLATE OF LADY SELKIRK. 



445 



446 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



On the twenty-third of September he fell 
in with a fleet of merchantmen convoyed by 
two English frigates, and at once attacked 
them. The battle began at seven in the 
evening and was continned for three hours 
with great fury. Jones lashed his flagship, 
the "Bon Homme Richard," to the English 




JOHN PAUL JONES. 

frigate " Serapis," and the two vessels fought 
muzzle to muzzle until the Serapis sur- 
rendered. The other English vessel was 
also captured. The battle was one of the 
most desperate in the annals of naval war- 
fare, and Jones' flagship was so badly injured 
that it sunk in a few hours after the fighting 
was over. 



Jones was absent from home for about 
three years, during which time his exploits 
were numerous and of the most astonishing 
character. He was denounced as a pirate 
by the English, who became so alarmed by 
his achievements that many people did not 
feel safe even in London. Some of the timid 
ones looked out on the Thames, 
half-expecting to see the terrible 
fellow lay their city under tribute. 
At one time he landed on the coast 
of Scotland, and, appearing at the 
residence of the Earl of Selkirk, 
captured a large amount of silver 
plate and booty. But he treated 
the Earl's household with great 
courtesy, and the plate that was 
seized at the time is now in the 
possession of the members of the 
Selkirk family. 

Paul Jones returned to Phila-^ 
delphia February i8, 1781, and 
received a hearty welcome. Con- 
gress gave him an appropriate 
medal and a vote of thanks. [ 

In October Sir Henry Clinton, 
in obedience to orders from home, 
evacuated Newport and concen^ 
trated his forces at New York, 
which place he believed was in 
danger of an attack by the Ameri- 
cans and French. Until the close 
of the season Washington cher- 
ished the hope that the French 
fleet would return and assist him 
in an effort to regain New York, 
and had called out militia for this purpose. 
When he learned that D'Estaing had sailed to 
the West Indies after the failure of the attack 
upon Savannah he dismissed the militia to their 
homes and went into winter quarters in New 
Jersey, with his headquarters at Morristown. 
While these events had been transpiring 
upon the Atlantic seaboard the United States 



AID FROM ABROAD. 



447 



had been steadily pushing their way west- 
ward beyond the mountains. In 1769, 
before the commencement of the Revoki- 
tion, the beautiful region now known as 
Kentucky had been visited and explored by 
Daniel Boone, a famous Indian hunter. He 
was charmed with the beauty of the country 
and the excellence of the climate, and re- 
solved to make it his home. The reports of 
Boone and his companions aroused a great 
interest in the new country among the in- 
habitants of the older settlements in Vir- 
ginia and North Carolina, more especially as 
it was in this region that the lands given to 
the Virginia troops for their services in the 
French war were located. Surveyors were 
soon after sent out to lay off these lands, 
and in 1773 a party under Captain Bullit 
reached the falls of the Ohio and built a 
fortified camp there for the purpose of sur- 
veying the region. 

The Celebrated Daniel Boone. 

This was the commencement of the city 
of Louisville, but the actual settlement of 
the place was not begun until 1778. In 1774 
Harrodsburg was founded by James Harrod, 
one of Boone's companions ; and in 1775 
Daniel Boone built a fort on the site of the 
present town of Boonesborough. The sav- 
ages made repeated attacks upon his party, 
but failed to drive them away. The fort was 
finished by the middle of April, and soon 
after Boone was joined by his wife and 
daughters, the first white women in Ken- 
tucky. 

The region of Kentucky was claimed by 
Virginia, but the settlers submitted to the 
authority of that province with impatience. 
They sent a delegate to the Continental 
Congress in October, 1775, and claimed re- 
presentation in that body as an independent 
colony under the name of Transylvania; 
but the delegate of the fourteenth colony 



was not admitted by Congress, as Virginia 
claimed the territory as her own. In the 
spring of 1777 the general assembly of 
Virginia organized the Kentucky region as 
a county, and established a court of quarter 
sessions at Harrodsburg, In this condition 
Kentuckv remained durine the Revolution. 




MEDAL STRUCK IN HONOR OF PAUL JONES. 

The population increased rapidly in spite of 
the war and of the unremitting hostility of 
the Indians. 

During the revolution the Kentucky set- 
tlements suffered very much from the hos- 
tility of the Indians, who were urged on by 
the emissaries of Great Britain to a war of 



448 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 




DANIEL BOONE. 



extermination. The principal agent of the 
mother country in this barbarous warfare 
was Hamilton, the British commander at 



Detroit. In order to put 
a stop to his intrigues 
and deprive the Indians 
of his aid, Congress re- 
solved to despatch a 
force to attack Detroit. 

While this plan was 
in contemplation the 
State of Virginia in 1778, 
sent Colonel George 
Rogers Clarke with a 
force of two hundred 
men to conquer the ter- 
ritory northwest of the 
Ohio, which Virginia 
claimed as a part of her 
possessions. Clarke was 
a backwoodsman, but 
one of nature's heroes. 
He assembled his men 
at Pittsburg, and des- 
cended the Ohio to the 
falls in flat-boats. There 
he established a settle- 
ment of thirteen families, 
the germ of the present 
city of Louisville. Being 
joined by some Kentuck- 
ians he continued his 
descent of the river to a 
short distance below the 
mouth of the Tennessee. 
Landing and conceal- 
ing his boats, he struck 
across the country and 
surprised and captured 
the town of Kaskaskia, 
within the limits of the 
present State of Indiana. 
A detachment was sent 
to Kahokia, and re- 
ceived its submission. The people of these 
towns were of French origin, and were 
greatly averse to the English rule under 



AID FROM ABROAD. 



449 



which they had lived since the conquest of 
Canada. 

The alliance between the United States 
and France made them very willing to ac- 
knowledge the authority of the Union, to 
which they readily swore allegiance. The 
fort at Vincennes was in a weak condition 
and was held by a small garrison, and readily 
submitted to Clarke. 

Hamilton no sooner heard of the suc- 
cesses of Clarke than he set out from De- 
troit on the seventh of October, 1778, with 
a force of three hundred and fifty warriors, 
and on the seventeenth of December reoc- 
cupied Vincennes. He now prepared to 
drive the Americans out of the Illinois 
country, and spent the winter in trying to 
arouse the savages against them. He offered 
a significant reward for every American 
scalp brought in to him, but offered nothing 
for prisoners. At the same time he pro- 
posed to invade Virginia in the spring with 
with an overwhelming force of Indians. 

" To Their Armpits in "Water." 

Clarke and his party were in very great 
danger. They were entirely cut off from 
Virginia, and without hope of reinforements. 
In this emergency, Clarke, who had learned 
that Hamilton had greatly weakened the 
garrison at Vincennes, resolved to stake the 
fate of the west on a single issue, and attempt 
the capture of that post. On the seventh of 
February, 1 779, he left Kaskaskia with one 
hundred and thirty men, and marched across 
the country towards Vincennes. On the 
eighteenth they were within nine miles of 
Vincennes. 

The Wabash had overflowed the country 

along its banks, and in order to reach the 

object of their march, Clarke and his men 

were obliged to cross the submerged lands, 

up to their armpits in water. They were 

five days in crossing these " drowned lands," 
29 



and had the weather been less mild, must 
have perished. On the twenty-third Vin- 
cennes was reached, and the town was at 
once carried. Clarke then laid siege to the 
fort, assisted in this task by the inhabitants 
of the town, and in twenty-four hours com- 
pelled Hamilton and his men to surrender ^ 
themselves prisoners of war. 

A British Scheme Frustrated. 

Clarke was unable to advance against 
Detroit because of the insufficiency of his 
force. His successes, however, were among" 
the most important of the war. They not 
only put an end to the British scheme of a 
general Indian war along the western frontier 
of the United States, but established the 
authority of the Union over the country east 
of the Mississippi, and prevented Great Bri- 
tain from asserting a claim to that region at 
the conclusion of peace, a few years later^ 
Returning to the Ohio, Clarke built a block- 
house at the falls. The conquered territory 
was claimed by Virginia, and was erected by 
the legislature of that State into the county 
of Illinois. By order of Governor Jefferson 
of Virginia, Clarke established a fort on the 
Mississippi, about five miles below the mouth 
of the Ohio, which he named Fort Jefferson, 
and entered into friendly relations with the 
Spaniards at St. Louis. 

The Tennessee region, which formed a 
part of the province of North Carolina, had 
been settled previous to the outbreak of hos- 
tilities. Fort Loudon, about thirty miles 
southwest of Knoxville, was built in 1756,. 
and in 1770 the Cumberland Valley was 
settled, and Nashville was founded. By the 
commencement of the revolution the Ten- 
nessee country was quickly settled, and the 
population was increasing at an encouraging 
rate. In 1776 the Cherokees, incited by the 
British, waged a formidable war upon the 
settlers, but were defeated. 



CHAPTER XXX 
The Close of the War 

Severity of the Winter of 1779-80 — Sufferings of the American Army — Clinton Sails for the Carolinas — Colonel Tarle- 
ton — Capture of Charleston — Conquest of South Carolina — Gates in Command of the Southern Army — Battle of 
Camden — Exploits of Marion and Sumter — Advance of Cornwallis — Battle of King's Mountain — Gates Succeeded 
by General Greene — Knyphausen's Expedition into New Jersey — Arrival of the French Fleet and Army — Arnold's 
Treason — The Plot for the Betrayal of West Point — Arrest of Major Andre — Flight of Arnold — Execution of Andre — 
Mutiny of the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Troops — Measures of Congress — Arnold Captures Richmond, Virginia — 
Battle of Cowpens — Masterly Retreat of General Greene — Cornwallis Baffled — Battle of Guilford Court House — Corn- 
wallis at Wilmington — Battle of Hobkirk's Hill — Siege of Ninety-six — Execution of Colonel Hayne — Battle of Eutaw 
Springs — Washington Decides to Attack New York — The French Army on the Hudson — Financial Affairs — Re- 
sumption of Specie Payments — Message from the Count De Grasse — Cornwallis at Yorktown — The American Army 
Moves Southward — Siege of Yorktown — Surrender of Cornwallis — Effect of the News in England — Indian Troubles — 
Efforts in England for Peace — Negotiations Opened — Treaty of Paris — End of the War — The Army Disbanded — 
"Washington Resigns his Commission. 



THE winter of 1779-80 was passed by 
the American army in huts near 
Morristown. It was one of the 
severest seasons ever experienced 
in America. The harbor of New York was 
frozen over as far as the Narrows, and the 
ice was strong enough to bear the heaviest 
artillery. Communication between New 
York and the sea was entirely cut off and 
the British garrison and the citizens suffered 
from a scarcity of provisions. Knyphausen 
was afraid the Americans would seek to pass 
the Hudson on the ice and attack the city, 
and landed the crews of the shipping in 
the harbor and added them to the gar- 
rison. His precautions were useless, as the 
American army was too weak and too poorly 
supplied to undertake the capture of New 
York. 

The troops at Morristown suffered very 
greatly during the winter. They had scarcely 
clothing enough to protect them from the 
cold ; and provisions were so scarce that in 
order to keep his men from starvation 
Washington was compelled to impress sup- 
plies from the people of the surrounding 



country. The heavy snows made the army 
entirely dependent upon New Jersey for its 
subsistence, as transportation from a long 
distance could not be attempted. The 
people of New Jersey bore the sacrifices im- 
posed upon them with a noble cheerfulness, 
and though their state was drained almost 
to exhaustion, were untiring in their efforts 
to provide food and clothing for the troops. 
The Continental currency had fallen so low 
that one dollar in silver was worth thirty 
dollars in paper by the beginning of the year 
1780; but neither officers nor men could 
obtain their pay in this depreciated cur- 
rency. It was almost impossible for the 
government to purchase anything with its 
notes. 

About the last of December, 1779, Sir 
Henry Clinton, leaving a strong garrison 
under General Knyphausen to hold New 
York, sailed south, with the greater part of 
his army, in the fleet of Admiral Arbuthnot. 
He proceeded first to Savannah, and then 
moved northward for the purpose of besieg- 
ing Charleston. General Lincoln exerted 
himself with energy to fortify that city. Four 

450 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



451 



thousand citizens enrolled themselves to 
assist the regular garrison in the defence, but 
only two hundred militia from the interior 
responded to Lincoln's call for aid. Rein- 
forcements were received from Virginia and 
North Carolina, and Lincoln was able to 
muster seven thousand men, of whom but 
two thousand were regular troops. 

In February, 1780, the British landed at 
St. John's island, about thirty miles below 
Charleston. Clinton advanced towards the 
city along the banks of the Ashley, while 
the fleet sailed around to force an entrance 
into the harbor. The advance of Clinton 
was very gradual, and Lincoln was enabled 
to strengthen his works and prepare for a 
siege. It was not until early in April that 
Clinton's army appeared before the Amer- 
ican works and began preparations to reduce 
them. A day or two later the British fleet 
passed Fort Moultrie with but little loss and 
took position off the city. 

British Successes. 

Clinton had lost nearly all his horses on 
the voyage from New York, and was anxious 
to replace them from the country north of 
Charleston. The Americans had stationed 
bodies of militia at different points north of 
the city to keep open the communications 
with Charleston, and to prevent the foraging 
parties of the British from reaching the inte- 
rior. Clirrton intrusted the task of breaking 
up these posts and obtaining fresh horses to 
Lieutenant-Colonel Banastre Tarleton, a 
young and energetic officer. Tarleton was 
short of stature, of a dark, swarthy com- 
plexion, and broad shouldered and muscular 
He was insensible to fatigue, unscrupulous 
as to the means by which he accomplished 
his objects, merciless in battle, and unflag- 
ging in pursuit. He was one of the most 
efficient officers in the English army, and 
one of the most cruel. 



By purchase from friends and seizures from 
foes, he soon supplied Clinton with all the 
horses he needed. He then began his at- 
tempt to break up the American posts north 
of Charleston. On the night of the 14th of 
April, he surprised a body of fourteen hun- 
dred cavalry under General Huger and Col- 
onel William Washington, at Monk's Corner, 
about thirty miles north of Charleston. The 
Americans were defeated with a loss of one 
hundred prisoners and four hundred wagons 
laden with stores. A little later Fort Moul- 
trie surrendered, and soon after Tarleton cut 
to pieces another detachment of American 
cavalry. 

Charleston was now completely invested, 
and the siege was pressed with vigor by Clin- 
ton. Lincoln's situation became every day 
more hopeless. The fire of the British artil- 
lery destroyed his defences and dismounted 
his cannon, and as he was entirely cut off 
from the country he had no hope of relief 
from without. On the ninth of May a terri- 
ble fire was opened upon the defences and 
the city of Charleston. The city was set on 
fire in five places, and the American works 
were reduced to a mass of ruins. 

Surrender of Charleston. 

On the twelfth Lincoln surrendered the town 
and his army to Sir Henry Clinton. The pri- 
soners, including every male adult in the city, 
numbered about six thousand men. The reg- 
ulars were held as prisoners of war, but the 
militia were dismissed to their homes on their 
promise not to serve again during the war. 

Clinton followed up his capture of the city 
by a series of vigorous measures. Tarleton 
was despatched into the interior to attack a 
Virginia regiment under Beaufort, which 
was advancing to the relief of Charleston. 
Beaufort began his retreat as soon as he 
heard of the surrender of Charleston, but 
was overtaken and surprised by Tarleton at 



452 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Waxhaw's, on the boundary of North Carolina. 
The British had made a forced march of one 
hundred and five miles in fifty-four hours. 
They gave no quarters to the Americans, and 
put to the sword all who were unable to 
escape. Their barbarous conduct on this 
occasion was termed by the American's 
'' Tarleton's quarters." A second column was 
sent by Clinton to Augusta, and a third 
towards Camden to reduce the country 
between Charleston and those points. They 
encountered but little resistance. 

Negroes Desert their Masters. 

Clinton issued a proclamation threatening 
to visit the severest punishments upon those 
who refused to submit to the royal authority, 
and this was followed a little later by another, 
offering pardon to all who would return to 
their allegiance and assist in restoring the 
authority of the king. The measures of the 
British commander were entirely successful, 
and South Carolina was so completely sub- 
jugated that early in June Sir Henry Clinton 
sailed for New York, leaving Lord Corn- 
wallis to complete the conquest of the State. 
The country abounded in Tories, who ex- 
erted themselves actively to assist the British 
commander in his efforts to hold the Carolinas 
in subjection. Large numbers of them joined 
the British army, and " loyal legions " were 
formed in various parts of the country. 

The only resistance kept up by the Ameri- 
cans was maintained by the partisan corps of 
patriots led by Marion, Sumter, and Pickens. 
The exploits of these daring bands caused 
the British commander to feel that he could 
not hold the Carolinas except by the aid of 
a strong force, and kept him in a state of con- 
stant uneasiness. On the sixteenth of August 
Sumter defeated a large body of British and 
Tories at Hanging Rock, east oftheWateree 
river. Large numbers of negroes deserted 
their masters and fled to the British. 



In order to offer a definite resistance to the 
British, and to collect a regular army to 
oppose them, the Baron De Kalb was sent to 
to take command of the troops in the south, 
and all the regulars south of Pennsylvania 
were ordered to join him. De Kalb man- 
aged to collect about two regiments, and with 
these moved slowly southward. A lack of 
provisions forced him to halt three weeks on 
Deep river, one of the upper tributaries of the 
Cape Fear. 

Matters were so bad in the south that Con- 
gress resolved to send General Gates, the 
conqueror of Burgoyne, to take command of 
the army in that quarter. General Charles 
Lee, who knew that Gates was not the man 
to retrieve such losses, predicted that " his 
northern laurels would soon be changed into 
southern willows." Gates hastened south- 
ward, and overtook De Kalb at Deep river,, 
and assumed the command. De Kalb ad- 
vised him to move into South Carolina by a 
circuitous route through the county of Meck- 
lenburg, which was true to the patriot cause, 
and where provisions could be easily ob- 
tained. 

Total Defeat of General Gates. 

Gates declined to take his advice, and 
marched towards Camden by the direct 
route, which led through a barren and almost 
uninhabited region. He was sure that his 
wagons from the north laden with provisions 
would overtake the troops in two days ; but 
he was mistaken ; the wagons never made 
their appearance, and the troops suffered 
greatly from hunger and disease. His army 
increased every day by reinforcements from 
Virginia and North Carolina. On the thir- 
teenth of August, he reached Clermont, 
about twelve miles from Camden. His force 
now amounted to nearly four thousand 
men, nearly two-thirds of whom were Con- 
tinentals. 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



453 



Upon the approach of Gates, Lord Raw- 
don, the British commander in this part of 
the State, fell back to Camden, where he was 
joined by Cornwallis, who had just arrived 
from Charleston, and who assumed the com- 
mand. On the night of the fifteenth, Gates 
moved nearer to Cam- 
den, and at the same time 
Cornwallis advanced to 
attack Gates, whom he 
hoped to surprise. The 
advanced guards en- 
countered each other in 
the woods, and the two 
arn:]ies halted until morn- 
ing. The battle began 
with dawn, on the six- 
teenth of August. The 
militia fled at the first 
charge of the British, but 
the Continentals, under 
the brave De Kalb, stood 
firm, though attacked in 
front and flank. At 
length De Kalb fell mor- 
tally wounded, and the 
Continentals gave way. 
The American army was 
completely routed, and 
was broken up into small 
parties and scattered 
through the country. 
These continued a dis- 
orderly retreat, closely 
followed for about thirty 
miles by Tarleton's cav- 
alry, who cut them down 
without mercy. 

The battle of Camden was the most disas- 
trous defeat incurred by the Americans 
during the whole war. They lost nearly 
eighteen hundred men in killed and prison- 
ers, and all their artillery and stores. A few 
days after the battle. Gates reached Char- 



lotte, North Carolina, with about two hun- 
dred men, the remains of the army which his 
incapacity had ruined. 

A few days previous to the battle, Sumter 
surprised a detachment convoying stores to 
the British army at Camden, and took two 




LORD CORNWALLIS. 

hundred prisoners. As soon as Cornwallis 
heard of this, he sent Tarleton in pursuit of 
the " Game Cock," as he styled Sumter. 
Tarleton pushed forward with such vigor 
that half of his men and horses were broken 
down. He overtook Sumter at Fishinsf 




454 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



455 



Creek, on the west bank of the Catawba, and 
routed him with the loss of the greater part of 
his partisan corps, and rescued the prisoners. 

Early in December afterwards, an engage- 
ment took place between the Whigs and 
Tories on Long Cane, near Ninety-Six, 
which resulted disastrously to the patriot 
cause, and which was of sufficient importance 
to be noticed. Colonel Benjamin Few, of 
Georgia, was the senior officer in com- 
mand of the Whigs, composed of 
Georgia and South Carolina militia. 
Colonel Cruger, the British officer in 
command at Ninety-Six, with a greatly 
superior force, determined to attack 
Few in his camp by surprise. His 
forces were within three miles of Few's 
camp before the latter was aware of 
their approach. Colonel Clarke, Lieu- 
tenant Colonel McCall,and Major John 
Lindsay, with one hundred men, were 
ordered out to meet and skirmish with 
the enemy until the main body of 
Few's forces could be brought to their 
assistance. In this skirmish, Clarke 
received a wound in the shoulder 
which was thought to be mortal, and 
was carried from the field. McCall 
was wounded in the arm, and his horse 
being killed under him, narrowly made 
his escape. Major Lindsay lost his 
sword-hand by a sabre cut just at the 
wrist-joint. The advance or skirmish- 
ing party were routed, with fourteen killed 
and seven, chiefly officers, wounded. Colonel 
Few, then acting as brigadier-general, re- 
treated with the balance of his forces with- 
out further loss. 

All united and organized resistance to the 
British in the Carolinas now ceased for a time. 
The true policy of Cornwallis was to conciliate 
the people by acts of clemency, but instead 
of this he exasperated them by his unneces- 
sary severity. Among the prisoners taken at 



the defeat of Sumter were a number who had 
given their parole not to serve during the war. 
Some of these were hanged on the spot ; the 
remainder were subjected to a severe impri- 
sonment. These severities aroused a desire 
for vengeance among the people, and gave 
many recruits to Marion, who from the 
swamps of the lower Pedee maintained a 
constant and severe partisan warfare against 
the British. 




GENERAL FRANCIS MARION. 

At the same time, Sumter by great exer- 
tion recruited his command, and resumed 
his operations in the upper country. These 
bands were deficient in arms at first, but sup- 
plied themselves from the enemy. They 
made their own gunpowder, cast their own 
bullets, and provided food for themselves 
and their horses. By their rapid and secret 
movements they kept the British in a state 
of constant alarm. They would make a sud- 
den and unexpected attack upon the enemy 



456 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



at some exposed point, and before pursuit 
could be attempted would be miles away, or 
safe in the labyrinths of the swamps. 

Gates continued to retreat slowly to the 
northward after his defeat. He had now 
about a thousand men with him. Virginia 
and Maryland made great exertions to rein- 
force him, but without success. 

The Patriots Aroused. 

In September, CornwalHs advanced north- 
ward with the main body of his army. Upon 
reaching Charlotte he despatched Colonel 
Ferguson, one of his most trusted officers, 
to rally the Tories among the mountains in 
the interior. CornwalHs intended to advance 
from Charlotte by way of Salisbury and Hills- 
borough into Virginia, and form a junction 
with a force to be bent to the lower Chesa- 
peake by Sir Henry Clinton. The success of 
this movement would complete the subjuga- 
tion of the south. The patriots in the country 
through which his army passed were very 
active. His expresses were captured or shot, 
and his plans made known to the Americans. 
While Ferguson was on the march, Corn- 
walHs advanced to Salisbury. 

The movement of Ferguson roused the 
patriots of the interior counties to arms, and 
they assembled rapidly, with the intention of 
cutting him off from the army under Corn- 
walHs. They came from all directions, from 
as far as Kentucky and Tennessee. Their 
weapons were their rifles, to the use of which 
they had been trained from childhood ; they 
had no baggage ; and they moved forward 
as rapidly as their horses could carry them. 
These forces had been gathering for several 
days before the rumors of their march reached 
Colonel Ferguson. He regarded the reports 
with distrust at first, but upon receiving more 
accurate information began a rapid retreat. 
About the same time the various parties of 
the Americans effected a junction. They 



numbered three thousand men. A council 
of war was held, and it was resolved to send 
forward a detachment to bring Ferguson to 
a stand, and to follow with the main body as 
quickly as possible. 

Brilliant Exploits of Colonel Campbell. 

Nine hundred men, mounted on swift 
horses, were sent forward, under Colonel 
Campbell. They rode for thirty-six hours, 
a large part of the time through a drenching 
rain, and dismounted but once during this 
period. Ferguson, alarmed and astounded 
at this determination to crush him, fell back 
to a strong position on King's mountain, near 
the Catawba. He was attacked there on the 
seventh of October by the Americans, and 
defeated after a hotly contested fight. Fer- 
guson and about one hundred and fifty of 
his men were killed, the remainder were com- 
pelled to surrender. The prisoners num- 
bered about nine hundred and fifty, of whom 
about one hundred and fifty were wounded. 
The Americans lost twenty killed and a 
somewhat larger number wounded. The 
North Carolinians selected ten of the Tories 
who had earned their fate by their cruelties 
to the Americans, and hanged them on the 
spot. 

The Americans then separated and re- 
turned home, after seeing their prisoners safe 
in the hands of the proper authorities. Their 
victory raised the drooping spirits of their 
countrymen, and encouraged them to fresh 
exertions to resist the British. As soon as 
CornwalHs heard of it, he abandoned his for- 
ward movement, and, falling back into South 
Carolina, took position between the Broad 
and Saluda rivers. He remained there until 
the close of the year. 

Marion took advantage of the change of 
feeling caused by the victory of King's moun- 
tain to renew his operations on the Pedee, but 
Tarleton compelled him to withdraw to his 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



457 



fastness in the swamps. Sumter was more 
successful in the northern part of the State, 
and defeated a detchment sent in pursuit of 
him. 

Tarleton then went after him in person, 
but was defeated and forced to retreat. Sum- 
ter was wounded in this engagement, and 
was compelled to withdraw from the field for 
several months. During this period his com- 
mand, deprived of their leader, disbanded. 
The contest in the Carolinas de- 
generated into a savage civil war. 
The patriots and Tories fought 
each other wherever they met, and 
destroyed each other's property 
throughout the State. The country 
was thus kept in constant terror. 

Upon the retreat of Cornwallis 
from Salisbury, Gates advanced 
southward as far as Charlotte. 
Here he was relieved of his com- 
mand by General Nathaniel Greene, 
who had been appointed by Con- 
gress, at the urgent solicitation of 
Washington, to take charge of the 
southern department. Gates had 
given great disatisfaction by his 
failure in the south, and Congress 
ordered a court of inquiry to exa- 
mine into his conduct. Greene was 
placed in charge of the entire south "^ 

from Delaware to Georgia, "subject 
to the control of the commander-in- 
chief." Thus Washington was given the 
supreme direction of the war. Greene pos- 
sessed his entire confidence, and the most 
cordial and affectionate relations existed 
between them. Greene found the rem- 
nants of Gates' army in a half mutinous 
condition. The men were without pay, 
without clothing, and suffering for the 
necessaries of life. Reinforcements were 
sent him from the north, among which were 
Morgan's regiment of riflemen, Lee's legion 



of lighthorse, and several batteries of artil- 
lery. 

We must now return to the army under 
Washington. As the spring opened the 
sufferings of the troops at Morristown in- 
creased. Food was so scarce that the troops 
were driven to desperation. Two regiments 
of Connecticut troops declared their intention 
to abandon the army and march home, or 
wrest provisions from the people of the sur- 




GENERAL NATHANIEL GREENE. 

rounding country by force. Washington was 
compelled to exert all his influence and 
authority to restore order. It was with great 
difficulty that provisions were procured, and 
the wants of the troops supplied. The danger 
caused by this state of affairs was so great 
that Congress authorized Washington to 
declare martial law. 

The news of these troubles in the American 
camp induced Knyphausen to undertake an 
expedition into New Jersey. He landed at 



4S8 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



EUzabethtown, with five thousand men, on 
the sixth of June, and marched towards 
Springfield. His advance was warmly con- 
tested by the militia of the region, but he 
penetrated as far as the village of Connecticut 
Farms. Being unable to advance farther he 
caused the village to be sacked and burned ; 
and Mrs. Caldwell, the wife of the minister 



most infamous deeds of the war, and g-ave 
rise to a fierce and general spirit of vengeance. 
Her bushand, an eloquent and highly es- 
teemed minister, animated his contrymen by 
his stirring sermons, and he soon had the 
satisfaction of seeing that his labors were 
not in vain. 

After the return of Sir Henry Clinton to 










" NOW PUT WATTS INTO THEM, BOYS. 



of the village, was murdered by some of the 
British troops. The militia of the region 
gathered in force, and Knyphausen was 
obliged to make a hasty retreat to EUza- 
bethtown. 

The murder of Mrs. Caldwell aroused the 
most intense excitement throughout New 
Jersey. It was denounced as one of the 



New York Washington moved a part of his 
troops towards the Highlands. Knyphausen 
again advanced from EUzabethtown towards 
Springfield, hoping to gain the passes beyond 
Morristown before his march sould be dis- 
covered. His advance was detected, however, 
and General Greene, who was in command 
of the American forces, prepared to resist 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



459 



him. A sharp fight ensued, in which Greene 
succeeded in checking the British advance. 
The New Jersey regiment, of which Caldwell 
was chaplain, was engaged in the battle. 

The wadding of the men gave out, and 
Caldwell, mounting his horse, galloped to 
the Presbyterian church, and returned with 
an armful of Dr. Watts' hymn books, which 
he distributed among the troops, with the 
pious injunction, " Now put Watts into them, 
boys ! " The militia came flocking in to the 
support of General Greene, and Knyphausen 
finding it impossible to advance farther, 
burned Springfield and fell back to Elizabeth- 
town. 

Return of Lafayette. 

The Americans were greatly encouraged 
in the spring by the return of Lafayette, who 
had spent the winter in France. He had 
been successful in his endeavors to induce 
the French court to send another fleet and 
army to the assistance of the patriots ; and 
he now brought the good news that a new 
expedition was on its way to America. In 
July a fleet under Count de Tiernay, with an 
army of seven thousand men, under Count 
de Rochambeau, reached Newport. The 
Count de Rochambeau was directed by his 
government to place himself under the 
orders of General Warhington in order to 
avoid disputes that might arise from military 
etiquette. This expedition was the first divi- 
sion of the army to be sent to America by 
France. 

The second division was to sail from Brest, 
but was unable to do so, as it was blockaded 
in that harbor by a British squadron. Thus 
the supplies of arms and clothing which 
were to have been sent to the American 
army were delayed, and the troops under 
Washington were unable to cooperate with 
the French in an attack upon New York. 
An English fleet had followed the French 



across the Atlantic, and Clinton was anxious 
to secure its cooperation in an attack upon 
the French at Newport. He could not agree 
with Admiral Arbuthnot upon a plan of 
attack, and the English admiral contented 
himself with blockading the French in New- 
port harbor. Washington called out the 
militia of New England to assist in the de- 
fence of Newport in case of an attack. The 
French fleet was shut up in this port, and to 
the great disappointment of Washington, 
was unable to take part in any combined 
operation. 

Some weeks later Washington, anxious 
to strike a decisive blow at the enemy, 
invited the French commanders, De Tiernay 
and Rochambeau, to meet him at Hartford, 
to arrange a plan for an attack upon New 
York. The meeting was held, but it was 
decided to ask the cooperation of the French 
admiral in the West Indies, as the fleet at 
Newport was not strong enough to cope 
with the British fleet at New York. Until 
the answer of the admiral was received 
nothing could be done. 

A Treasonable Plot. 

While absent at Hartford a plot was dis- 
covered which involved the fair fame of one 
of the most brilliant officers of the American 
army. General Benedict Arnold had been 
disabled by the wounds he had received at 
Quebec and Saratoga from undertaking active 
service, and through the influence of Wash- 
ington had been placed in command of Phila- 
delphia after its evacuation by Clinton in 
1778. There he lived in a style far beyond 
his means, and became involved in debts, 
which he was unable to pay. To raise the 
funds to discharge them he engaged in pri- 
vateering and mercantile speculations. These 
were generally unsuccessful, and merely in- 
creased his difficulties. His haughty and 
overbearing manner involved him in a quar- 



460 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



rel with the authorities of Pennsylvania who 
accused him before Congress of abusing his 
official position and misusing the public 
funds. 

He was tried by a court-martial and was 
sentenced to be reprimanded by the com- 
mander-in-chief. Washington performed this 
disagreeable task as delicately as possible, 
but did not lose his confidence in Arnold. 




BENEDICT ARNOLD. 

He knew him as an able officer, but, as his 
acquaintance with him was limited, was most 
likely ignorant of the faults of Arnold's char- 
acter, which were well known to the mem- 
bers of Congress from Connecticut, who had 
no confidence in him. To them he was 
known to be naturally dishonest, regardless 
of the rights of others, and cruel and tyran- 
nical in his dealings with those under his 
authority. Arnold never forgave the dis- 



grace inflicted upon him by the sentence of 
the court-martial, and cherished the deter- 
mination to be revenged upon Washington 
for the reprimand received from him. 

While in Philadelphia, Arnold had married 
a member of a Tory family, and was thus 
enabled to communicate readily with the 
British officers. He opened a correspond- 
ence with Sir Henry Clinton, signing himself 
Gustavus. He kept up this cor- 
respondence for several months, 
and then made himself known 
to the British commander. In 
the meantime, at his earnest soli- 
citation, he was appointed by 
Washington, in August, 1780, 
to the command of West Point, 
the strongest and most important 
fortress in America. He did this 
with the deliberate intention of 
betraying the post into the hands 
of the enemy. 

The correspondence had been 
conducted on the part of Sir 
Henry Clinton by Major John 
Andre of the British army, a 
young man of amiable character 
and more than ordinary accom- 
plishments. He wrote under the 
assumed name of John Ander- 
son. He was an especial favorite 
of Sir Henry Clinton, and was 
beloved by the whole army in 
which he served. Soon after the 
appointment of Arnold to the command of 
West Point, Andre volunteered to go up the 
Hudson and have an interview with him for 
the purpose of completing the arrangements 
for the betrayal of that fortress. 

His offer was accepted by Clinton, and he 
ascended the Hudson as far as Haverstraw 
in the sloop of war " Vulture." He was set 
ashore and was met near Haverstraw on the 
west bank of the Hudson by General Arnold, 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



461 



on the twenty-second of September. The 
meeting took place about dark, and the night 
had passed before the arrangements were 
completed. Much against his will, Andre 
was compelled to pass the next day within 
the American lines. During the twenty-third 
the " Vulture," having attracted the attention 
of the Americans, was fired upon and forced 
to drop down the river. Andre found the 
man who had set him ashore 
unwilling to row him back to 
the sloop, and he was compelled 
to return to New York by land. 
He changed his uniform for a 
citizen's dress, and, provided 
with a pass from Arnold, under 
the name of John Anderson, set 
out for New York along the east 
bank of the river, which he 
deemed safer than the opposite 
shore. 

All went well until Andre 
reached the vicinity of Tarry- 
town. There he was stopped by 
three young men, John Paulding, 
David Williams, and Isaac Van 
Wart. They asked him his name 
and destination, and he, suppos- 
ing them to be Tories, did not use 
the pass given him by Arnold, but 
frankly avowed himself a British 
officer travelling on important 
business. To his dismay he then 
learned that his captors were of 
the patriotic party, and he offered 
them his watch, purse, and any reward they 
might name if they would suffer him to pro- 
ceed. They refused to allow him to stir a 
step, and searched his person. They found 
concealed in his boots papers giving the plan 
of West Point, and an account of its garrison. 

Andre was taken by his captors before 
Colcnel Jamison, the commander of the 
nearest American post. Jamison recognized 



the handwriting as that of Arnold, but, un- 
willing to believe that his commander could 
be guilty of treason, he detained the prisoner, 
and wrote to Arnold informing him of the 
arrest of Andre and of the papers found upon 
his person. The papers themselves he for- 
warded by a special messenger to Washing- 
ton, who was on his return from Hartford. 
Arnold received Colonel Jamison's letter 




MAJOR ANDRE. 

as he sat at breakfast with some of his offi- 
cers. He concealed his emotion, and excus- 
ing himself to his guests, called his wife from 
the room, told her he must flee for his life, 
and hastening to his barge, escaped down 
the river to the " Vulture," and was received 
on board by the commander of that vessel. 
From his place of safety he wrote to Wash- 
ington, asking him to protect his wife, who, 



462 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



lie declared, was innocent of any share in his 
plot. 

When he learned that Arnold was safe, 
Andre wrote to Washington, and confessed 
the whole plot. He was at once brought to 
trial upon the charge of being within the 
American lines as a spy; The court-martial 
was presided over by General Greene, and 
Lafayette and Steuben were among its mem- 
bers. Andre asserted that he had been 
induced to enter the American lines by the 
misrepresentations of Arnold. 

The Infamous Plot Confessed. 

He denied that he was a spy, and though 
cautioned not to say anything that might 
criminate himself, he frankly confessed the 
whole plot. He was sentenced, upon his 
own confession, to be hanged. Clinton made 
great exertions to save him, and Washing- 
ton, whose sympathy was won by the amiable 
character of Andre, was anxious to spare 
him. The circumstances of the case de- 
manded that the law should be executed, 
and Andre was was hanged at Tappan, near 
the Hudson, on the second of October, 1780. 
Congress voted to each of his three captors 
a pension of two hundred dollars for life and 
and a silver medal. 

The plot of Arnold had been discovered 
by the merest chance, and the American 
cause had narrowly escaped a crushing dis- 
aster. The loss of West Point would have 
given the British the entire control of the 
Hudson, and have enabled them to separate 
New England from the Middle and Southern 
States. It might have proved fatal to the 
cause, and certainly would have reduced 
Washington to great extremities. Arnold 
received for his treachery the sum of ten 
thousand pounds sterling and a commission 
as brigadier-general in the English service. 
He was regarded with general contempt by 
the English officers, who refused to associate 



with him, and were greatly averse to serving 
under him. 

In the summer of 1780 it seemed likely 
that England would be involved in war with 
the whole civilized world. The claim of 
Great Britain to the right to search the ves- 
sels of neutral nations for articles contraband 
of war was productive of great annoyance 
to the northern powers, whose commerce 
was subjected to serious loss by these arbi- 
trary measures. Catharine II. of Russia 
determined to resist it, and organized with 
Denmark and Sweden a league known as 
the " Armed Neutrality," for the purpose of 
enforcing the principle that neutral ships in 
time of war are entitled to carry merchan- 
dise without being liable to search or seizure 
by the belligerent powers. 

War in Europe. 

Holland joined this league, and concluded 
a secret commercial treaty with the United 
States. This treaty was discovered by Great 
Britain almost immediately, and in the fol- 
lowing manner : The American minister to 
Holland, Henry Laurens, was captured at 
sea by a British frigate. He threw his papers, 
the treaty among them, into the sea, but they 
were recovered by an English sailor, who 
sprang overboard and secured them. They 
were laid before the British government, 
which demanded that Holland should dis- 
avow the treaty and the correspondence with 
the United States. The Dutch government 
returned an evasive answer, and England 
immediately declared war against Holland. 
The English fleet at once proceeded to attack 
the Dutch possessions and commerce in all 
parts of the world. Holland declared war 
against Great Britain, and her fleet was added 
to that of France against England. 

Spain now made an alliance with France 
against England, and sent her fleet to co- 
operate with the French in the West Indies, 




ESCAPE OF BENEDICT ARNOLD. 



463 



464 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



and also laid siege to Gibraltar. The Irish 
about the same time demanded a reform of 
the many abuses from which that island had 
been suffering since the battle of the Boyne, 
and this demand was sustained by a force of 
eighty thousand armed Protestant volunteers 
which had been raised for the defence of Ire- 
land against a threatened attack of the French. 
They demanded an independent parliament, 
and even threatened a total separation from 
Great Britain. In the face of these difficul- 
ties the spirit of England rose higher than 
ever, and that country, with a vigor worthy 
of her ancient renown, put forth all her 
energies to find a way out of her difficulties. 
The whole world was arrayed against her, 
but in the face of it she held her own. The 
heroism manifested by England at this try- 
ing period is worthy of the highest admira- 
tion. 

Sufferings of the Patriots. 

The American army passed the winter of 
1780-81 in cantonments east and west of the 
Hudson. The Pennsylvania troops were 
stationed near Morristown, and the New Jer- 
Jersey regiments at Pompton. Though the 
troops were better provided with food than 
during the previous winter their sufferings 
were still very severe. They were neglected 
by Congress, which was too much occupied 
with its dissensions to make any serious 
effort to relieve the wants of the soldiers. 
The Pennsylvania troops had an especial 
cause of complaint. Their enlistments were 
for three years or the war. The three years 
had expired, but the government refused to 
discharge them on the ground that the enlist- 
ments were for the period of the war no 
matter how long it should last. The troops 
on the other hand contended that the words, 
"for the war," meant that the enlistments 
should expire if the war closed in less than 
three years. 



On the first of January, 1781, thirteen 
hundred Pennsylvania troops left the camp 
at Morristown under arms and set off for 
Philadelphia to obtain redress from Con- 
gress. General Wayne, their commander, 
placed himself in front of them, and, pistol 
in hand, attempted to stop their march. In 
an instant their bayonets were at his breast. 
" We love, we respect you," they ex- 
claimed, " but you are a dead man if you 
fire. Do not mistake us ; we are not going 
to the enemy ; were they now to come out 
you would see us fight under your orders 
with as much resolution , and alacrity as 
ever." They halted at Princeton, where 
they were met by the agents of Sir Henry 
Clinton, who endeavored to induce them to 
join the British service. They promptly 
seized these men and delivered them up to 
General Wayne as spies. At a later period 
it was proposed to reward them for this 
action, but they refused to accept anything, 
saying : " We ask no reward for doing our 
duty to our country." 

Mutiny Promptly Quelled. 

Congress was greatly alarmed by the ap- 
proach of these troops, and a committee, 
accompanied by Reed, the President of Penn- 
sylvania, was sent to meet them. The com- 
mittee met the leaders of the mutineers and 
agreed to relieve their immediate wants and 
to secure them their back pay by means of 
certificates. Permission was given to all who 
had served three years to withdraw from the 
army. Upon these conditions the troops 
returned to duty. The disaffection was 
increased by the yielding of Congress. On 
the twentieth of January the New Jersey 
troops at Pompton mutinied, but this out- 
break was quelled by a detachment sent from 
West Point by Washington. 

The mutiny opened the eyes of the coun- 
try to the sufferings of the army, and aroused. 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



465 



all parties to the necessity of providing for 
the troops. It was clearly understood that 
a failure to sustain the army would result in 
the defeat of the cause. Urgent appeals 
were made by Congress to all the States, 
especially to those of New England, to sup- 
ply the wants of the army, and Congress 
endeavored to negotiate a loan abroad. 
Direct taxation was resorted to to provide 
money at once. 

The British in Virginia. 

The year 1781 opened with a military ex- 
pedition under the command of the traitor 
Arnold, now a brigadier-general in the 
British service. Early in January he was 
sent by Sir Henry Clinton, with sixteen 
hundred British and Tories, from New York 
to the Chesapeake to ravage the shores of 
Virginia, After plundering the plantations 
along the lower bay and the James, Arnold 
ascended the river, and landing his troops 
marched to Richmond. Thomas Jefferson, 
tnen Governor of Virginia, called out the 
militia, but only a handful responded. Arnold 
occupied Richmond, burned the public 
buildings and some private dwellings, and 
then re-embarked and dropped down the 
the river to Portsmouth. Washington was 
anxious to capture him, and sent Lafayette 
with a force of twelve hundred men south- 
ward by land to prevent Arnold from 
escaping overland to join Cornwallis in the 
Carolinas, and at the same time the French 
fleet sailed from Newport for the Chesapeake 
to prevent the escape of the traitor by water. 

The British Admiral Arbuthnot followed 
the French fleet and brought it to an en- 
gagement off the mouth of the Chesapeake. 
The French were worsted and obliged to 
return to Newport, and Admiral Arbuthnot 
entered the bay and reinforced Arnold with 
two thousand British troops under General 

Philips, who assumed the command at Ports- 
30 



mouth and fortified his position there. From 
his camp he sent out detachments to ravage 
the country in all directions. Lafayette, in 
the meantime, upon hearing of the failure of 
the plan, halted at Annapolis, in Maryland. 
Arnold, upon being superseded by Philips, 
returned to New York. 

Battle of the " Cowpens." 

Early in January Cornwallis, who was at 
Winns"borough, South Carolina, sent Colonel 
Tarleton, with a force of one thousand 
cavalry and light infantry, to cut off Mor- 
gan's division from the column under Gen- 
eral Greene. Morgan was between the Broad 
and Catawba Rivers at the time, and upon 
hearing of Tarleton's approach began to 
retreat towards the Catawba. Tarleton 
pushed on with such speed that Morgan 
saw he must be overtaken. He accordingly 
halted and took position at the '* Cowpens," 
about thirty miles west of King's Mountain, 
and rested his men. Tarleton arrived in 
front of this position on the seventeenth of 
January and made an impetuous attack upon 
the Americans. At first he drove the mili- 
tia before him, but Morgan keeping his 
Continentals well in hand, suddenly wheeled 
upon him and drove him from the field. 
The two forces were about equal. Morgan 
lost but eighty men, while the loss of the 
British was over six hundred. Tarleton 
escaped from the field with only a few of his 
cavalry. 

Cornwallis moved forward as soon as he 
learned of Tarleton's defeat. He supposed 
that Morgan would be encumbered with his 
wounded and prisoners, and would be slow 
in leaving the scene of his victory, and he 
hoped by a rapid march to come up with 
him, crush him, and rescue the prisoners 
before he could join General Greene. Mor- 
gan was much too wary to be caught in 
such a trap. He felt sure Cornwallis would 



466 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



seek to avenge Tarleton's defeat, and leaving 
his wounded under a flag of truce, he re- 
sumed his retreat with all speed immediately 
after the battle, and hurrying towards the 
Catawba, crossed that river. 

Two hours after he had passed it the 
advance of Cornwallis' army reached the 
bank of the river, but owing to a sudden 
rise in the stream were unable to cross it. 
The British were detained in this manner for 
two days, during which Morgan rested his 




GENERAL DANIEL MORGAN. 

men and sent off his prisoners to a place of 
safety. 

Two days after the passage of the Catawba 
Morgan was joined by the troops under 
General Greene, who had heard of the vic- 
tory of the Cowpens, and was advancing to 
the assistance of his lieutenant. Greene was 
not yet strong enough to meet the British, 
and he continued the retreat toward the 
Yadkin. He moved slowly, and his rear 
guard was still engaged in the passage of the 
Yadkin when the advance suard of Corn- 



wallis reached that stream, on the third of 
February. Cornwallis had burned all his 
heavy baggage, and had reduced his army 
to the strictest light marching order, in the 
hope of being able to intercept Greene. 

A skirmish ensued on the banks of the 
Yadkin, and night coming on the British 
commander deferred the passage of the 
stream until the next day. During the night 
a heavy rain swelled the river so high that it 
could not be forded, and the Americans had 
secured all the boats on the other side. 
Greene, profiting by this delay, hurried 
on to cross the Dan into Virginia, where 
he could receive reinforcements and sup- 
plies. Morgan was left to cover the retreat 
of the army, but falling ill was obliged to 
relinquish the command of the rear guard 
to Colonel Otho H. Williams. 
_ Cornwallis passed the Yadkin as soon 

as possible and strained every nerve to 
prevent Greene from crossing the Dan. 
He supposed the Americans would not 
be able to cross at the lower ferries, but 
would be obliged to pass the river higher 
up, where it could be forded. He there- 
fore urged his army to its utmost exer- 
tions to secure these fords before the 
arrival of the Americans. Perceiving 
Cornwallis' error, Colonel Williams re- 
treated towards the upper fords and so 
confirmed the British commander in his 
delusion. Having led the British sufficiently 
out of the way, Williams wheeled about, 
and by a rapid march of forty miles in 
twenty-four hours down the river, rejoined 
Greene, who had moved with all speed to 
the lower ferries, where, in anticipation of 
his retreat, he had collected a supply of 
boats. The Dan was passed on the fifteenth 
of February, and the American army was 
safe from its pursuers. 

An hour or two later Cornwallis, who had 
discovered his mistake and had marched 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



467 



with speed from the upper fords, appeared 
on the opposite bank of the river, only to see 
his adversary safely beyond his reach. The 
river was too deep to be forded, and Greene 
had all the boats in his possession. Corn- 
wallis was deeply mortified at his failure to 
intercept Greene. He had pursued him for 
over two hundred miles, and had made great 
sacrifices to come up with him, but the 
American commander had managed to elude 
him and had successfully carried out one of 
the most brilliant retreats in history. The 
Americans regarded their escape as provi- 
dential, and not without cause. Their way 
across the Carolinas might be tracked by 
the blood from their feet ; and twice, when 
the enemy had come within gunshot of 
them, the rising of the waters of the Catawba 
and the Yadkin, which they had passed in 
safety, had held back the British and enabled 
them to escape. After resting his men for 
a few days on the banks of the Dan, Corn- 
wallis fell back to Hillsborough. 

Greene Compelled to Retreat. 

Having received reinforcements. General 
Greene recrossed the Dan, about the last of 
February, and advanced into the Carolinas 
to watch CornwalHs and encourage the 
patriots of that region. Cornwallis, being 
short of supplies, moved slowly southward. 
Greene followed him cautiously, too weak to 
risk a battle, but ready to take advantage of 
the first error on the part of his adversary. 
His movements were conducted with the 
atmost circumspection, and in order to 
guard against a surprise he never remained 
in the same place more than one day, and 
kept secret until the last moment the places 
he selected for his encampments. In the 
meantime he was gradually receiving rein- 
forcements from Virginia and Maryland, 
until his army numbered four thousand 
men. 



Feeling himself strong enough to attack 
the enemy, Greene left his baggage at a 
point of safety and advanced to Guilford 
Court-house, seventeen miles distant, with 
the intention of bringing Cornwallis to a 
decisive engagement. Here he was attacked 
by Cornwallis on the fifteenth of March, and 
after one of the hardest-fought battles of the 
war was compelled to retreat. Greene with- 
drew in good order, and Cornwallis, though 
victorious on the field, was so sorely crippled 
that he was unable to make any pursuit, and 
was obliged to fall back to Wilmington, 
near the mouth of Cape Fear River. By 
the time he reached that place his army had 
been so much weakened by desertions and 
losses in battle that it amounted to but four- 
teen hundred men. 

Operations in South Carolina. 

Greene had lost a thousand militia by 
desertion during his retreat, but was soon 
enabled to supply their places. He then 
moved into South Carolina for the purpose 
of attacking the British force under Lord 
Rawdon, which was posted at Camden. He 
advanced to Hobkirk's Hill, about two miles 
from Camden, where he was attacked on 
the twenty-fifth of April by Lord Rawdon. 
After a sharp engagement Greene was de- 
feated and obliged to retreat. He withdrew 
his army in good order, having inflicted 
upon his adversary a loss about equal to his 
own. Rawdon was unable to derive any 
advantage from his victory, as he could not 
bring Greene to another general engagement. 
The activity of the American partisan corps 
in his rear alarmed him for the safety of his 
communications with Charleston, and he 
abandoned Camden and fell back to Monk's 
Corner. 

In the meantime Lee, Marion, Pickens, 
and the other partisan leaders had broken 
up the fortified posts of the British with 



468 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



such success that by the month of June, 
1 78 1, only three positions of importance 
remained to the British in South Carolina 
Charleston, Nelson's Ferry and Fort Ninety- 
six, near the Saluda. The last-named posi- 




LORD RAWDON, AFTERWARD MARQUIS OF HASTINGS. 



sieee to it. Being; informed that Lord Raw- 
don was marching to relieve it, he deter- 
mined to carry the fort by assault before 
Rawdon could arrive. The assault was 
made on the eighteenth of June, but was 
repulsed with severe 
loss. Greene then 
raised the siege and 
retreated across the 
Saluda. 

Early in July the 
excessive heat put an 
end to active opera- 
tions on the part of the 
two armies. Greene 
withdrew to the high 
hills of the Santee, and 
the British went into 
camp on the Congaree. 
A bitter partisan war- 
fare now sprung up 
between the patriots 
and the tories, and 
continued during the 
summer. Houses were 
pillaged and burned, 
farms were laid waste 
and no quarter was 
given by either party. 
Even women and 
children were included 
in these dreadful mas- 
sacres. 

Lord Rawdon now 
resolved to add to the 
horrors of this war- 
fare by executing as 
traitors those who 



tion was of the greatest importance, and 
was held by a force of Carolina Tories. 
Lee and Pickens were sent against Augusta, 
Georgia, and captured it after a close invest- 
ment of seven days. General Greene him- 
self marched against Ninety-six and laid 



had given their parole not to engage in 
the war or had received a protection, if 
they should be taken in arms. Among the 
prisoners taken by the British at the capture 
of Charleston, was Colonel Isaac Hayne, a 
distinguished citizen of that place. His wife 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



469 



was dying and his children Avere helpless, 
and he gave his parole to remain neutral, in 
order to be able to take care of them, and 
was promised protection. At a later period, 
the British commander being in need of rein- 
forcements, Hayne was ordered to take up 
arms against his country in behalf of the 
king. He regarded himself as relieved from 
his parole by this command, and soon after 
escaped from Charleston and raised a partisan 
corps, at the head of which he was captured. 
He was condemned to die as a traitor ; and 
though the inhabitants of Charleston, both 
patriot and royalist, petitioned for his pardon, 
it was refused, and he was hanged, by order 
of Lord Rawdon, on the 5th of August. 

Life for Life. 

His execution was regarded by the Amer- 
icans as cruel and unjust, and as contrary to 
military law. General Greene felt himself 
obliged to retaliate by executing as deserters 
all those prisoners who had formerly served 
in his own army, and so bitter was the feeling 
of the American troops that they could 
scarcely be prevented from shooting the 
British officers who fell into their hands. 

Lord Rawdon now sailed for England, and 
left the command of his army to Colonel 
Stewart, an officer of ability and experience. 
At the close of the summer General Greene, 
whose army had been increased by the com- 
mands of Marion and Pickens to twenty-five 
hundred men, resumed the offensive. He 
attacked the British at Eutaw Springs on the 
eighth of September, and after a severely con- 
tested battle the left wing of the British was 
routed. In the moment of victory the Amer- 
ican army stopped to plunder the enemy's 
camp, and the British, taking advantage of 
the delay, rallied and made a stand in a large 
stone house, from which they could not be 
driven. Greene was forced to draw off his 
troops and leave the field to the British, who 



lost seven hundred men in the engagement. 
The American loss was five hundred men. 
Both sides claimed the victory ; but the ad- 
vantage certainly was not with the British, 
who lost more than a third of their men. 

Colonel Stewart, in view of this loss, fell 
back to the vicinity of Charleston, Greene 
followed him as far as Monk's Corner, and 
then returned to the hills of the Santee. The 
American commander had abundant reason 
to be satisfied with the result of his opera- 
tions in South Carolina. He had rescued 
the greater part of the State fi-om the British, 
and had confined them to the region between 
the Santee and the lower Savannah. He had 
repeatedly engaged the enemy with the most 
inadequate means and under the most unfa- 
vorable circumstances, and had never failed, 
even though defeated, to accomplish the 
object for which he fought. He had baffled 
the British commanders over again, and, like 
William of Orange, had managed to derive 
greater advantages from his reverses than 
his adversaries were able to draw from their 
victories. 

Plan to Recapture New York. 

Washington was well pleased with the 
achievements, in the South, of his most 
trusted lieutenant. He Avas very anxious to 
attempt something decisive with his own 
army, if he could secure the aid of a French 
army and fleet. Two enterprises offered 
themselves to him — an attack upon New 
York, which had been greatly weakened by 
detachments sent from its garrison to the 
south, and an expedition against Cornwallis. 
That commander had left Wilmington on 
the twentieth of April, and had advanced, 
without encountering any serious resistance, 
to Petersburg, Virginia. He arrived there on 
the twentieth of May, and was joined by the 
troops under General Philips, who had been 
plundering the country along the James river. 



470 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



While Washington was hesitating which 
would be the best course to pursue, a French 
frigate arrived at Newport, with the Count 
de Barras on board, who had come to take 
command of the fleet at Newport. He 
brought the good news that a fleet of twenty 
ships-of-the-line, under the Count de Grasse, 
having; on board a considerable force of 
troops, had sailed for America, and might 
be expected to arrive in the course of a few 
months. Washington held a conference with 
the Count de Rochambeau, at Weathersfield, 
Connecticut, and it was resolved to attack 
New York. The French army was to march 
from Newport and form a junction with the 
Americans on the Hudson. A frigate was 
despatched to the West Indies to inform the 
Count de Grasse of this arrangement, and 
to ask his co-operation in the proposed 
attack. 

Cornwallis Strongly Intrenched. 

Sir Henry Clinton, who suspected the 
designs of Washington, now ordered Lord 
Cornwallis, who had crosssed the James 
river, and was at Williamsburg, to send him 
a reinforcement of troops. Cornwallis pre- 
pared to comply with this order, and for 
that purpose marched towards Portsmouth, 
followed cautiously by Lafayette and Steu- 
ben, who had with them about four thousand 
American troops. On the march a slight 
engagement occurred, near Westover, be- 
tween Lafayette and Cornwallis, in which the 
Americans narrowly escaped a defeat. 

The British army crossed to the south side 
of the James, and a detachment was embarked 
for New York. At this moment a second 
order was received from Sir Henry Clinton, 
who had received a reinforcement of Hessians 
from England, directing Cornwallis to retain 
all his force, choose some central position in 
Virginia, fortify himself in it, and await the 
development of the American plans. Corn- 



wallis should have taken position at Ports- 
mouth, from which place his line of retreat 
to the South would have remained intact. 
In an evil hour for himself he recrossed the 
James, and crossing the peninsula between 
that river and the York, took position at 
the towns of Gloucester and Yorktown, 
opposite each other, on the York River. 
He had with him an army of eight thousand 
effective troops, and proceeded to fortify his 
position with strong intrenchments. A 
number of vessels of war were anchored 
between Yorktown and Gloucester to main- 
tain the communication between those points 
and to assist in the defence of the place. 

During all this time the financial affairs 
of the republic were growing worse and 
more hopeless. The continental currency 
had become utterly worthless, one dollar in 
paper being worth only one cent in coin at 
the opening of the year 1781. In the spring 
of that year Congress sought to put an end 
to its financial troubles by taking the control 
of the finances from a board which had 
hitherto managed them, and intrusting them 
to Robert Morris, whose services in behalf 
of the cause have been mentioned before. 

Return to Specie Payments. 

Morris was an experienced financier, and 
had opposed with all his energy the system 
of making continental money a legal tender. 
He now made a return to specie payments 
the condition of his acceptance of the trust 
imposed upon him by Congress. On the 
twenty-second of May, 1781, Congress most 
unwillingly resolved : " That the whole debts 
already due by the United States be liqui- 
dated as soon as may be to their speeie 
value, and funded, if agreeable to the 
creditors, as a loan upon interest ; that the 
States be severally informed that the calcu- 
lations of the present campaign are made in 
solid coin, and, therefore, that the requisitions 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



471 



from them respectively being grounded on 
those calculations, must be complied with in 
such manner as effectually to answer the 
the purpose designed ; that experience 
having evinced the inefficacy of all attempts 
to support the credit of paper money by 
compulsory acts, it is recommended to such 
States where laws making paper bills a 
tender yet exist to repeal the same." 

On the thirty-first of May continental bills, 
being no longer a legal tender, ceased to cir- 
culate. Henceforth all _ - — - 
transactions were to 
be in hard money. 
The result amply vin- 
dicated Morris' views. 
He induced Congress 
\o establish the Bank 
of the United States at 
Philadelphia, with a 
capital of two millions 
of dollars and a char- 
ter for ten years. This 
bank was allowed the 
privilege of issuing its 
own notes, which it 
was required to re- 
deem in specie upon 
presentation. This re- 
quirement gained foi 
the bank the confi- 
dence of the people, 
and capitalists availed 

themselves of it for the investment of their 
money. Morris used the bank freely in his 
public operations, and at the same time used it 
so wisely that he was able to secure all the aid 
it was capable of bestowing without subject- 
ing it to too severe a strain. He raised the 
credit of the government higher than it had 
ever stood before, and was able to do much 
towards paying the soldiers and supplying 
them with food and clothing. As often as 
the public funds failed he pledged his own 



credit to supply the deficiency. No man 
did more to contribute to the success of the 
cause than Robert Morris ; and no man 
received more ingratitude from the govern- 
ment and people of the Union than he. 

In July Washington was joined in the 
Highlands by the French army under Count 
de Rochambeau, and preparations were 
made to attack New York. An intercepted 
letter informed Sir Henry Clinton of this 
design, and he exerted himself to put the 




\lfii\M£U-SU^DQ^ 



SCENE IN THE HIGHLANDS OF THE HUDSON. 

city in a state of defence. In the midst of 
his preparations Washington received a letter 
from the Count de Grasse, stating that he 
would sail for the Chesapeake instead of 
Newport. This decision of the French 
admiral compelled an entire change of plan 
on the part of the Americans. As De 
Grasse would not co-operate with them,, 
they must abandon the attack upon New 
York, and attempt the capture of Cornwallis 
at Yorktown. No time was to be lost in 



472 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



making the attempt, for it was now the 
month of August. By a series of skilful 
movements Sir Henry Clinton was induced 
to believe that an attack upon New York 
would soon be made, and at the same time 
the American army was marched rapidly 
across New Jersey, followed by the French. 
Lafayette, who was in Virginia, was ordered 
to prevent at all hazards a retreat of Corn- 
wallis' army to North Carolina, and was 
directed to ask assistance of General Greene 
if necessary, 

Cornwallis Entrapped. 

The plan of Washington was to blockade 
Cornwallis in the York river by means of 
the French fleet, and at the same time to 
besiege him in Yorktown with the army. 
The troops were somewhat unwilling to 
undertake a southern campaign in August. 
but their good humor was restored at Phila- 
delphia, where they received a part of their 
pay in specie, and a supply of clothing, arms 
and ammunition, which had just arrived from 
France. From Philadelphia the combined 
armies proceeded to Elkton, at head of the 
the Chesapeake, where they found trans- 
ports, sent by the French admiral and by 
Lafayette, to convey them to the James 
river. 

The first intimation Sir Henry Clinton had 
of a change in the American plans was the 
sudden sailing of the French fleet from New- 
port on the twenty-eight of August. Sup- 
posing that De Barras's object was to unite 
with another fleet in the Chesapeake, Clinton 
sent Admiral Graves to prevent the junction. 
Upon reaching the capes the British admiral 
was astonished to find the fleet of the Count 
de Grasse, consisting of twenty ships-of-the 
line, anchored within the bay. De Grasse 
at once put to sea as if to engage the enemy, 
but in reality to draw them off and allow De 
Barras to enter the Chesapeake. For five 



days he amused the English by constant 
skirmishing. De Barras at length appeared 
and passed within the capes, and De Grasse 
at once followed him. Admiral Graves was 
unwilling to attack this combined force and 
returned to New York. 

The movement of the American army to 
the south was known to Clinton, but he sup- 
posed it was only a manoeuvre to draw him 
off of Manhattan Island into the open coun- 
try. When the Americans were beyond the 
Delaware and the French fleets had effected 
their junction in the Chesapeake, he recog- 
nized his mistake and saw that the object of 
Washington was the capture of Cornwallis. 
It was too late to prevent it ; but in the hope 
of compelling Washington to send back a 
part of his force to defend New England, 
Clinton sent the traitor Arnold with a large 
body of troops to attack New London in 
Connecticut. On the sixth of September 
Arnold captured that town and burned the 
shipping and a large part of the town. 

A Horrible Massacre. 

He then took Fort Griswold, on the oppo- 
site side of the Thames, by storm, and basely 
massacred Colonel Indyard, the commander, 
and sixty of the garrison after the surrender 
of the fort. The militia of the State were 
summoned to take up arms for its defence, 
and responded in such numbers that Arnold 
became alarmed for his safety and returned 
to New York. The object of his expedition 
failed most signally. Washington left New 
England to defend herself, and continued his 
movement against Cornwallis. 

Cornwallis was very slow to realize his 
danger. He believed the small force under 
Lafayette the only command opposed to him, 
and on the tenth of September wrote to Clinton 
that he could spare him twelve hundred men 
for the defence of New York. He did not 
perceive his error until the French fleet had 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



473 



anchored in the Chesapeake and cut off his 
escape by water. He then attempted to 
retreat to North CaroHna, as Washington 
had foreseen, but Lafayette, who had been 
reinforced by three thousand French troops 
under the Marquis de St. Simon, from the 
fleet of De Grasse, was too active for him, 
and finding his retreat impossible, CornwaUis 



the British, and on the ninth of October the 
cannonade was begun. It was continued for 
four days, and the British outworks were 
greatly damaged, and several of their vessels 
in the river were burned by means of red- 
hot shot thrown into them by the French 
vessels. On the fourteenth two of the ad- 
vanced redoubts of the enemy were stormed 




VIEW OF YORKTOWN. 



sent urgent appeals to Clinton for assistance, 
and strengthened his fortifications. 

In the meantime the American and French 
armies descended the Chesapeake, and took 
position before Yorktown, while the French 
fleet closed the mouth of York river. The 
siege was begun on the twenty-eight of Sep- 
tember. Sixteen thousand men were pre- 
sent under Washing-ton's orders. Works 
were erected completely enclosing those of 



and taken, one by the Americans, the other 
by the French. From the positions thus 
gained a very destructive fire was maintained 
upon the English lines, which were broken 
in many places, while many of their guns 
were dismounted and rendered useless. On 
the fifteenth CornwaUis found himself al- 
most out of ammunition, and unable to 
maintain his position but for a few days 
longer. 



474 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



In this strait the British commander re- 
solved upon the desperate alternative of cross- 
ing the York to Gloucester, abandoning his 
sick and wounded and baggage, and endeavor- 
ing to force his way northward by extraor- 
dinary marches to New York. It was a 
hopeless undertaking, but Cornwallis resolved 
to make the trial. On the night of the six- 
teenth of October he crossed a part of his 
army from Yorktown to Gloucester, but a 
sudden storm delayed the passage of the 



He sent to Washington an offer to surren- 
der, and the terms were soon arranged. On 
the nineteenth of October Cornwallis sur- 
rendered his army of seven thousand men 
as prisoners of war to Washington, as com- 
mander of the allied army, and his shipping, 
seamen and naval stores to the Count de 
Grasse, as the representative of the king of 
France. 

Washington despatched one of his aids to 
Philadelphia to communicate the good news 




SURRENDER OF LORD CORNWALLIS. 



river by the second division until after day- 
light, when it was useless to make the 
attempt. 

'The first division was with difficulty 
brought back to Yorktown, as the boats 
were exposed to the fire of the American 
batteries while crossing the river. Nothing 
was left to Cornwallis now but a capitulation, 
as his works were in no condition to with- 
stand an assault, and simple humanity to his 
men demanded that the contest should cease. 



to Congress. The officer pushed forward 
with all speed, and reached. Philadelphia at 
midnight, and delivered his message. Soon 
the peals of the State-house bell roused the 
citizens, and the watchmen took up the cry, 
" Cornwallis is taken ! Cornwallis is taken!" 
The people poured out into the streets in 
throngs, and no one slept in Philadelphia 
that night. The next day Congress proceeded 
in a body to a church and gave thanks for 
the great victory. A national thanksgiving 



THE CLOSE OF THE WAR. 



475 



was ordered, and throughout the whole land 
rejoicings went up to God for the success 
which all men felt was decisive of the war. 
On the nineteenth of October, the day of 
the surrender of Cornwallis, Sir Henry Clin- 
ton sailed from New York to his assistance 
with a force of seven thousand men. Off the 
capes he learned of the surrender of the 
British army at Yorktown, and as his fleet 
was not strong enough to meet that of the 
French he returned at once to New York. 

" It is All Over." 

The news of the surrender of Cornwallis 
was received in England with astonishment 
and mortification. It was the second time 
England had lost an entire army by capture, 
and her efforts to subdue the United States 
were no nearer success than they had been 
at the opening of the v/ar. The English 
people had never regarded the attempt to 
conquer America with favor, and they now 
became more open and energetic in their 
demands for peace. " Lord North, the prime 
minister," says an English writer, " received 
the intelligence of the capture of Cornwallis 
as he would have done a cannon ball in his 
breast; he paced the room, and throwing his 
arms wildly about, kept exclaiming, ' O 
God ! it is all over ! it is all over 1' " The 
king and the aristocracy, however, had no 
thought of yielding yet to the popular 
pressure, and were resolved to carry on the 
war. 

After the surrender at Yorktown, Wash- 
ington urged the Count de Grasse to coop- 
erate with General Greene in an attack upon 
Charleston. The French admiral dechned 
to comply with his request, alleging the 
necessity of his immediate return to the 
West Indies. The French troops were quar- 
tered for the winter at Williamsburg, Vir- 
ginia, and the American army returned 
northward and resumed its old position on 



the Hudson. Washington, though con- 
vinced that peace was close at hand, did not 
relax his vigilance, and urged upon Congress 
the necessity of preparing for a vigorous 
campaign the next year ; but so thoroughly 
was Congress carried away by the prospect 
of peace that his recommendations were 
unheeded. 

In the south the British and Tories were 
so disheartened by the surrender of Corn- 
wallis that they ceased active operations and 
evacuated all their posts but Savannah and 
Charleston. General Greene at once dis- 
posed his army in such a manner as to con- 
fine them closely to Charleston. In the 
Northern States the only place held by the 
British was New York. 

Indian and Tory Outrages. 

Though active operations had ceased on 
the part of- the two armies, a cruel and 
destructive warfare was continued by the 
Indian allies of the British against the border 
settlements of Pennsylvania and Virginia, 
and a similar warfare was maintained by the 
Tories and Indians along the frontier of New 
York. These outrages involved the Christ- 
ian Delaware Indians in the punishment of 
the guilty savages. The Delawares had 
become converted to Christianity under the 
influence of the Moravian missionaries, and 
had removed from the Susquehanna to the 
Muskingum. 

They were suspected by the Americans of 
the crimes of their heathen brethren, and in 
the spring and summer of 1782 their towns 
were destroyed and numbers of them were 
slain. The war was carried into the country 
of the Wyandottes by the whites, but with 
less success. On the sixth of June a force 
of Pennsylvanians under Colonel Crawford 
was defeated by the Wyandottes. In the 
same summer a band of northern Indians 
led by Simon Girty, a Tory of infamous 



476 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



character, invaded Kentucky. They were 
met by the Kentuckians under Boone, Todd, 
and other leaders. A severe battle was 
fought at the Big Blue Lick, and the Ken- 
tuckians were defeated with the loss of 
nearly one-half their force. 

Story of Captain Huddy. 

Some of the staunchest patriots and some 
of the most ferocious Tories resided in Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey. The patriots 
built a block-house of logs at Dover, which 
was a strongly fortified building. The only 
method of ingress or egress was by the use 
of a scaling ladder. Captain John Huddy 
was commander of this post, and was one of 
the bravest men who fought for the Amer- 
ican cause. His house was once surrounded 
by his foes, but esccping he jumped into the 
waters of the bay, and as he swam he 
shouted, "I am Huddy!" His escape on 
this occasion was remarkable. 

On March 20, 1782, a party of forty 
Tories and eighty seamen, all fully armed, 
left New York in whaleboats for the pur- 
pose of capturing Captain John Huddy. 
Their coming was announced by scouts, and 
preparations were made to receive them. 
The battle was one of the fiercest of the 
war. The powder in the fortress at length 
gave out, and Huddy, with sixteen men, 
four of whom were wounded, was taken 
prisoner. Huddy was a prisoner of war, 
and was entitled to treatment as such, but 
his enemies conspired to put him to death. 
He was executed on the morning of April 
12, and his last words were, " I shall die 
innocent, and in a good cause." 

Captain Lippincott, who ordered Huddy's 
execution, cursed his men because they were 
unwilling to take the life of so brave a foe, 
and with his own hand helped to pull the 
rope. Returning to New York he reported 
to the board of loyalists that he had " ex- 



changed" Captain Huddy for Philip White. 
The pastor of the Presbyterian church at 
Freehold preached the funeral sermon from 
the front porch of the old Freehold hotel, 
and the body was buried with the honors of 
war. 

The desire of the English people for the 
close of the war had grown too strong to be 
resisted, and the king and his ministers were 
at length forced to yield. The impossi- 
bility of conquering America had become 
so apparent to the continental nations that 
in the spring of 1782 the Dutch republic 
recognized the independence of the United 
States, and received John Adams as envoy 
from that government. The king of Eng- 
land maintained his obstinate opposition to 
the wishes of his people to the last moment. 
On the twenty-second of February, 1782, a 
resolution was introduced into the House of 
Commons to put an end to the American war 
and was supported by the leaders of the Whig 
party. It was defeated by a majority of one, 
but on the twenty-seventh of February a 
similar resolution was introduced and was 
carried by a majority of nineteen. 

England Gives Up the Struggle. 

On the twentieth of March Lord North 
and his colleagues were forced to relinquish 
their ofifices, and a new ministry was formed 
under the Marquis of Rockingham. Sir 
Henry Clinton was removed from his com- 
mand in America, and was succeeded by Sir 
Guy Carleton, whose humane conduct of 
the war while governor of Canada we have 
related. Carleton arrived in New York in 
May, 1782, with full powers to open nego- 
tiations for peace. He at once put a stop to 
the savage warfare of the Tories and Indians 
on the borders of western New York, and 
opened a correspondence with Washington 
proposing a cessation of hostilities until a 
definite treaty of peace could be arranged. 




CAPTAIN HUDDY LED FROM PRISON TO BE HANGED. 



477 



478 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



Five commissioners were appointed by 
Congress to conclude a peace with Great 
Britain. They were John Adams, Benjamin 
Franklin, John Jay, Henry Laurens, who 
had just been released from the tower of 
London, where he had been kept a prisoner 
for about a year, and Thomas Jefferson. Mr. 
Jefferson was unable to leave America. Five 
commissioners were appointed by Great 
Britain to treat with " certain colonies " 
named in their instructions. 

A Treaty Formed. 

The commissioners from the two countries 
met at Paris, but the American commis- 
sioners refused to open negotiations except 
in the name of the " United States of 
America." This right was acknowledged 
by Great Britain, and on the thirtieth of 
November, 1782, a preliminary treaty was 
signed, which was ratified by Congress in 
April, 1783. This treaty could not be final 
because by the terms of the alliance between 
the United States and France neither party 
could make a separate treaty of peace with 
England. In January, 1783, France and 
Great Britain agreed upon terms of peace, 
and on the third of September, 1783, a final 
treaty of peace was signed by all the nations 
who had engaged in the war — by the United 
States, France, Spain and Holland on the 
one side, and Great Britain on the other. 

Great Britain acknowledged the independ- 
ence of the States of the Union in the fol- 
lowing words : " His Britannic Majesty 
acknowledges the said United States, viz.: 
New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay, Rhode 
Island and Providence Plantations, Connecti- 
cut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, 
Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Caro- 
lina, South Carolina and Georgia, to be free, 
sovereign and independent States ; that he 
treats with them as such ; and for himself, 
his heirs and successors, relinquishes all 



claim to the government, propriety and ter- 
ritorial rights of the same, and every part 
thereof" It should be observed that the 
treaty acknowledged the independence and 
sovereignty of each of the thirteen States, 
and not of the United States as a single 
nation. The independence of the States had 
already been recognized by several of the 
European powers : by Sweden, on the fifth 
of February, 1783; by Denmark, on the 
twenty-fifth of February, 1783; by Spain, 
on the twenty-fourth of March ; and by 
Russia in July, 1783. Treaties of friendship 
and commerce were entered into between 
the United States and these powers. 

Washington and His Army. 

During the year 1782 the greater part of 
the American army was encamped at New- 
burg, on the Hudson. Washington made 
his headquarters in an old stone house, 
which was well adapted for defence and con- 
cealment, one of the rooms having seven 
doors leading to other parts of the house, 
and but one window. The troops were 
unpaid and were neglected by Congress and 
by the various States. Washington warned the 
government of the danger of further neglect of 
the army, but his warning was unheeded, and 
in March the patience of the army was so far 
exhausted that it was seriously proposed to 
march to Philadelphia and compel Congress 
to do justice to the troops. Washington 
appealed to the officers to remain patient a 
little longer, and pledged himself to, use his 
influence with Congress to fulfill its neglected 
promises to the army. His appeal quieted 
the trouble for a time. Congress shortly 
after agreed to advance full pay to the 
soldiers for four months, and to pay in one 
gross sum the full pay of the officers for five 
years. 

The condition of the country was a sub- 
ject of the gravest apprehension. It was 




WASHINGTON'S HEAD-QUARTER^ AT NEWBURGH, NEW YORK. 




THE ROOM WITH SEVEN DOORS AND ONE WINDOW. 



479 



48o 



THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 



plain that the articles of confederation were 
not capable of continuing the Union much 
longer, and many persons believed that the 
only hope of preserving a regular govern- 
ment, and a permanent union to the country, 
lay in the establishment of a monarchy. In 
May, 1782, Colonel Nicola, of the Pennsyl- 
vania line, at the instance of a number of 
officers, wrote a letter to Washington, pro- 
posing the creation of a monarchy, and offer- 
ing him the crown. Washington indignantly 
refused to entertain the proposition, and 
severely rebuked the writer of the letter. 

Peace at Liast. 

In the spring of 1783 the news of the 
signing of the preliminary treaty of peace 
was received in America, and was officially 
communicated to the nation in a proclama- 
tion by Congress. On the nineteenth of 
April, 1783, just eight years from the com- 
mencement of the war at Lexington, the 
close of hostilities was proclaimed, in general 
orders, to the army at Newburg. A general 
exchange of prisoners followed, and large 
numbers of Tories were obliged to leave the 
country, as they feared to remain after the 
protection of the British forces was with- 



drawn. They emigrated chiefly to Canada, 
Nova Scotia, and the West Indies. The final 
treaty having been signed, the army was dis- 
banded on the third of November, and the 
troops, with the exception of a small force, 
returned to their homes to enjoy their well- 
earned honors and the thanks of their grate- 
ful countrymen. On the twenty-fifth of 
November the British evacuated New York, 
which was at once occupied by a small force 
of Americans, under General Knox. In 
December Charleston was also evacuated by 
the British. 

On the second of December Washington 
issued a farewell address to the army, and 
on the fourth of that month took leave of the 
officers at New York. He then proceeded 
to Annapolis, where Congress was in ses- 
sion, and on the twenty-third of December, 
under circumstances of great solemnity, re- 
signed his commission to that body, and after 
receiving the thanks of Congress for the able 
and faithful manner in which he had dis- 
charged the task intrusted to him, retired to 
his home at Mount Vernon, which he had 
not visited for eight years, except for a few 
hours, while on his way to attack Cornwallis 
at York town. 




BOOK V 



From the Close of the Revolution to the 

' Civil War 



CHAPTER XXXI 

The Adoption of the Constitution — Washington's 

Administration 

Unsettled Condition of the Country — Failure of the Articles of Confederation — Desire for Reform — Meeting of the Federal 
Convention at Philadelphia — The Constitution of the United States — Adoption of a Decimal Currency — The North- 
west Territory — Washington Elected President — His Journey to New York — Establishment of the New Government — 
The First Cabinet — Financial Measures — Removal of the Capital Agreed Upon — The Government at Philadelphia — 
The First Census — The Indians of the Northwest Conquered — Re-election of Washington — Division of Parties — The 
French Revolution — The United States Neutral — Citizen Genet — Efforts to Commit the United States to the French 
Alliance — Genet's Recall Demanded — The " Whiskey Insurrection " — Jay's Treaty with England — Opposition to It — 
Negotiations with Algiers — Political Disputes — Hostility to Washington — His Farewell Address — Its Effect Upon the 
Country — Election of John Adams to the Presidency — Admission of Vermont, Kentucky and Tennessee — Retirement 
of Washington — Results of His Administration. 



THE long war was over and inde- 
pendence had been achieved ; but 
the condition of the country was 
such as to excite the gravest ap- 
prehensions. The country was exhausted 
by the sacrifices and burdens of the war, and 
its debts amounted to the enormous sum of 
one hundred and seventy millions of dollars, 
a sum vastly out of proportion to its 
resources. Two-thirds of these debts had 
been contracted by Congress ; the re- 
mainder by the States. The articles of con- 
federation were found inadequate to the task 
of enforcing the authority of the general 
government, and the States treated the 
ordersof Congress with neglect. Commerce 
was sadly deranged for the want of a uniform 
system. 

The States entered into competition with 
each other for the trade of foreign nations, 
and articles which were required to pay 
31 



heavy duties in some of the States were 
admitted free of duty in others. Many of 
the States were unable to enforce the collec- 
tion of taxes within their own limits. The 
British merchants at the close of the war 
flooded the American markets with their 
manufactures at reduced prices. The result 
was that the domestic manufactures of the 
States were ruined ; the country was drained 
of its specie, and the merchants and people 
of the Union were involved in heavy debts. 
A general poverty ensued in the Eastern 
States, which gave rise to much discontent. 
In Massachusetts, in December, 1786, a 
body of a thousand men, under Daniel 
Shays, assembled at Worcester and com- 
pelled the Supreme Court to adjourn in 
order to prevent it from issuing writs for the 
collection of debts. The militia was called 
out and " Shay's Rebellion " was put down ; 
but it was evident that the sympathies of 

481 



482 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



the people were largely with the insurgents. 
These troubles brought home to the whole 
country the necessity of a more perfect 
system of government, and measures were 
begun for bringing about the changes 
needed. 

In September, 1783, delegates from five of 
the States met at Annapolis to deliberate 
upon a plan for the improvement of com- 
merce and the revenue. They recommended 
the assembling of a convention to revise the 
articles of confederation ; and, accordingly, 




delegates from all the States met for this 
purpose at Philadelphia in May, 1787. 

Among the more prominent of these may 
be named Samuel Johnson, Roger Sherman 
and Oliver Ellsworth, of Connecticut ; Dun- 
ning Bedford and George Read, of Delaware; 
William Few, George Walton and Abraham 
Baldwin, of Georgia; Daniel Carroll, James 
McHenry and Luther Martin, of Maryland; 
Nathaniel Gorham, Caleb Strong, Elbridge 
Gerry and Rufus King, of Massachusetts; 
John Langdon and Nicholas Gilman, of 



New Hampshire ; Jonathan Dayton, William 
Livingston and William Patterson, of New 
Jersey ; John Lansing, Robert Yates and 
Alexander Hamilton, of New York ; Alex- 
ander Martin, Richard D. Spaight and Wil- 
liam R. Davie, of North Carolina ; Robert 
Morris, Gouverneur Morris, James Wilson 
and Benjamin Franklin, of Pennsylvania; 
John Rutledge, Pierce Butler, Charles 
Pinckney and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, 
of South Carolina ; Edmund Randolph, 
George Mason, James Madison and George 
Washington, of Virginia. Patrick Henry 
was opposed to the general objects of the 
convention, and therefore declined any par- 
ticipation in its action. Mr. Jefferson was 
Minister to France, and not in the country 
at the time. 

Birth of the Constitution. 

George Washington, who was one of the 
delegates from Virginia, was unanimously 
chosen president of the convention. The 
sessions of this body lasted four months, and 
the convention, instead of revising the arti- 
cles of confederation, adopted an entirely 
new constitution.' Each article of this con- 
stitution was discussed with care and minute- 
ness, and with great feeling. The sessions 
of the convention were held with closed 
doors ; but its proceedings were so far from 
harmonious that there were several occa- 
sions when it seemed likely the convention 
would break up in confusion, and leave its 
work unfinished. At length, however, 
through the patriotism and forbearance of 
its members, the convention brought its 
work to a close, and presented the constitu- 
tion to Congress. It was submitted by that 
body to the several States for their approval. 

The State governments summoned con- 
ventions of their respective people, and sub- 
mitted the constitution to them for their 
acceptance or rejection. By the end of 1788 




483 



WASHINGTON'S RECEPTION AT TRENTON. 



484 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 

that in apportioning their representation in 



it was ratified by eleven States, North 
Carolina did not ratify it until November, 
1789; and Rhode Island held aloof from 
the Union until May, 1790. The right of 
these States to reject the constitution, and 
to continue their separate existence as inde- 
pendent States, was not questioned by any 
one. 

The new constitution was not entirely 
satisfactory to any party, and represented 
the sacrifices made by all to achieve the 




great end of a central government, strong 
enough to carry out the objects of the 
Union. It was a document of compromises, 
three of which were of especial importance. 
The first was a concession to the smaller 
States, which had feared the loss of their 
independence ; they were placed on the 
same footing as the larger States by being 
given an equal representation in the Senate. 
The second was a concession to the slave- 
holding States of the south, and guaranteed 



Congress three-fifths of the slaves were to be 
included with the white population. The 
third was a concession to Georgia and South 
Carolina, and granted them permission to 
continue the African slave-trade until 1808. 
The delegates from those States refused to 
sign the constitution except upon this con- 
dition. 

Decimal Currency. 

In the meantime Congress had taken a 
step of the highest importance in adopting 
the plan, presented by Mr. Jefferson, for a 
decimal currency. Until now the use of the 
English currency had been general in all the 
States. In August, 1786, our present sys- 
tem of dollars and cents was adopted by 
Congress, and a mint was established some- 
what later. The government was so poor, 
however, that it could only coin a small 
quantity of copper cents. 

The sessions of Congress were held at 
New York. In the session of 1787 a meas- 
ure was adopted, which had the most im- 
portant influence upon the subsequent his- 
tory of the country. The treaty of Paris 
fixed the Mississippi river as the western 
boundary of the United States. This river 
consequently became the western limit of 
Virginia, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. 
In 1784 Virginia ceded to the general gov- 
ernment of the United States her claim to 
the vast region owned by her beyond the 
Ohio. Massachusetts and Connecticut soon 
followed her example, and New York also 
ceded her western territory to the govern- 
ment. 

In July, 1787, Congress organized this 
vast region as the territory of the northwest. 
It was provided that slavery should never 
be permitted to exist in this territory, or in 
any of the States which might afterwards be 
formed out of it. This wise provision, which 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 



485 



was the basis of the wonderful prosperity of 
this great region, was due to the foresight 
of Thomas Jefferson, The northwest being 
secured to freedom, emigration soon set in, 
and it began its great career of prosperity 
which has since known no slackening. 

Washington Elected President. 

It was provided by the constitution that 
when it should have been ratified by two- 
thirds of the States, it should go into opera- 
tion on the fourth of March, 1789. Eleven 
of the States having ratified the constitution, 
elections were held for President and Vice- 
President of the United States, and for mem- 
bers of Congress. New York was named 
as the seat of the new government. The 
fourth of March, 1789, was ushered in with 
a public demonstration at New York ; but a 
sufficient number of members of Congress 
to form a quorum for the transaction of busi- 
ness did not arrive until the thirtieth of 
March. On the sixth of April the electoral 
votes were counted, and it was found that 
George Washington had been unanimously 
chosen first President of the United States, 
and John Adams Vice-President. 

Charles Thompson, the oldest secretary of 
Congress, was sent to Mount Vernon to 
notify Washington of his election, and a mes- 
senger was despatched to Boston on a similar 
errand to Mr. Adams. Washington promptly 
signified his acceptance of the office, and, 
two days later, started for New York. It 
Avas his desire to travel as quietly and unos- 
tentatiously as possible, but the people of the 
States through which he passed would not 
permit him to do so. His journey was a 
constant ovation. Crowds greeted him at 
every town with the most enthusiastic demon- 
strations of affection and confidence ; trium- 
phal arches were erected ; his way was strewn 
with flowers by young girls ; and maidens 
and mothers greeted him with sonsfs com- 



posed in his honor. In consequence of these 
demonstrations his progress was so much 
retarded that he did not reach New York 
until the latter part of April. 

On the thirtieth of April Washington 
appeared on the balcony of Federal Hall, 
New York, on the site of which the United 
States Treasury now stands, and took the 
oath of office in the presence of the Senate 
and House of Representatives, and a large 
crowd of citizens assembled in the streets 



^=€5. 




below. He then repaired to the Senate 
chamber, and there delivered an address to 
both houses of Congress. The organization 
of the government being now complete, 
Congress proceeded to arrange the executive 
department by the creation of the depart- 
ments of state, the treasury and war. Presi- 
dent Washington appointed Thomas Jeffer- 
son, secretary of state, Alexander Hamilton, 
secretary of the treasury, and General Henry 
Knox, secretary of war. John Jay was made 




486 



THE INAUGURATION OF WASHINGTON. 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 



487 



chief justice of the United States, and 
Edmond Randolph, attorney-general. 

The new g-overnment found itself face to 
face with many difficulties, the principal of 
which was the payment of the national debt. 
This debt was in the form of notes of the 
government, or promises to pay for value 
received. These notes had been issued by 
the States as well as by Congress during the 
revolution, and had been given in payment 
for services rendered the general and State 
governments, and for supplies. In Janu- 
ary, 1790, Alexander Hamilton proposed 
to pay all these debts in full, and that the 
general government should assume the 
war debts of States. 

This plan met with considerable oppo- 
sition at first, but was at length adopted. 
It was also arranged that the revenue of 
the country should be divided as follows: 
As the control of commerce had passed 
into the hands of Congress the revenue S 
derived from the duties levied upon im- 
ported merchandise was to be applied to 
the uses of the general government. The 
proceeds of the direct taxes upon real 
estate and other property, which could 
be levied only by the respective States, 
were to be used for the expenses of those 
States. 

It had been for some time considered 
desirable to remove the seat of federal 
government to some point more central 
than New York, and which could be brought 
under the supreme control of Congress. In 
1 790 it was resolved that the seat of govern- 
ment be fixed at Philadelphia for ten years, and 
at the end of that time be removed to a new 
city to be built on the banks of the Potomac. 
A federal district, ten miles square, was ob- 
tained by cession from Virginia and Mary- 
land, and was placed under the sole control 
of the United States. The foundations of a 
new city, named Washington, in honor of 



the " Father of his country," were laid on. 
the left bank of the Potomac, a short dis- 
tance below the falls of that river, and build- 
ings for the accommodation of the general 
government were begun and pushed forward 
as rapidly as possible. 

The general government was removed to 
Philadelphia in 179 1, and in December of 
that year the second Congress began its 
sessions in that city. The principal measure 
of this session was the establishment of the 




GEORGE WASHINGTON. 

Bank of the United States, in accordance 
with the recommendations of Alexander 
Hamilton. The bank was chartered for 
twenty years, and its capital was ten millions 
of dollars, of which the government took 
two millions and private individuals the re- 
mainder. The measure was carried in the 
face of considerable opposition in Congress, 
but was very beneficial to the government, 
as well as to the general business of the 
country. The notes of the bank were 



488 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



payable in gold and silver upon presentation 
at its counters. 

Commerce now began to show signs of a 
great revival from the stagnation and loss 
caused by the war. The duties levied upon 
foreign goods gave to domestic manufac- 
turers an opportunity to place themselves 
upon a firmer foundation. Very great im- 
provements were made in the character of 
American manufactures. In New England 




INDIAN CHILD IN CRADLE. 

the weaving of cotton and woolen goods was 
begun, in a feeble way it is true, but the 
foundation was laid of that great industry 
which has since been a constant and grow- 
ing source of wealth to that section. 

In 1790 the first census of the United 
States was taken, and showed the population 
to be 3,929,827 souls. 

The Indians of the northwest had been 
very troublesome for some time. The 



British agents in that region incited them to 
hostility against the United States, and 
urged them to claim the Ohio as their 
southern and eastern boundary. They com- 
mitted innumerable outrages along this river 
and almost put a stop to the trade upon its 
waters by attacking and plundering the flat- 
boats of the emigrants and traders which 
were constantly descending the river. The 
general government resolved to put a stop 
to their outrages, and General Harmer was 
sent against them in 1790, but was defeated 
with great loss. 

" Little Turtle " Defeats St. Clair. 

In 1 79 1 General St. Clair, the governor 
of the northwest territory, was placed in 
command of an expedition against the 
savages. He set out from Fort Washing- 
ton, now Cincinnati, about the middle of 
September, with a force of two thousand 
men, but near the headwaters of the Wabash 
was surprised and defeated by an Indian 
force under Little Turtle, a famous chief of 
the Miamis. The wreck of his army fled to 
Fort Washington, and the frontier was once 
more defenceless. 

President Washington now placed General 
Anthony Wayne in command of the forces 
destined to operate against the Indians. 
With his usual energy Wayne assembled his 
army at Fort Washington, and in the sum- 
mer of 1794 marched into the Indian country, 
laid it waste and defeated the Indian tribes 
in the battle of the Maumee on the twentieth 
of August. In the summer of 1795 the 
Indians, cowed by their defeat and alarmed 
by the withdrawal of the British from the 
frontier posts, met General Wayne at his 
camp on the Miami and entered into a 
treaty with the United States by which they 
ceded all the eastern and southern part of 
Ohio to the whites and withdrew farther 
westward. 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 



489 



In the elections of 1792 Washington and 
Adams were chosen President and Vice- 
President of the United States for a second 
term of four years. The disputes which had 
been begun by the adoption of the constitu- 
tion had been continued during the first 
term of Washington's presidency, and had 
given rise to two political parties — the 
Federalists, or those who favor a strong 
national government, and who supported the 
administration, and the Anti-Federalists, who 
opposed the policy of the administration. 
Among the leaders of the Federalist party 
were Washington, Adams, Hamilton and 
Jay ; among the Anti-Federalist leaders 
were Jefferson, Madison and Monroe. 

Reign of Terror in France. 

The differences between Jefferson and 
Hamilton increased with time, and soon as- 
sumed the character of a personal hostility, 
a circumstance which was productive of great 
trouble to the president, since it prevented 
his cabinet from acting harmoniously. As 
the quarrel deepened, the Anti-Federalist 
party repudiated that title, and took the name 
of Republican, as it better expressed their 
principles. The political questions entered 
largely into the second election, and pre- 
vented Air. Adams from receiving the unani- 
mous vote which was given to Washington. 

Shortly after the commencement of Wash- 
ington's first term of office, the French revo- 
lution broke out, and drew upon France the 
attention of the whole world. The events of 
this great struggle were watched with the 
deepest interest in America, for the nation 
cherished the warmest sentiments of grati- 
tude to France for her aid in the revolution. 
The Republican party urgently favored an 
alliance with the French republic, but 
Washington and the greater part of his 
cabinet were resolved to maintain a strict 
neutrality as to all European quarrels. 



The excesses of the revolutionists shocked 
the public sentiment of America, and the 
events of the reign of terror cooled the zeal 
of many of the most ardent friends of the 
French republic. Still party feeling ran 
high upon the subject, and the disputes were 
yet very bitter when Mr. Edmond Charles 
Genet, or " Citizen Genet," as he was gen- 
erally styled, arrived in the United States, in 
1793, as minister from the French republic. 
He brought the news that France had de- 
clared war with Great Britain. He was well 




ALEXANDER HAMILTON. 

received by the Republicans, who were 
anxious that the United States should become 
the ally of France, and thus engage in a new 
war with Great Britain. 

Washington and his cabinet were unmoved 
by this clamor, and a proclamation was issued 
declaring the neutrality of the United States 
in the war between Great Britain and France, 
and warning the American people to refrain 
from the commission of acts inconsistent 
W4th this neutrality. The firmness of the 
President in resistinsf the demand for an 



490 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



alliance with France saved the country from 
innumerable losses, perhaps from the des- 
truction of the work of the revolution. 

Genet, encouraged by the sympathy of the 
Republican party, was determined to embroil 
the United States with Great Britain to such 
an extent that they would be compelled to 
make common cause with France. He 
therefore began to fit out privateers from 
American ports against the commerce of 
England. He was warned by the govern- 




ment that he was transcending his privileges 
as a minister of a friendly power, but paid no 
attention to this rebuke. The Republican 
party now took a more active stand in favor 
of the French alliance, and its more ultra 
members assumed the name of Democrats, 
and others styled themselves Democratic 
Republicans. The determination of Presi- 
dent Washington not to interfere in the 
quarrels of Europe was vehemently assailed, 
and the newspapers of this party went so far 



as to denounce the President and his sup- 
porters as the enemies of France, and the 
friends and secret supporters of their old op- 
pressor, the king of England. 

Genet was greatly deceived by these 
clamors, which he mistook for the sentiment 
of the American people. He took a step fur- 
ther, and authorized the French consuls in 
the American ports to receive and sell ves- 
sels captured by French cruisers from the 
English, with whom the United States were 
at peace. He also contemplated raising a 
force in Georgia and the Carolinas for the 
purpose of seizing Florida, and another in 
Kentucky for the conquest of Louisiana, 
both of which regions were then held by 
Spain, a power friendly to the United States. 
The patience of the President having been 
exhausted by Genet's insolent conduct, 
W^ashington requested the French govern- 
ment to recall him, which it did in 1794, 
much to the astonishment of citizen Genet. 
M. Fauchet was appointed in his place* 
Genet did not return home, but became a 
citizen of the United States. 

Whiskey Tax Unpopular. 

The impunity with which Genet had braved 
the federal government gave rise to fears 
that it was not strong enough to enforce its 
authority. Advantage was taken of this feel- 
ing in an unexpected quarter. The fertile 
region of Western Pennsylvania, watered by 
by the Monongahela and its tributaries, had 
been settled by a hardy population, chiefly 
of Scotch- Irish Presbyterians, who had with 
great labor and amid constant exposure to 
the attacks of the Indians, redeemed the 
land from the wilderness, and covered it 
with thriving farms and orchards. Grain 
and apples and peaches were their staple 
products ; the grain was distilled into 
whiskey, and the fruits were made into 
brandies. 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 



491 



One of Hamilton's favorite measures for 
the raising of a revenue was the imposition 
of an excise or duty upon whiskey. This tax 
was generally unpopular throughout the 
country, but especially so in the four western 
counties of Pennsylvania. The settlers of 
this region organized themselves in secret 
societies for the purpose of resisting this tax, 
and at length, in 1792, rose in rebellion 
against the government, refused to pay the 
tax, and drove off the excise officers. The 
best men in this section were engaged in the 
rebellion, and it was openly proposed to 
separate from Pennsylvania and form a new 
State. Nearly seven thousand armed men 
assembled, and declared their intention to 
resist the authority of the State and federal 
governments. 

England Threatens Our Commerce. 

Matters remained in this condition for 
about two years, and at length Washington, 
finding it necessary to employ force for the 
suppression of the revolt, sent a strong body 
of troops to compel the rebels to submit. 
Upon the appearance of the troops, the leaders 
of the movement fled, and the " Whiskey 
Insurrection " suddenly came to an end. 
This vigorous action of the federal govern- 
ment greatly added to its strength. 

The fidelity with which Washington sought 
to discharge his duty towards England, as a 
neutral, was but little appreciated by the 
government of that country, which con- 
ducted itself towards the United States in a 
manner that seemed likely to result in an. 
other war. By the treaty of Paris England 
had agreed to surrender the frontier posts 
held by her forces within the limits of the 
United States, These were still retained, 
and were made by the British agents so 
many centres for stirring up the Indians to 
acts of hostility against the Americans. 
Orders were issued to the British naval 



officers to seize and detain all vessels laden 
with French goods, or with provisions for 
any of the French colonies. As the Ameri- 
can ships were largely engaged in trade with 
France and her colonies, this order threat- 
ened the commerce of the States with ruin. 
The feeling of indignation against Eng- 
land, caused by these outrages, was increasing 
throughout the Union, and the country was 
rapidly drifting into a war with that king- 
dom. The interests of the United States 




M^Jc 



demanded peace with all the world, as the 
country was yet too weak and unsettled to 
endure another war with safety. This neces- 
sity was recognized by Washington and his 
advisers, and the constant aim of the Presi- 
dent was to avoid, as far as possible, all com- 
plications which might lead to war. The 
conduct of Great Britain could not be passed 
by, and if a settlement of the matter, con- 
sistent with the honor and interests of the 
republic could not be arranged, war was in- 
evitable. 



492 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



Anxious to exhaust all peaceful means of 
settlement, President Washington sent John 
Jay, the chief justice, to England to enter 
into negotiations with the British govern- 
ment for the settlement of all matters in dis- 
pute between the two countries. Mr. Jay 
was eminently qualified for the task, both by 
his remarkable abilities and his great and 
honorable services to the country since the 
outbreak of the revolution. He was received 
in England with great respect, and in the 




course of a few months concluded a treaty, 
which was submitted to the Senate of the 
United States for ratification. By the terms 
of this treaty Great Britain agreed to give up 
the western posts within two years, to grant 
to American vessels the privilege of trading 
with the West Indies upon certain condi- 
tions, and to admit American ships free of 
restrictions to the ports of Great Britain and 
the English East Indian possessions. On 
the other hand provision was made by the 



United States for the collection of debts due 
British merchants by American citizens. 

This treaty did not please any party 
entirely, not even Mr. Jay himself; but it 
was the best that could be obtained from 
Great Britain at the time, and as such was 
accepted by the administration, which threw 
all its influence in favor of its adoption. It 
met with very great opposition in the Senate 
and subjected the president to a great deal 
of adverse criticism throughout the country. 
One of the powerful advocates of the treaty 
was Fisher Ames, of Massachusetts, who 
did much by his resistless eloquence to 
insure the adoption of the measure. After 
a fortnight's debate in secret session the 
Senate advised the ratification of the treaty. 

The Treaty Secures Peace. 

The acceptance of this treaty, imperfect 
and unsatisfactory as it was, secured peace 
to the United States for a number of years 
at this most critical period of its history. 
In 1795 treaties were also negotiated with 
Spain, by which the boundaries between the 
United States and Louisiana and Florida 
were definitely settled. The navigation of 
the Mississippi was made free to both parties, 
and the Americans were granted the privi- 
lege of making New Orleans, for three 
years, the place of deposit for their trade. 

The commerce of the United States, 
which was increasing rapidly, was confined 
chiefly to the New England States. A lucra- 
tive trade with the countries of Europe 
bordering the Mediterranean had grown up, 
but was greatly interfered with by the 
Algerine pirates, who sallied out from their 
harbors on the African coast and captured 
many of the vessels engaged in this trade 
and sold the crews into slavery. The 
European powers had purchased exemption 
from these outrages by paying an annual 
tribute to the Dey of Algiers. The United 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 



493 



States for the present thought it best to 
follow the universal custom, and ransomed 
the captive American sailors by the payment 
of nearly a million of dollars. At the same 
time the more sensible policy of establishinga 
navy for the protection of American com- 
merce was resolved upon, and in 1795 a bill 
was passed by Congress for the construction 
of six first-class frigates. This was the be- 
ginning of the United States navy. 

Mr. Jefferson had retired from the cabinet 
at the close of 1793, 
and after his with- 
drawal party quarrels 
ran higher than ever. 
The motives and con- 
duct of the President 
were denounced with 
great bitterness by his 
opponents, and he was 
subjected to consider- 
able annoyance by 
these attacks. He 
continued with firm- 
ness the course he 
had marked out for 
himself, trusting to 
time and the good 
sense of his country- 
men for his vindica- 
tion. In September, 
1796, he issued a fare- 
well address to the 

people of the United States, in which he 
announced his purpose to retire from public 
hfe at the close of his second term, and 
delivered to his countrymen such counsels 
and admonitions as he deemed suited to 
their future guidance. It was the warn- 
ing of a father to his children engaged 
in a difficult and all-important undertak- 
ing. 

It had a most happy effect. It brought 
up the memory of the great and unselfish 



services of Washington, and enabled his 
countrymen to see him in his true light. 
The gratitude of the nation, which had been 
long obscured by party passions, burst forth 
in a mighty stream, and from every quarter 
came evidences of the affection and venera- 
tion of the American people for their great 
leader. Congress adopted a reply to the 
farewell address, expressing the highest con- 
fidence in the wisdom and integrity of 
Washington, and during the winter of 




SCENE IN THE MAMMOTH CAVE, KENTUCKY. 

1796-97 nearly all the State legislatures 
adopted similar resolutions. 

At the elections held in the fall of 1796 
the Federalists put forward John Adams as 
their candidate, while the Republicans sup- 
ported Thomas Jefferson. The contest was 
very bitter, and resulted in the election of 
Mr. Adams. Mr. Jefferson, receiving the 
next highest number of votes, was declared 
Vice President, in accordance with the law 
as it then stood. 



494 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



During the administration of President 
Washington three new States were admitted 
into the Union, making the whole number 
of States sixteen. They were Vermont, 
which was admitted on the fourth of March, 
1 79 1, making the first new State under the 
constitution ; Kentucky, which was admitted 



of the presidency the government was new 
and untried, and its best friends doubted its 
abihty to exist long ; the finances were in 
confusion and the country was burdened 
with debt; the disputes with Great Britain 
threatened to involve the country in a new 
war ; and the authority of the general gov- 




WASHINGTON S HOME AT MOUNT VERNON. 



in 1792 ; and Tennessee, admitted on the 
first of June, 1796. 

At the close of his term of office, Wash- 
ington withdrew to his home at Mount Ver- 
non, to enjoy the repose he had so well 
earned, and which was so grateful to him. 
His administration had been eminently suc- 
cessful. When he entered upon the duties 



ernment was uncertain and scarcely recog- 
nized. 

When he left office the state of affairs 
was changed. The government had been 
severely tested and had been found equal 
to any demand made upon it ; the finances 
had been placed upon a safe and healthy 
footing, and the debt of the country had 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 



495 



been adjusted to the satisfaction of all parties 
concerned in it. The disputes with England 
had been arranged, and the country, no 
longer threatened with war, was free to 
devote its energies to its improvement. 
Industry and commerce were growing rap- 
idly. The exports from the United States 
had risen from nineteen millions to over fifty- 
six millions of dollars, and the imports had 



increased in nearly the same proportion. 
The rule of non-interference in European 
quarrels, and of cultivating friendly relations 
with all the world, had become the settled 
policy of the republic, and its wisdom had 
been amply vindicated. The progress of 
the republic during the eight years of Wash- 
ington's administratioa was indeed gratify- 
ing, and gave promise of a brilliant future. 




CHAPTER XXXII 

The Administrations of John Adams and 
Thomas Jefferson 

Inauguration of John Adams — Aggressions of France Upon the United States — The American Commissioners Insulted 
by the French Government — The Alien and Sedition Laws — The United States Prepare for War with France — France 
Signifies Her Willingness to Treat — New Commissioners Appointed — Settlement of the Dispute — Hostilities at Sea — • 
Capture of the " Insurgente " and "Vengeance" — Death of Washington — Removal of the Capitol to Washington 
City — The Second Census — Inauguration of Thomas Jefferson — The President's Message — His First Measures — Ad- 
mission of Ohio — Louisiana Purchased by the United States — War with the Barbary Powers — Burning of the " Phila- 
delphia " — Re-election of Mr. Jefferson — Aaron Burr Kills Alexander Hamilton in a Duel — Burr's Subsequent 
Career — Fulton's Steamboat — Outrages of England and France Upon American Commerce — American Vessels 
Searched and American Seamen Impressed by England — Efforts to Settle These Questions — Affair of the " Chesa- 
peake" and "Leopard" — The Embargo — Results of This Measure — Losses of the Eastern States — Election of James 
Madison to the Presidency — Repeal of the Embargo — Retirement of Mr. Jefferson. 



ON the fourth of March, 1797, John 
Adams was inaugurated Presi- 
dent of the United States, and 
Thomas Jefferson took the oath 
of office as Vice President. Mr, Adams was 
in the sixty-second year of his age. and in the 
full vigor of health and intellect. He made 
no changes in the cabinet left by President 
Washington, and the policy of his adminis- 
tration corresponded throughout with that 
of his great predecessor. He came into office 
at a time when this policy was to be subjected 
to the severest test, and was to be triumph- 
antly vindicated by the trial. Mr. Adams 
began his official career with the declaration 
of his "determination to maintain peace and 
inviolate faith with all nations, and neutrality 
and impartiality with the belligerent powers 
of Europe." 

The relations of the United States with 
France had been of an unfriendly nature for 
some time. Jay's treaty had greatly offended 
the French government, and the insolent 
conduct of M. Adet, the French minister to 
the United States, had led to a suspension 
of diplomatic intercourse between the two 
496 



republics. The French Directory now pro- 
ceeded to manifest its disregard of the rights 
of America by ordering the seizure of all 
American vessels in its ports laden with 
English manufactured goods. At the same 
time the American minister to France, 
Charles C. Pinckney, was treated with such 
studied insult that he demanded his pass- 
ports and withdrew to Holland. Privateers 
were sent out from French ports, which cap- 
tured American merchantmen and treated 
their crews as prisoners of war. 

France also exerted her influence with 
Spain and Holland to induce them to treat 
the United States with hostility because of 
the alleged partiality of Jay's treaty with 
Great Britain. All this while there was a 
considerable party in the United States 
which was anxious for the conclusion of an 
alliance with France, and which either could 
not, or would not, see the deliberate purpose 
of that country to treat with the American 
republic only as a dependent. 

In May, 1797, President Adams called 
a special session of Congress and laid before 
it a statement of the relations with France. 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 



497 



The announcement of the insults received by 
the American minister at the hands of the 
Directory, and the increased aggressions 
upon American commerce, aroused a feeling 
of deep indignation throughout the country, 
and drew upon the partisans of France in 
America a considerable amount of deserved 
odium. 

In the hope that a peaceful and honorable 
settlement might yet be had, John Marshall 
and Eldridge Gerry, the former a federalist 
and the latter a republican, were appointed 
special commissioners, and were ordered to 
proceed to Paris and unite with Mr. Pinckney 
in the negotiation of a treaty which should 
not conflict with those existing with other 
nations, and which should place beyond 
question the right of the United States to 
maintain their neutrality. 

" Not One Cent for Tribute." 

Marshall and Gerry joined Pinckney in 
Paris in October, 1798, and made their busi- 
ness known to the French minister of foreign 
affairs, the famous Talleyrand. He at first 
refused to receive the American envoys in an 
official capacity, and afterwards employed 
unknown agents to communicate with them, 
in order that he might be free to disavow any 
engagement entered into with them. It soon 
transpired that the object of these secret in- 
terviews was to extort money from the com- 
missioners. They were given to understand 
that if they would pay Talleyrand a certain 
sum of money for the use of himself and his 
friends, and would pledge the United States 
to make a loan to France, negotiations would 
be begun without delay. 

The answer of the American commission- 
ers was well expressed in the indignant words 
of Pinckney : " Millions for defence, not one 
cent for tribute." Marshall and Pinckney 
were ordered to quit France at once, but Mr. 

Gerry was invited to remain and negotiate a 
32 



treaty. He was nevertheless unable to accom- 
plish anything. The correspondence between 
the commissioners and Talleyrand's agents 
was published in tha United States, and 
aroused such a storm of indignation that the 
French party disappeared. It never dared to 
make its appearance again. 




JOHN ADAMS. 

About thirty thousand French exiles were 
residing in the United States at this time, 
and it was believed by the government that 
some of these had acted as spies for the 
Directory, It was known that many had 
abused the hospitality extended to them by 
seeking to induce the people of the south 
and west to join them in an effort to wrest 
Louisiana and Florida from Spain, and by 
endeavoring to strengthen the opposition to 
the efforts of the government to discharge its 
duty of neutrality towards the European 
powers. 

In the spring of 1798, in order to remedy- 
this trouble. Congress passed the measures 



498 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



known as the " alien and sedition acts," by 
the first of which the President was em- 
powered to order out of the country " any 
foreigner whom he might beheve to be dan- 
gerous to the peace and safety of the United 
States." By the sedition act it was made a 
crime, with a very heavy penalty, for any one 
to " to write, utter, or publish " any " false, 
scandalous, and malicious writing " against 
"either House of the Congress of the United 
States or the President of the United States, 




JOHN MARSHALL. 

with intent to defame, or to bring them, or 
either of them, into contempt and disrepute." 
These acts met with great opposition through- 
out the country, and the latter especially was 
regarded as an effort on the part of the 
government to destroy the freedom of the 
press. 

The alien act was not executed, but a large 
number of foreigners left the country soon 
after its passage. Several pers*ons were pro- 
secuted under the sedition act for their severe 



criticisms of the government, and the result 
was invariably to increase the ranks of the 
Republican party, which steadfastly opposed 
the laws as unconstitutional and violative of 
the freedom of the people of the Union, 

In the summer of 1798 Mr. Marshall 
returned from France, and his report con- 
firmed the statements that had been made 
respecting the hostile intentions of the gov- 
ernment of that country. The President 
submitted to Congress a statement of the 
disputes between the two republics, and 
Congress, recognizing the danger of war, 
began to prepare for it. It was resolved to 
create a navy, and the three frigates just com- 
pleted were fitted for sea. 

A State of Defence. 

The President was authorized to have 
built, or to purchase or hire twelve ships of 
war of twenty guns each. An army was 
ordered to be raised, and the prominent 
points on the coast were to be placed in a 
state of defence. Washington was made 
commander-in-chief of the army, with the 
rank of Lieutenant-General. He accepted 
the position, and applied himself with energy 
to the task of preparing the country for 
defence. He gave a hearty support to the 
measures of the President, and used his great 
influence to secure for them a similar approval 
on the part of the people. In the winter of 
1798-99 Congress appropriated a million of 
dollars to defray the expense of the military 
preparations, and authorized the construc- 
tion of six ships of war of seventy-four guns 
each, and six sloops of war of eighteen guns 
each. 

The energy and enthusiasm with which 
the Americans prepared for war opened the 
eyes of Talleyrand. He had not supposed 
they would fight, and now that he found 
they would, he was not willing to add to the 
difficulties of France by engaging in a new 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 



499 



war. He therefore signified in an informal 
manner to Mr. Van Murray, the United 
States minister in Holland, that the French 
government was willing to renew diplomatic 
intercourse with the United States. Mr. 
Adams, upon being informed of this, resolved 
to make one more effort to secure a peaceful 
settlement of the quarrel. 

A Council of Peace. 

He sent Oliver Ellsworth, Chief Justice of 
the United States ; William R. Davie and 
William Van Murray, minister to Holland, 
as commissioners to treat with the French 
republic for a settlement of all difficulties 
between the two countries. In taking this 
step he greatly offiended many of the leaders 
of his party, who insisted that overtures for 
peace should come from France. The most 
rational and probable solution of Mr. Adams' 
course, in the absence of direct proof, says 
the Hon. A. H. Stephens, " is that he acted 
under the urgent private advice of Washing- 
ton. Be that as it may, it proved to be one 
of the wisest and most beneficent deeds of 
his life." The commissioners were ordered 
by the president not to enter France unless 
they were assured they would be received in 
a " manner befitthig the commissioners of 
an independent nation." 

Upon reaching Paris the commissioners 
found that a great change had taken place 
in the affairs of France. A revolution had 
unseated the Directory, and Napoleon Bona- 
parte was at the head of the government as 
first consul. Commissioners were appointed 
to meet the American envoys, and negotia- 
tions were begun and carried forward with 
such success that on the thirtieth of Novem- 
ber, 1800, a treaty of peace was signed 
between the United States and France. 

In the meantime, though war was not 
actually declared, hostilities had begun. 
More than three hundred merchant vessels 



were licensed to carry arms for their defence. 
On the ninth of February, 1799, ^^^^ Ameri- 
can frigate " Constellation " captured the 
French frigate " LTnsurgcnte," of about equal 
force, after a severe engagement of an hour 
and a quarter, inflicting upon her a severe 
loss in killed and wounded. Somewhat later 
the "Constellation " encountered the French 
frigate "La Vengeance," of superior force, 
and in an engagement of about five hours' 
duration silenced her fire and inflicted upon 
her a loss of one hundred and fifty-six men 
in killed and wounded. The French vessel 
succeeded in making her escape. These 
successes were very gratifying to the Ameri- 
cans, as they showed what their navy could 
accomplish if given a fair trial. The news 
of the conclusion of peace put a stop to 
hostilities. The army was disbanded, but 
the navy was kept afloat and the coast 
defences were maintained. 

Before the arrival of the new treaty the 
country was called upon to mourn the loss 
of its most illustrious citizen, George Wash- 
ington. He took cold while riding over his 
estate at Mount Vernon, and was seized 
with a violent sore throat, from the effects of 
which he died on the fourteenth of Decem- 
ber, 1799, in the sixty-eighth year of his 
age. He was buried in his family vault at 
Mount Vernon, where his ashes still lie. 

Honors to the Dead Patriot. 

The highest honors were paid to his 
memory by Congress and by the various 
State governments, and in all parts of the 
Union a universal mourning was held for 
the Father of his Country. Not less sincere 
were the tributes paid in foreign lands to the 
memory of the illustrious dead. Upon the 
receipt of the sad news the flags of the 
Channel fleet of Great Britain were placed 
at half-mast by order of the Admiral Lord 
Bridport. Napoleon, then first consul of 



500 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



France, caused the standards of the French 
army to be draped in mourning for ten days 
and announced the news to the army in the 
orders of the day. The proudest tribute of 
all to the grandeur and purity of the charac- 
ter of Washington is the unceasing and ever 
increasing love and veneration with which 



session of Congress was opened in the un- 
finished capitol of Washington. 

The elections for President and Vice- 
President were held in the autumn of 1800. 
Mr. Adams was the Federalist candidate for 
the Presidency, and Charles Cotesworth 
Pinckney the candidate of that party for 




Washington's grave, mount vernon. 



his memory is cherished by his country- 
men. 

During the summer of the year 1800 the 
seat of the general government was removed 
from Philadelphia to the new federal city of 
Washington, in the District of Columbia. 
On the twenty-second of November the 



Vice-President. The Republican or Demo- 
cratic party nominated Thomas Jefferson for 
the Presidency, and Colonel Aaron Burr, of 
New York, for the Vice-Presidency. 

The alien and sedition laws had rendered 
the Federalist party so unpopular that the 
electors chosen at the polls failed to make a 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 



501 



choice, and the election was thrown upon the 
House of Representatives, according to the 
terms of the Constitution. On the seventeenth 
of February, 1801, after thirty-six ballots, the 
House elected Thomas Jefferson President, 
and Aaron Burr Vice-President, of the 



capitol, in the city of Washington, on the 
fourth of March, 180 1. He was in his fifty- 
eighth year, and had long been regarded as 
one of the most illustrious men in America. 
He was the author of the Declaration of In- 
dependence, had represented the country as 




THOMAS JEFFERSON. 



United States, for a term of four years, from 
and after the fourth of March, 1801. 

The second census of the United States, 
taken in 1800, showed the population of the 
country to be 5,319,762 souls. 

Thomas Jefferson, the third President of 
the United States, was inaugurated at the new 



minister to France, had served in the cabinet 
of General Washington as Secretary of State, 
and had filled the high office of Vice-Presi- 
dent during the administration of Mr. Adams. 
He was the founder of the Democratic party, 
and was regarded by it with an enthusiastic 
devotion which could see no flaw in his 



502 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



character. By the Federalists he was de- 
nounced with intense bitterness as a Jacobin, 
and an enemy of organized government. He 
was unquestionably a believer in the largest 
freedom possible to man, but he was too 
deeply versed in the lessons of statesman- 
ship, and was too pure a patriot to entertain 
for a moment the levelling principles with 
which his enemies charged him. Under him 
the government of the republic suffered no 
diminution of strength, but his administration 
was a gain to the country. 

Mr. Jefferson began his administration by 
seeking to undo as far as possible the evil 




AARON BURR. 

effects of the sedition act of 1798. A number 
of persons were in prison in consequence of 
sentences under this act at the time of his 
inauguration. These were at once pardoned 
by the President and released from prison. 

At the meeting of the seventh Congress, in 
December, 1801, President Jefferson, in pur- 
suance of an announcement made some time 
before, inaugurated the custom which has 
since prevailed of sending a written message 
to each House of Congress, giving his views 
on public affairs and the situation of the 
country. Previous to this the President had 
always met the two houses upon their assem- 



bling, and had addreseed them in person. A 
strong Democratic majority controlled this 
Congress, and gave a hearty support to the 
President. 

The obnoxious measures of the last admin- 
tration, such as the internal taxes, the taxes 
on stills, distilled spirits, refined sugars, car- 
riages, stamped paper, etc., were repealed. 
In accordance with a suggestion of the Presi- 
dent a period of naturalization was reduced 
from fourteen to five years. Measures were 
also set on foot for the redemption of the 
public debt, and it was provided that seven 
millions three hundred thousand dollars 
should be annually appropriated as a sinking 
fund for that purpose. Another act, of which 
the wisdom was not so apparent, was passed 
for the reduction of the army. 

Rapid Settlement of Ohio. 

During the interval which had elapsed since 
the orginzation of the Territory of the North- 
west, emigrants had b^en pouring into the 
southern and eastern part of it with great 
rapidity. In one year twenty thousand new 
settlers were added to the population of the 
Territory of Ohio. The population had now 
become so large that the eastern part of the 
northwest Territory applied for admission 
into the Union as a separate State. Its 
request was granted, and on the nineteenth 
of February it was admitted into the Union, 
as the State of Ohio, with a population of 
seventy thousand. 

In 1 80 1 France by a secret treaty received 
back from Spain the Territory of Louisiana. 
The French did not occupy the country, but 
left it under Spanish rule. In 1803 the 
Spanish governor of New Orleans, in viola- 
tion of the treaty of 1795, closed the port of 
New Orleans to American commerce. This 
act aroused the most intense indignation 
among the people along the tributaries of 
the Mississippi, who were thus cut of from 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 



503 



the sea, and it was with difficulty that they 
could be restrained from an attempt to take 
possession of Louisiana. 

Mr. Jefferson had long been anxious to 
obtain for the United States the country 
bordering the lower Mississippi, as he was 
convinced that the power holding the mouth 
of that river must of necessity control the 
great valley through which it flows. Accord- 
ingly, Robert R. Livingston, the American 
minister at Paris, was ordered to open nego- 
tiations with the French government for the 
purchase of Louisiana. 

Purchase of Louisiana. 

He found this an easier task than he had 
expected, for Napoleon, who was on the eve 
of a great European war, was much in need 
of money, and was by no means anxious to 
add to his troubles by being obliged to 
defend Louisiana. A bargain was soon con- 
cluded by which the United States became 
the possessors of the whole region of 
Louisiana, from the Mississippi to the 
Pacific, embracing over a million of square 
miles. 

The United States paid to France the sum 
of ^15,000,000 for this immense region, and 
guaranteed to the then inhabitants all the 
rights of American citizens. " This acces- 
sion of territory," said Napoleon, upon the 
completion of the purchase, " strengthens 
forever the power of the United States, and 
I havejust given to England a maritime rival 
that will sooner or later humble her pride." 

This purchase was of the highest import- 
ance. It about doubled the area of the 
United States, and placed the whole valley 
of the Mississippi within the territory of the 
republic. It was naturally a most popular 
act, and was approved by the entire nation, 
with the exception of a small number of the 
old Federalist leaders. Congress divided 
this great region into two territories — the 



Territory of Orleans, corresponding to the 
present State of Louisiana, and the District 
of Louisiana, comprising the remainder of 
the purchase. 

Mention has been made of the payment of 
tribute to the dey of Algiers by the United 
States during the administration of Wash- 
ington. Previous to 1801 the United States 
expended nearly two million dollars in pur- 
chasing exemption from capture for its mer- 
chant vessels in the Mediterranean. These 
payments were made to all the Barbary 




powers, Tunis, Tripoli, Algiers and Morocco. 
The tribute for 1800 was taken to Algiers 
by Captain William Bainbridge, in the frigate 
" George Washington." Nothing could be 
more distasteful to the gallant Bainbridge, 
but he had to obey orders. While thus 
engaged, the dey of Algiers told him to take 
the tribute of the dey to the Sultan at Con- 
stantinople, and to haul down his own flag 



504 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



and run up that of Algiers. This Bainbridge 
refused, whereupon the dey insolently said, 



castle guns in the harbor held Bainbridge at 
their mercy, he took the advice of the Amer- 



# 




NAPOLEON I. 



" You are my slaves ; for if you are not, 
why do you pay me tribute ? I have the 



ican consul and obeyed the orders of his 
master, the dey, but the captain expressed 



right to order you as I please." As the the hope that he might deliver the next 



505 

cers were held for ransom, but the seamen 
were reduced to slavery. 

On the fifth of February, 1804, Lieutenant 
Stephen Decatur, with a picked crew of 
seventy-six men, entered the harbor of Tripoli 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON 

tribute from the throats of his cannon. As 
the American republic lay at the other side 
of the Atlantic, and its ships of war were not 
often seen in the Mediterranean, the African 
pirates did not trouble themselves to comply 
with their agreements, 
and continued their 
outrages upon Amer- 
ican ships in spite of 
the tribute paid them. 
In 1 801 the bey of 
Tripoli, dissatisfied 
with the tribute paid 
him, declared war 
against the United 
States, and a number 
of American war ves- 
sels were sent to the 
Mediterranean to pro- 
tect the commerce of 
their country in that 
sea. In 1803 Com- 
modore Preble was 
sent to the Mediter- 
ranean with a fleet. 
The frigate "Philadel- 
phia" was stationed 
to blockade Tripoli, 
while Preble, with the 
remainder of the ves- 
sels, sought to punish 
the emperor of Mo- 
rocco by an attack on 
Tangiers. While thus 
engaged the " Phila- 
delphia " ran ashore 
in chasing an Algerine 
cruiser. In this help- 
less condition she was 
surrounded by Tripo- ^^^'^^^^ (afterward commodore) bainbridge and the dey of Algiers 

litan gunboats and captured after a fight 
which lasted the entire day. Captain Bain- 
bridge, her commander, and three hundred 




of her crew were made prisoners. The oflfi- 



m a small schooner named the " Intrepid." 
Placing his vessel alongside of the " Phila- 
delphia " by night, he boarded the frigate as 
she lay under the guns of the castle and the 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



506 

Tripolitan fleet, drove the Turkish crew into 
the sea, set fire to the frigate in every part, 
and retreated from the harbor without the 
loss of a man. 

During the year 1804 the American fleet 
repeatedly bombarded Tripoli, and did con- 
siderable damage to it. The war went on 
until the summer of 1805, when the bey of 



In the fall of 1804 Mr. Jefferson was 
elected president for a second term, but this 
time Colonel Burr was dropped by his party, 
who nominated and elected George Clinton, 
of New York, vice-president in his place. 
Burr had at last experienced the reward of 
his insincerity : both parties had come to 
distrust him. After his defeat for the vice- 




DUI.L BETWEEN BURR AND HAMILTON. 



Tripoli asked for peace, and a treaty was 
made by which the Tripolitan pirates sur- 
rendered their captives on payment of a 
ransom, and agreed to refrain from aggres- 
sions upon the commerce of the United 
States in future without payment of further 
tribute. For some years the American ves- 
sels were safe from the outrages of the 
Barbary pirates. 



presidency he had been nominated by his 
party as their candidate for governor of New 
York. He was warmly opposed by Alex- 
ander Hamilton, who was mainly instru- 
mental in bringing about his deteat. Burr 
never forgave Hamilton for his course in this 
election, and took advantage of the first 
opportunity to challenge him to a duel. 
They met at Weehawken, on the banks of 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 



507 



the Hudson, opposite New York, on the 
eleventh of July, 1804. 

Hamilton, who had accepted the challenge 
in opposition to his better judgment, and 
who had expressed his intention not to fire 
at Burr, was mortally wounded, and died 
within twenty-four hours. In him perished 
one of the brightest intellects and most ear- 
nest patriots of the republic. His loss was 



remaining years were passed in restless 
intrigue. In 1 805 he went west, and there 
undertook the organization of a military 
movement of some sort, which from the 
secrecy with which it was conducted, was 
generally regarded as treasonable and in- 
tended for his own aggrandizement. In 
1806 he was arrested by the United States, 
and after a prolonged trial, during which he 





FULTON S FIRST STEAMBOAT. 



regarded as second only to that of Wash- 
ington, and the sad news of his death was 
received in all parts of the country with 
profound and unaffected sorrow. A feeling 
of deep and general indignation was aroused 
against Burr, who found it expedient to 
withdraw from New York and retire to 
Georgia until the excitement had subsided. 

The murder of Hamilton, for it was nothing 
else, closed Burr's political career. His 



defended himself with great ability, he was 
acquitted of the charge of treason. His sub- 
sequent career was obscure, and he died in 
1836, friendless and alone. He was a man 
of great ability ; but he failed to put his 
great talents to an honest use. 

In the year 1807 a great change was made 
in the system of navigation by Robert Ful- 
ton, a native of Pennsylvania, who built and 
successfully navigated the first steamboat. 



5o8 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



He named it the " Clermont," and made the 
voyage from New York to Albany, a dis- 
tance of about one hundred and fifty miles, 
in thirty-six hours. From this time steam 
navigation rapidly superseded the old sys- 
tem of sailing vessels in the waters of the 
United states and exercised a powerful in- 
fluence in the development of the wealth and 
prosperity of the country. 

Since the beginning of the century France 
and England had been at war with each 
other, and their quarrels had drawn the 
whole European world into the struggle. 
The administration of Mr. Jefferson had 
continued the neutrality of its predecessors, 
but in a fit of mistaken economy it exhibited 
the greatest hostility to the navy, which had 
been reduced to the most inefficient state 
possible. The commerce of the Union had 
grown with remarkable rapidity, and the 
need of a navy for its protection was now 
greater than ever. The administration 
could not be brought to recognize this fact, 
however, and it regarded the navy as of no 
other use than to enforce the revenue laws 
in its home waters. 

Seizure of American Vessels. 

The general character of the European war 
had thrown the commerce of the old world 
into the hands of the few nations which were 
not engaged in the struggle. The United 
States obtained the largest share of this 
trade, but were not left long to enjoy it in 
peace. The efforts of Great Britain and 
France to injure each other had caused them 
to extend their attacks to neutral nations. 
The British government, by its " orders in 
council," declared all vessels engaged in 
conveying West India produce from the 
United States to Europe legal prizes. 

This measure was intended to cripple 
France, and at the same time to injure the 
United States, which had become too suc- 



cessful a commercial rival to England. A 
number of American vessels were seized and 
condemned upon this pretext. Great indig- 
nation was expressed throughout the United 
States, but the government did nothing to 
remedy the trouble. In May, 1806, Great 
Britain declared the European coast, from 
Brest to the mouth of the river Elbe, in a 
state of blockade, thus forbidding neutral 
vessels to trade with any port within these 
prescribed limits on pain of capture and con- 
fiscation. This high-handed measure was a 
" direct blow to the United States. 

Mutterings of V/ar, 

It was met on the part of France by an 
act equally unjustifiable. Napoleon issued 
his famous " Berlin decree," by which he 
declared the whole coast of Great Britain in 
a state of blockade, and forbade the intro- 
duction of English goods into France, and 
the admission into French ports of any 
neutral vessel that should first touch at an 
English port. In answer to this decree 
Great Britain forbade all trade with France 
by neutral nations. Napoleon thereupon 
issued his " Milan decree," confiscating not 
only the vessels and cargoes that should 
violate the " Berlin decree," but also such as 
submit to be searched by the English. Thus 
the commerce of the world was placed at 
the mercy of these two nations. The United 
States were the chief sufferers by these arbi- 
trary measures. Their ships were captured 
by both British and French cruisers, and their 
remonstrances produced no cessation of the 
outrages. 

It was not possible to do anything for the 
protection of the commerce of the country, 
as the mistaken policy of the administration 
had deprived it of an efficient navy. The 
whole Atlantic seaboard demanded a change 
in this respect, and petitions poured in upon 
Congress asking for the construction of more 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 



509 



vessels of war and for protection from the 
aggressions of the European powers. The 
only result of these petitions was a recom- 
mendation from the president to Congress 
to build more gunboats. It was not possi- 
ble to go to war with both England and 
France, and the American government was 
left to make a choice as to which power 
it would undertake to settle the question 
with. The popular feeling was stronger 
against England, which, being the most 
active power at sea, was the principal ag- 
gressor, and the events to be related finally 
turned the scale against England. 

Remonstrance Against British Outrages. 

The British government maintained the 
doctrine that no subject could expatriate 
himself or become a citizen of another coun- 
try. This was the opposite of the view held 
by the United States, which welcomed emi- 
grants from other countries, bestowed upon 
them the rights of citizenship, and in their 
new character of adopted citizens protected 
them. The commanders of the British men- 
of-war were accustomed to stop American 
vessels on the high seas and search them for 
deserters. 

Under this head they included all persons 
born within the dominions of Great Britain, 
whether naturalized American citizens or 
not. When found on American vessels 
these persons were removed by force and 
compelled to serve on board English ships of 
war. The British officers did not confine 
these impressments to " deserters," but 
seized and forced into their service great 
numbers of native-born Americans, who 
were thus torn from their homes and con- 
signed to a slavery which was bitter and 
cruel to them. 

The government of the United States 
addressed urgent remonstrances to that of 
Great Britain against these outrages, and 



finally, in the spring of 1806, sent William 
Pinckney as joint commissioner with James 
Monroe, then minister to England, for the 
purpose of negotiating a treaty which should 
put a stop to the acts complained of. The 
commissioners appointed by Great Britain 
expressed the desire of their country not to 
impress American seaman, and their willing- 
ness to redress as promptly as possible any 
mistake of the kind. They declined to 
relinquish the right to search for deserters. 




as it would be ruinous to the English navy. 
The truth is Great Britain treated her sea- 
men with such cruelty that they would have 
deserted by the thousand had they been 
assured of protection from arrest. 

The British commissioners declared that 
while their country would not relinquish the 
right of search and impressment, strict orders 
would be issued to their naval commanders 
to use the right with caution and moder- 
ation. The British government itself was 
sincerely desirous of conciliating the United 



Sio 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



States, but its naval commanders, tempted 
hy the weakness of the American navy, paid 
■no attention to its orders and conducted 
themselves with haughty insolence towards 
American vessels, seizing and searching 
them, and forcing men from their decks with 
the same activity as before, and rarely miss- 
incr an occasion to insult the flag of the 



upon an act which threw the relations be- 
tween the two countries into a more hope- 
less state than ever. The United States 
frigate " Chesapeake," 38, under the com- 
mand of Commodore Barron, was about to 
sail for a European station. Strict orders 
were issued to her officers not to enlist any 
British subject, knowing him to be such ; but 




OFFICERS OF THE CHESAPEAKE SURRENDERING THEIR SWORDS. 



republic. Meanwhile the commissioners 
concluded a treaty for ten years between the 
United States and Great Britain. It was on 
the whole more advantageous than Jay's 
treaty, but the president was not satisfied 
with it, and assumed the responsibility of 
rejecting it, in the spring of 1807, without 
submitting it to the Senate. 

A British naval commander now ventured 



it was said that four of her crew were desert- 
ers from the British frigate " Melampus." 
Several British war vessels were lying in the 
Chesapeake Bay, and one of these, the 
" Leopard," a fifty-gun frigate, put to sea a 
few hours before the " Chesapeake " sailed. 
The latter vessel sailed before she was fully 
ready for sea, and the work of getting the 
ship in order was still in progress, when she 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF ADAMS AND JEFFERSON. 



511 



was hailed off the capes by the " Leopard," 
under the pretence of sending despatches to 
Europe. 

A lieutenant of the British frigate came 
on board and demanded the surrender of the 
four men we have mentioned. Commodore 
Barron refused the demand on the ground 
that there were no such men on board. The 
lieutenant then returned to his ship, and the 
■" Leopard " opened fire upon the " Chesa- 
peake," and killed three of her men and 
wounded eighteen others. The " Chesa- 
peake " was utterly unprepared for resist- 
ance, and Barron struck his colors after a 
single gun had been fired. The four men 
were taken from the " Chesapeake," the 
" Leopard" sailed for Halifax,and the Amer- 
ican frigate returned to Norfolk. 

The Embargo Act. 

The news of this outrage excited the pro- 
foundest indignation throughout the coun- 
try. On the second of July, 1807, the presi- 
dent issued a proclamation ordering all 
British vessels of war to depart from Ameri- 
can waters, and the people were warned 
against holding any intercourse with them. 
A special session of Congress was called, 
and the American minister at Londan was 
ordered to demand satisfaction for the out- 
rage. 

The British government had received infor- 
mation of the affair before the arrival of the 
American demand. The action of the com- 
mander of the "Leopard" was disavowed, 
and a special messenger was sent to the 
United States to arrange the matter. Great 
Britain disclaimed the right to search vessels 
of war, and the excitement was quieted for a 
time. 

In Deceember, 1806, as the outrages upon 
American commerce were continued. Con- 
gress, at the recommendation of the presi- 
dent, passed the " Embargo Act," by which 



all merchant vessels of the United States 
were prevented from leaving the ports of this 
country. This measure entirely put an end 
to the intercourse between the United States 
and the European nations. 

James Madison Elected President. 

In the election of 1808 Mr. Jefferson fol- 
lowing the example of Washington, declined 
to be a candidate for the third term, and the 
Democratic or administration party support- 
ed James Madison for the Presidency, and 
George Clinton for the Vice-Presidency. 
They were elected by large majorities ; but 
the effect of the embargo was seen in the 
casting of the electoral votes of the five New 
England States against the administration. 

The disaffection of the New England States 
induced Mr. Jefferson, just before the expira- 
tion of his term of office, to recommend to 
Congress the repeal of the embargo act. His 
opinion was unchanged as to the propriety 
of the embargo, but he recommended its 
repeal as a measure of peace and concilia- 
tion. The law was repealed on the first of 
March, 1809, and in the same month Con- 
gress passed an act prohibiting trade with 
France and England. 

At the close of his term of office Mr. 
Jefferson withdrew from public life, and 
retired to his home at Montecello, in Virginia. 
The wisdom and success of the general policy 
of his administration had far outweighed his 
mistakes, and he retired from ofifice with 
undiminished popularity, and with the res- 
pect and confidence of the nation. Indeed 
his Dopularity was greater at the close of his 
administration than at the beginning — a rare 
and gratifying reward to a public servant. 
His great services in the revolution, his draft 
of the Declaration of Independence, his 
acquisition of Louisiana, and the purity and 
grandeur of his character, placed him, in the 
public estimation, next to Washington. 



CHAPTER XXXIII 

The Administration of James Madison — The Second 

War with England 

Inauguration of Mr. Madison — Negotiations witti Mr. Erskine — Their Failure — Seizure of American Vessels in France — 
Sufferings of American Ship-Owners — Great Britain Stations Her Ships of War Off American Ports — Affair of the 
" President " and " Little Belt " — Trouble with the Northwestern Indians — Tecumseh — Battle of Tippecanoe — Meet- 
ing of the Twelfth Congress — Measures for Defence — Admission of Louisiana Into the Union — Death of George 
Clinton — The British Ultimatum — War Declared Against Great Britain — Opposition to the War — The British Offer of 
Settlement Rejected — The War for " Free Trade and the Sailors' Rights" — Mr. Madison Re-elected — Campaign of 
1812 — Preparations for the Invasion of Canada — General Hull Surrenders Detroit to the British — Loss or the North- 
western Frontier — Failure of the Attack on Queenstown — Exploits of the Navy — Capture of the " Guerri^re " by the 
"Constitution" — The Privateers — Russia Offers to Mediate Between the United States and England — Financial 
Affairs — Harrison's Campaign — Massacre at the River Raisin — Defence of Forts Meigs and Stephenson — Perry's Vic- 
tory on Lake Erie — Battle of the Thames — Death of Tecumseh — Recovery of the Northwest — Capture of York — 
British Attack on Sackett's Harbor Repulsed — Removal of General Dearborn — Failure of the Campaign on the Lower 
Lakes — The Creek War — Jackson's Victories — Naval Affairs — The British Outrages in Chesapeake Bay — Negoti- 
ations for Peace — Capture of Fort Erie — Battles of Chippewa and Lundy's Lane — Siege of Fort Erie — Successes of 
the Americans — Advance of Prevost — Battle of Plattsburg — Macdonough's Victory on Lake Champlain — Battle of 
Bladensbm-g — Capture of Washington — Destruction of the Public Buildings by the British — Attack on Baltimore — 
Death of General Ross — "The Star Spangled Banner" — The British Attack on the New England Coast — Oppo- 
sition of New England to the War — The Hartford Convention — The British in Florida — General Jackson Expels 
Them— Jackson at New Orleans — Arrival of the British Expedition Oft the Coast — Vigorous Measures of Jackson — 
Battle of New Orleans — Defeat of the British — Naval Affairs — The Treaty of Peace — The Barbary Powers Humbled — 
The Tariff — The Bank of the United States — Admission of Indiana — James Monroe Elected President. 



JAMES MADISON, the fourth presi- 
dent of the United States, was inaug- 
urated at Washington on the fourth 
of March, 1809. He was in the fifty- 
eighth year of his age, and had long been 
one of the most prominent men in the 
Union. He had borne a distinguished part 
in the convention of 1787, and was the 
author of the Virginia resolutions of 1786, 
which brought about the assembling of this 
convention. He had entered the convention 
as one of the most prominent leaders of the 
national party, which favored the consolida- 
tion of the States into one distinct and 
supreme nation, and had acted with Ran- 
dolph, Hamilton, Wilson, Morris, and King, 
in seeking to bring about such a result. 
When it was found impossible to carry out 
512 



this plan Mr. Madison gave his cordial sup- 
port to the system which was finally adopted 
by the convention ; and while the constitu- 
tion was under discussion by the States, he 
united with Hamilton and Jay in earnestly 
recommending the adoption of the constitu- 
tion by the States, in a series of able articles,, 
to which the general title of the " Federalist "^ 
was given. 

After the organization of the government 
Mr. Madison was a member of the House of 
Representatives, and was regarded as one of 
the leaders of the Federalist party, and gave 
to Hamilton his cordial support in the 
finance measures of that minister. Towards 
the close of Washington's administration, 
however, Mr. Madison's political views 
underwent a sreat change. He was a near 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



neighbor and warm friend of Mr. Jefferson, 
and was greatly influenced by the opinions 
and the strong personal character of that 
great statesman. As the political contro- 
versies of the times deepened he became more 
and more inclined to- 
wards the Republican 
or " Strict Construc- 
tion " party, and in 
Mr. Adams' adminis- 
tration took his posi- 
tion as one of the 
leaders of that party. 
At the time of his 
election to the Presi- 
dency, Mr. Jefferson 
having withdrawn 
from public life, Mr. 
Madison was the re- 
cognized leader of the 
Democratic party, as 
the Republican party 
had come to be called. 
In 1799 his famous 
report upon the Vir- 
ginia resolutions of 
1798 stamped him as 
one of the first states- 
men in America, and 
this report has always 
been regarded by suc- 
ceeding generations 
as the most masterly 
exposition of the true 
principles of the con- 
stitution ever penned. 
During the whole of 
Mr. Jefferson's admi- 
nistration Mr. Madison served as secretary 
of state, and not only added to his great fame 
by his eminent services in that capacity, but 
prepared himself for the difficult duties of 
the presidency. 

Mr. Madison had opposed the embaro-o 
33 "^ ' 



513 

while sustaining the general foreign policy 
of Mr. Jefferson, but was in favor of the non- 
intercourse act, which forbade the tountry 
to trade with England and France. This 
act contained a clause which provided that 




JAMES MADISON. 

it should cease to apply to either or both of 
them as soon as they should repeal their 
" decrees," or " orders in council," affecting 
the commerce of the United States. 

Mr. Erskine, the British minister to the 
United States, a man of noble and generous 



514 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



character, was anxious that the differences 
between the two countries should be settled 
amicably, and he entered heartily into nego- 
tiations with the American government for 
this purpose. In accordance with the in- 
structions he had received from England, he 
believed himself authorized to inform the 
American government that the " orders in 
council " of Great Britain would be revoked 
by that government, as far as they applied 
to the commerce of the United States, and 
to offer " a suitable provision for the widows 
and orphans of those who were killed on 
board the ' Chesapeake.' " Upon these 
assurances the President, on the nineteenth 
of April, 1810, issued a proclamation sus- 
pending the non-intercourse act, as to Eng- 
land, after the tenth of June following. 

Seizure of American Ships. 

The news was received with joy all over 
the country, and in the course of a few weeks 
over one thousand vessels sailed from the 
United States, laden with American pro- 
ducts, for foreign ports. They had hardly 
gotten to sea when the President was in- 
formed by the British government that Mr. 
Erskine had exceeded his powers in promis- 
ing the withdrawal of the " orders in coun- 
cil." The President immediately issued a 
second proclamation, withdrawing his first, 
and matters resumed their old footing. Mr. 
Erskine was recalled, and a Mr. Jackson was 
appointed in his place. The failure of the 
negotiations with Erskine had greatly morti- 
fied not only the President and his cabinet, 
but the whole nation, and Mr. Jackson was 
coldly received. That gentleman adopted a 
tone and style in his correspondence with the 
secretary of state, which were so offensive 
that the President refused to hold communi- 
cation with him, and demanded his recall. 
All the diplomatic intercourse between the 
two countries thus came to an end. 



The outrages upon American commerce 
continued. Danish privateers almost drove 
the American merchantmen from the Baltic. 
The American ship-owners asked permission 
to arm their vessels for their own defence, as 
the government had not a navy sufficient to 
protect them ; but their petition was refused 
by Congress, on the ground that such a state 
of affairs would be equivalent to war. The 
sentiment of the people of the country was 
rapidly settling in favor of war, and they 
could see little difference between the exist- 
ing state of affairs and open hostilities. 
France was equally guilty with Great Britain. 
In the spring of 18 10 Napoleon issued a 
decree by which any American vessel enter- 
ing any port of France, or of any country 
under French control, was made liable to 
seizure and confiscation. The decree was 
held back for six weeks after its date, with 
the deliberate design of involving as many 
American ships as possible in the ruin 
intended for them. The first intimation given 
to the United States of its existence was the 
seizure of one hundred and thirty-two Amer- 
ican ships in the French ports. They were 
shortly afterwards sold with their cagoes, 
and added the sum of eight millions of dol- 
lars to the French treasury. The government 
of the United States remonstrated against 
this high-handed outrage, but to no purpose, 
until Napoleon's want of money induced him 
to adopt a more honest course. 

Great Britain's Unla^vful Acts. 

About the middle of the year 18 10 the 
American minister at Paris was informed 
that the Berlin and Milan decrees were re- 
voked, and would cease to have effect after 
the first of November of that year. In accord- 
ance with this information the President, on 
the first of November, 18 10, issued a procla- 
mation suspending the non-intercourse act 
with respect to France, and announcing that 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



515 



the provisions of the act would be continued 
with respect to Great Britain unless her 
" orders in council " should be revoked 
•within three months from that date. 

The President also called the attention of 
the British government to the repeal of the 
French decrees, and as the " orders in 
council " were based upon these decrees, 
urged their repeal. Great Britain replied that 
the evidence of the revocation of the Berlin 
and Milan decrees was insufficient, and that 
the non-intercourse acts of Congress and the 
President's proclamation were partial and 
unjust. This answer was regarded in the 
United States as evidence of Great Britain's 
deliberate intention to continue her outrages 
upon this country, and very greatly increased 
the popular desire for war. England persisted 
in her determination to enforce her " orders 
in council," and even went to the inexcusable 
length of stationing her war vessels off the 
principal harbors of the United States for 
the purpose of intercepting our merchant- 
men,, and injuring our commerce. 

Trouble with the Indians. 

While matters were in this unsettled con- 
dition, the American frigate '* President," on 
the evening of the sixteenth of May, 181 1, 
encountered a strange vessel off the mouth 
of the Delaware. As the dusk of the evening 
was too deep for Commodore Rodgers to 
distinguish the stranger's nationality, he 
hailed her, and was insolently answered by 
a gun from her. He replied with a broad- 
side, and after an action of twenty minutes 
the stranger was disabled. Rodgers then 
hailed again, and was answered that the dis- 
abled vessel was the British sloop of war 
" Little Belt." She was greatly damaged, and 
had thirty-two of her crew killed and wound- 
ed. The " President " was scarcely injured, 
and had but one man slightly wounded. 

A different statement of the affair was ren- 



dered to his government by each of the com- 
manding officers, and was accepted by each 
government. In this conflict of testimony, 
the matter was suffered to pass by. The news 
of the prompt chastisement of the insolence 
of the British commander was received with 
delight in the United States, and the affair 
was generally regarded as, in some measure, 
an atonement for the disgrace of the sur- 
render of the " Chesapeake " to the 
" Leopard." 

Furious Attack by the Savages. 

The Indians of the northwest were becom- 
ing very troublesome, and their aggressions 
were attributed to the instigation of the 
British in Canada. Tecumseh, a Shawnee 
chief of unusual abilities, attempted to unite 
the Indians of the continent in a grand effort 
against the Americans, and for this purpose 
passed from tribe to tribe, from the great 
lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, and urged them 
to take up the hatchet. He was assisted by 
his twin brother, Elskwatawa, generally 
called " the Prophet," who appealed to the 
superstitious fears of the savages by his 
jugglery. 

The federal government determined to 
strike a blow at the savages before their 
plans for union could be brought to a suc- 
cessful issue. In the autumn of 18 1 1, Major- 
General William Henry Harrison, then gov- 
ernor of Indiana Territory, was sent to 
operate against the tribes on the Wabash. 
He took with him a body of Kentucky and 
Indiana militia, and one regiment of regular 
troops. On the sixth of November he 
arrived at the junction of the Tippecanoe 
and Wabash rivers near the town of the 
Prophet, the brother of Tecumseh. 

The Prophet sent several of the principal 
Indian chiefs to meet Harrison with offers of 
submission. They informed him that the 
Prophet would come into camp the next 



5i6 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



day, and make a treaty with him. Harrison 
suspected that the purpose of the Indians 
was simply to gain time, and that they would 
probably seek to surprise him during the 
night, and accordingly caused his men to 
bivouac on their arms that night. His pre- 
cautions were well taken. About four o'clock 
on the morning of November seventh the 
savages made a furious attack on the Ameri- 
can camp. They were promptly received, 



In view of the threate^iing condition of 
affairs the President, by his proclamation, 
convened the twelfth Congress in session a 
month earlier than usual, and that body met 
on the fourth of November, i8ii. It was 
remarkable, as was also its successor, the 
thirteenth Congress, for the number of its 
members who afterwards took their places 
among the great men of the republic. The 
public men of the revolutionary period were 




A PIONEER hero's FIGHT WITH THE SAVAGES. 



and after a severe conflict of several hours 
were put to flight. Tecumseh was not pres- 
ent in this engagement. General Harrison 
followed up his victory by destroying the 
Prophet's town, and building some forts for 
the protection of the country. The battle 
of Tippecanoe quieted the Indians of the 
northwest for a while, but greatly increased 
the desire of the people of that region for 
war with England. 



dropping out of political life, and new men, 
with new ideas, were taking their places in 
the councils of the nation. 

Among the new members of Congress 
were Henry Clay, a native of Virginia, but a 
representative from Kentucky ; John C. Cal- 
houn, of South Carolina ; John Randolph, 
of Virginia; Felix Grundy, of Tennessee; 
Josiah Quincy, of Massachusetts, and Lang- 
don Cheeves and William Lowndes, of South. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



517 



Carolina. There was a large administration 
majority in both Houses, and the prevailing 
sentiment of Congress was in favor of war 
with England. In this respect Congress 
fairly reflected the feeling of the country. 

Under the influence of this feeling, Con- 
l^ress during this session voted to increase 
the regular army to thirty-five thousand 
men, and authorized the President to accept 
the services of fifty thousand volunteers, and 
to call out the militia whenever occasion 
might require. The vessels of the navy 
were ordered to be fitted for sea, and new 
ships were to be constructed. There was 
need for these measures, as the army at the 
time consisted of but three thousand men, 
and the navy of less than twenty frigates and 
sloops of war in commission, and about one 
hundred and fifty gunboats for harbor defence. 
The third census, taken in 18 10, showed the 
population of the country to be 7,239,903. 

War Declared Against Great Britain. 

During this winter the government de- 
tected and laid before Congress an eflbrt of 
Great Britain to produce disaffection in the 
New England States, with a view to secure 
their withdrawal from the Union. The 
agent of this plot was one John Henry. 
The committee appointed by Congress to 
investigate the matter reported that " the 
transaction disclosed by the President's mes- 
sage presents to the mind of the committee 
conclusive evidence that the British govern- 
ment, at a period of peace, and during the 
most friendly professions, have been delib- 
erately and perfidiously pursuing measures 
to divide these States and to involve our 
citizens in all the guilt of treason and the 
horrors of civil war." 

Amid these troubles the State of Louisiana 
was admitted into the Union on the eighth 
of April, 1 81 2. Shortly afterwards the por- 
tion of the Louisiana purchase lying outside 



of the limits of the State of Louisiana was 
organized into the Territory of Missouri. 

On the twentieth of April, 1805, George 
Clinton, the Vice-President of the United 
States, died at Washington, at the age of 
seventy-three. His place was filled by 
William H. Crawford, of Georgia, the presi- 
dent /ri? tempore of the Senate. 

On the thirtieth of May, 181 2, the British 
minister at Washington delivered to the 
government of the United States the final 




reply of his government to the demands of 
this country in the questions at issue between 
them. This uldmaUim was submitted to 
Congress by the President on the first of 
June, accompanied by a message in which he 
recapitulated the wrongs inflicted by Great 
Britain upon this country, her violations of 
the rights of neutrals, her impressment of 
American seamen, her seizures of American 
ships and her refusal to enter into any equit- 
able arrangement for the settlement of these 
questions. The determination of Great 



5i8 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



Britain to drive American commerce from 
the seas was evident, and the question was 
submitted to Congress whether the United 
States should continue to submit to these 
outrages or should resort to war to protect 
their rights. 

Afer a debate of several days an act 
declaring war against Great Britain was 
passed by Congress and was approved by 
the President on the eighteenth of June, 
1812. On the nineteenth the President 
issued a proclamation declaring that war 
existed between the United States and Great 
Britain and her dependencies. Congress 
authorized the President to enlist twenty-five 
thousand men for the regular army, to raise 
a force of fifty thousand volunteers, and to 
call out one hundred thousand militia for 
garrison duty. General Henry Dearborn, 
of Massachusetts, was appointed to the chief 
command of the army. 

Opposition to the War. 

The war measures of Congress were not 
passed without considerable opposition. A 
large party, composed of some of the ablest 
and best men in that party, was opposed to 
the war, and resented the effort to go to war 
with England alone. They claimed that 
France had given as good cause for war, but 
that nothing was said of punishing her. 
This was true, but this party lost sight of 
the fact that the United States could not go 
to war with both powers, and were compelled 
to direct their efforts against the principal 
offender, which was clearly England. 

The war was regarded as an administra- 
tion measure, and though it was sustained 
by a large majority of the American people, 
there was still a strong and respectable party 
especially in the New England States, which 
opposed it, and which claimed that all 
peaceful means of settlement had not yet 
been exhausted. John Randolph, of Vir- 



ginia, opposed the declaration of war in a 
speech in the House of Representatives re- 
markable for its boldness and vigor, and 
declared that he had no hesitation in saying 
that he should prefer a contest with France 
to one with England. 

Soon after the declaration of war England 
made an effort to settle the controversy with 
the United States by negotiation. In Sep- 
tember, 181 2, Admiral Warren, command- 
ing the British fleet at Halifax, addressed a 
letter to Mr. Monroe, the secretary of state, 
informing him that he was authorized by his 
government to enter into negotiations for a 
cessation of hostilities upon a basis of revo- 
cation of the " orders in council." 

The Cause of Hostilities. 

Mr. Monroe replied that the President was 
willing to enter into an armistice provided 
Admiral Warren had power and was willing 
to include in the negotiations measures for 
the discontinuance of the practices of seizing 
and searching American vessels and impress- 
ing American sailors from their decks, as 
experience had shown that no peace be- 
tween the two countries could be lasting 
which did not include a settlement of these 
questions. As Admiral Warren had na 
authority to enter into these questions, the 
President declined to proceed further, and 
the effort at negotiations came to an end. 
It has been held by many that the rejection 
by the President of the British overture was 
a grave error. 

John Randolph thought that all the ques- 
tions at issue, save the right of a British sub- 
ject to expatriate himself and receive Amer- 
ican protection, could be settled by negoti- 
ation. That point he did not believe Eng- 
land would ever concede. His opinion was 
to some extent vindicated by the uncondi- 
tional revocation of the French decrees, and 
the immediate repeal of the British " orders 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



519 



in council " upon the receipt of the news 
of this revocation. These measures were 
repealed within a month after the declaration 
of war by the United States. The only cause 
of the war remaining unsettled was the im- 
pressment question. The war thus became 
a struggle for the personal freedom of Amer- 
ican sailors ; and in a better cause no nation 
ever drew the sword. 

Plan of Carrying On the War. 

The weakness of the American navy made 
it impossible for this country to attempt any 
distant enterprise against Great Britain, and 
it was not believed by even the most enthu- 
siastic Americans that we could contend 
with her upon terms of equality at sea. The 
only means by which she could be crippled 
by this country was by the invasion and 
conquest of Canada, and to this end the 
efforts of the United States were directed 
during the war. It was also believed that 
the commerce of England could be seriously 
injured by the efforts of American privateers, 
and from the commencement of hostilities 
great activity was displayed in getting vessels 
of this class to sea. 

In the autumn of 18 12 Mr. Madison was 
reelected to the presidency by a large ma- 
jority. Elbridge Gerry, of Connecticut, was 
chosen Vice-President. Mr. Madison entered 
upon his second term on the fourth of March, 
1 813, some months after the war had begun. 

At the outset of the war the American 
forces were stationed along the Canadian 
frontier as follows : General Dearborn, the 
commander-in-chief, held the right, or east- 
ern part of the line ; the centre was com- 
manded by General Stephen Van Rens- 
selaer; and the left was held by General 
William Hull, then governor ot Michigan 
Territory. The forces under these com- 
manders were to cooperate with each other 
in their movements, and were to converge , 



upon Montreal as the objective point of the 
campaign. 

Early in July General Hull, who had seen 
service in the war of the revolution, col- 
lected a force of about two thousand men 
at Detroit. His position was very much 
exposed, Detroit being at that time sen 
arated from tiic other settlements by about 
two hundred miles of unbroken forest. He 
urged upon the government to increase his 
force to three thousand men, and to secure 
the command of Lake Erie before the British 




STEPHEN VAN RENSSELAER. 

should obtain possession of it. His requests 
could not be complied with, and he was 
obliged to depend upon the force at Detroit. 
Immediately upon the declaration of war 
the British commanders in Canada displayed 
great activity, seizing the most important 
points along the frontier. In less than a 
month Fort Mackinaw and other points were 
in their possession, and Hull's position at 
Detroit was surrounded and his communi- 
cations with the States cut off. Hull there- 
upon fortified his position, and endeavored, 
but without success, to opeii communication 



520 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



with the country in his rear. In the mean- 
time a strong British force assembled at 
Fort Maiden, in Canada, opposite Detroit, 
under the command of General Brock, the 
governor of Upper Canada ; and the British 
agents set to work to arouse the Indians of 
the northwest against the Americans. 

In these efforts they were successful. 



lines they were astounded to see a white flag 
flying from them. An officer rode up to 
inquire the cause. The flag was the signal 
for a parley. Negotiations were begun, and 
later in the day Detroit, with its garrison 
and stores, and the whole of Michigan ter- 
ritory, was surrendered to the British by 
General Hull. The American troops were 




MASSACRE BY INDIANS AT FORT DEARBORN. 



Brock erected batteries on the Canadian 
side of the river, in a position to command 
Detroit, and demanded of Hull the surrender 
of that place. The demand being refused. 
Brock crossed his forces to the American 
shore, about three miles below the position 
occupied by General Hull, on the sixteenth 
of August, and advanced to attack him. As 
the British army drew near the American 



overcome with astonishment and mortifica- 
tion at this shameful surrender; for the force 
of the enemy, to whom they were betrayed 
by their commander, consisted of but seven 
hundred British and Canadians, and six 
hundred Indians. 

By the surrender of Detroit the whole 
northwestern frontier was exposed to the 
British and their Indian allies. Great Britain, 




COMMODORE PERRY AT THE BATTLE ON LAKE ERIE. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



521 



unmindful of the shame she had incurred 
by her employment of the savages during 
the revolution, did not hesitate once more to 
devote the American frontier to the horrors 
of a savage war. The west was greatly 
alarmed, and ten thousand volunteers offered 
their services to the government for the 
defence of the frontier. They were accepted, 
and were placed under the command of Gen- 
eral Harrison, who was appointed to succeed 
Hull. 

General Hull Guilty of Cowardice. 

Two years later, after being exchanged, 
General Hull was brought to trial by a court- 
martial for the surrender of Detroit and his 
army. He was found guilty of cowardice 
and neglect of duty, and was sentenced to 
be shot. He was pardoned by the President 
in consideration of his services during the 
revolution. 

When Detroit surrendered, Fort Dearborn 
stood on the site of the city of Chicago, and 
was occupied by Captain Nathan Heald and 
fifty regulars. Receiving orders from Gen- 
Hull to evacuate the fort and join him at 
Detroit, he attempted to obey, though warned 
by several scouts and friendly Indians that 
it was certain death to make the attempt. 
Afraid of treachery on the part of the large 
number of Indians around the fort, Captain 
Heald destroyed during the night the gun- 
powder, firearms and liquor which he had 
promised them. The exasperated savages 
waited till he was well on his way with the 
fifty soldiers and several families, and then 
attacked him. The women fought as bravely 
as the men. Twenty-six of the regular 
troops, all the militia, and a number of the 
men and women were killed. One of the 
savages leaped into a wagon containing 
twelve little ones and tomahawked them all. 
The next day Fort Dearborn was burned to 
the "-round. 



This was a sorry beginning for the war, 
and was followed by another disaster. Gen- 
eral Van Rensselaer, the commander of the 
centre of the American line, had collected a 
force, principally New York militia, at Lewis- 
ton, on the Niagara river. At Queenstown, 
on the opposite side of the river, General 
Brock had stationed himself wuth a British 
force. On the thirteenth of October General 
Van Rensselaer crossed a force, under Col- 
onel Van Rensselaer, and attacked the British 
fort and captured it. General Brock now 
arrived with a force of six hundred men, 
and endeavored to regain the fort, but was 
defeated and killed. General Van "Rensselaer 
hastened back to the American side to bring 
over more troops, but his men refused to 
obey his orders, alleging that they could not 
be ordered out of their own State without 
their consent. The British were heavily 
reinforced, and the Americans were attacked 
and defeated ; all who had crossed to the 
Canada side being killed or captured. 

Brilliant Successes of the Navy. 

Among the prisoners was Lieutenant- 
Colonel Winfield Scott, afterwards com- 
mander-in-chief of the American army, then 
a young man, who had crossed over as a 
volunteer to aid the force on the Canada side. 
Utterly disgusted with the conduct of his 
troops, General Van Rensselaer resigned his 
command after the battle of Queenstown. 
General Smyth, of Virginia, was appointed 
to succeed him. He made one or two efforts 
to enter Canada, but being each time pre- 
vented by his council of war, resigned his 
command. 

Thus closed the year 1812, and the first 
campaign of the war. Its results were dis- 
astrous and disheartening. The attempts to 
invade Canada had ended with the surrender 
of Detroit and the defeat at Queenstown. A 
large part of the frontier was lost, and over 



522 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



twenty-five hundred men had been captured 
by the enemy. These failures had aroused 
the discontent of a considerable portion of 
the people of the Union, and the opposition 
of the New England States to the war was 
greatly increased. Matters would have 
seemed hopeless had not the navy, which 
had been the most neglected branch of the 



they would certainly be captured by the 
British cruisers. The officers of the navy 
were indignant at these insinuations, and 
as soon as the news of the declaration of war 
was received at New York, several of the 
vessels of war in that port put to sea at 
once to avoid the orders which their com- 
manders feared were on the way to detain 




CAPTURE OF THE 



public service, redeemed the national honor 
by a series of brilliant successes. 

It was the intention of the government at 
the outset of the war to retain the vessels of 
the navy in the ports of the country to assist 
in the defence of \\iq harbors of the United 
States. The fear was openly expressed that 
if the^e ve^s^^ls should venture to put to sea 



guerriere" by th]^ "constitution. 

them in port, and also for the purpose of 
making a dash at the Jamaica fleet, which 
was on its way to England. They followed 
this fleet to the entrance to the British chan- 
nel, but without overtaking it. 

A British squadron sailed from Halifax to 
cruise off the port of New York. The Amer- 
ican frigate "Constitution," Captain Hull, 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



523 



while endeavoring to enter New York har- 
bor, fell ill with this squadron, and was chased 
by it for four days. Her escape was due 
entirely to the superior skill of her officers 
and the energy of her crew. The chase was 
one of the most remarkable in history, and 
the escape of the American frigate won great 
credit for Captain Hull. Failing to reach 
New York, Hull sailed for Boston, and 
reached that port in safety. Remaining there 
a few days, he put to sea again, just in time 
to avoid orders from Washington 
to remain in port, 
j In July the American frigate 
"Essex" captured a transport 
filled with British soldiers, and 
a few days later encountered the 
British sloop of war "Alert," 
which mistook her for a mer- 
chantman. The " Essex " suf- 
fered her to approach, and then 
opened a rapid fire upon her, 
which soon disabled her, and 
forced her to surrender. 

The " Constitution " sailed 
from Boston to the northeast. 
On the nineteenth of August, 
while cruising off the mouth of 
the St. Lawrence, she fell in with 
the British frigate " Guerriere," 
Captain Dacres, one of the ves- 
sels that had chased her during 
the previous month. The 
"Guerriere" immediately stood towards her, 
and both vessels prepared for action. The 
English commander opened his fire at long 
range, but Captain Hull refused to reply 
until he had gotten his ship into a favorable 
position, and for an hour and a half he 
manoeuvred in silence, under a heavy fire 
from the British frigate. 

At length, having got within pistol shot of 
her adversary, the " Constitution " opened a 
terrible fire upon her, and poured in her 



broadsides with such effect that the " Guer- 
riere " struck her colors in thirty minutes. 
The " Guerriere" lost seventy-nine men 
killed and wounded, while the loss of the 
" Constitution " was but seven men. The 
" Guerriere " was so much injured in the fight 
that she could not be carried into port, and 
Hull had her burned. 

The " Constitution " then returned to Bos- 
ton with her prisoners, and was received with 
an ovation. It was the first time in half a 




COMMODORE HULL. 

century that a British frigate had struck her 
flag in a fair fight, and the victory was hailed 
with delight in all parts of the country. 

On the eighteenth of October the Ameri- 
can sloop-of-war "Wasp," eighteen. Captain 
Jones, met the British brig " Frolic," twenty- 
two, convoying six merchantmen. In order 
to give her convoy a chance to escape, the 
"Frolic" shortened sail and awaited the 
approach of the "Wasp." The "Wasp" 
poured a raking fire into her antagonist and 



524 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



then boarded her. The boarders found the 
deck of the " FroHc" covered with the dead. 
Only one man remained unhurt, and he 
stood gallantly at his post at the wheel. 
Before the prize could be secured the 
British frigate " Poictiers, " 74, hove in 
sight and captured both vessels. The 
" Wasp " lost eight men in the engagement ; 
the "Frolic" eighty. 

On the twenty-fifth of October the fri- 
gate " United States," 44, Captain Decatur, 



Captain Bainbridge, captured the British 
frigate "JavsL," 38, off the coast of Brazil, 
after an action of three hours. The 
" Java " was reduced to a wreck, and as he 
was not able to get her into a friendly port, 
Captain Bainbridge caused her to be burned. 
The "Java" lost one hundred and sixty-one 
men out of a crew of four hundred ; the 
" Constitution " lost thirty-four in killed and 
wounded. Among the wounded was Cap- 
tain Bainbridge. 




THE "WASP' BOARDING THE "FROLIC. 



encountered the British frigate " Mace- 
donian," 49, off the Azores, and after a 
running fight of an hour and a half forced 
her to strike her colors. The "United 
States" lost seven killed and five wounded ; 
the " Macedonian," thirty-six killed and 
sixty-eighty wounded out of a crew of three 
hundred men. Decatur succeeded in bring- 
ing his prize into New York. 

On the twenty-ninth of December the 
^' Constitution," now under the command of 



These victories aroused the greatest en- 
thusiasm in the United States. The great 
disparity in the losses sustained by the 
respective combatants made it evident to 
both nations that the American ships had 
been better handled in every engagement. 
The British endeavored to account for the 
American successes by declaring that the 
United States vessels were seventy-fours in 
disguise, or that they carried heavier guns 
than their adversaries ; but the thinking men 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



525 



of both countries saw that they had been 
won by the superior skill of the American 
officers, and that they were the plain an- 
nouncement of the fact that England had 
found a rival capable of contesting her 
supremacy on the ocean. 

British Commerce Damaged. 

The American privateers inflicted great 
damage upon the commerce of Great Britain. 
During the year 18 12 these vessels captured 
about five hundred British merchantmen and 
made prisoners of three thousand British 
seamen. The cargoes of the captured vessels 
amounted to an enormous sum. 

On the eighth of March, 18 13, the Rus- 
sian minister at Washington communicated 
to President Madison an offer from the Em- 
peror Alexander of his mediation between 
the United States and Great Britain for the 
purpose of bringing about a peace between 
them. The President at once accepted the 
Russian offer, and sent Albert Gallatin and 
James A. Bayard to St. Petersburg to join 
John Quincy Adams, then Minister to 
Russia, as ministers to negotiate a treaty. 
The British government declined the Rus- 
sian mediation and the matter was drop- 
ped. 

The thirteenth Congress met on the 
twenty-fourth of May, 18 13, and entered 
upon the task of providing the means of 
carrying on the war. The principal measure 
resorted to was the imposition of direct taxes 
and internal duties. The financial situation 
of the government was disheartening. The 
expenses of the war had greatly exceeded 
the estimates, and a heavy deficit had to be 
provided for. To meet the necessities of 
the occasion new loans were authorized, but 
they were generally paid in the depreciated 
treasury notes which had been issued ac- 
cording to act of Congress, and did not yield 
much to the grovernment. 



The business of the country was in a state 
of confusion. Ail the banks, save a few in 
New England, had suspended specie pay- 
ments, and the war spirit was dying out 
in many parts of the Union. New England 
had entered into the war with great reluc- 
tance and was a heavy loser by it. Her 
opposition to it was increasing daily. 

Discontent and Disagreement. 

The government opened the campaign of 
1813 with the determination to make another 
effort to conquer Canada. The army of the 
west, under General Harrison, was stationed 
at the upper end of Lake Erie ; that of the 
centre, under General Dearborn, the com- 
mander-in-chief, was posted along the Niagara 
river ; and that of the east, under General 
Wade Hampton, was at Lake Champlain. 
Simultaneous movements were to be made 
from these points against the British in 
Canada. To oppose these forces the British 
stationed their armies along their frontier as 
follows : General Proctor was stationed with 
a considerable force near Detroit ; General 
Sheaf with another force covered Montreal 
and the approaches from the United States 
by way of Lake Champlain and the Sorel 
river; and Sir George Prevost, the com- 
mander-in-chief, held the line of the Niagara 
river. 

General Harrison was charged with the 
duty of recovering the territory lost by 
General Hull. Volunteers flocked to him 
from all parts of the west, and especially 
from Kentucky. A part of his force, under 
General Winchester, held a fort on the 
Maumee. In January, 181 3, the British 
made a demonstration against Frenchtown, 
on the river Raisin, and Winchester sent a 
detachment to its relief, which compelled 
the British to retreat. A little later Win- 
chester followed with the rest of his troops 
and took position in the open country. His 



526 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



whole force amounted to scarcely one thou- 
sand men. 

Hearing of Winchester's exposed posi- 
tion, General Proctor marched from Fort 
Maiden, opposite Detroit, with fifteen hun- 
•dred British and Indians, and, crossing the 
lake on the ice, attacked Winchester on the 
twenty-second of January, and after a des- 
perate encounter forced him to surrender; 
Proctor promised Winchester that his men 



save his reputation by protecting his prison- 
ers, and his inhuman conduct in leaving 
them to the fury of the savages, in violation 
of his pledge, met, as it deserved, the un- 
qualified denunciation of every honorable 
man. It roused a fierce spirit of revenge 
througout the west. 

Harrison was' on his march to Winches- 
ter's assistance when he learned of his 
surrender. He halted at the rapids of 




INDIANS TORTURING PRISONERS. 



•should be treated as prisoners of war, but in 
violation of his pledge set out at once on 
his retreat to Maiden, leaving the wounded 
Americans behind. The Indians of Proc- 
tor's command fell upon the helpless 
wounded men, massacred the majority of 
them, and carried the remainder to Detroit. 
Some of these they offered to release on pay- 
ment of heavy ransoms ; the others they 
.•held for torture. Proctor made no effort to 



Maumee, and built a fort which he named 
Fort Meigs, in honor of the governor of 
Ohio. Proctor advanced in the spring to 
attack this fort, and on the first of May 
opened his batteries upon it. A force of 
twelve hundred Kentuckians, under Gen- 
eral Green Clay, of Kentucky, advanced 
to the relief of the fort, and the British 
and Indians were obliged to raise the siege 
and retreat. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



527 



General Clay was placed in command of 
Fort Meigs. In July Proctor again advanced 
and made siege to it, but was unable to cap- 
ture it. Hearing that Fort Stephenson, on 
the Sandusky, had a small garrison. Proctor 
withdrew from Fort Meigs and attacked Fort 
Stephenson. This fort had a garrison of one 
hundred and sixty men, and was commanded 
by Major George Croghan, a young man in his 
twenty-second year. He was summoned to 
surrender, but answered that he should hold 
the fort to the last man. On the second of 
August Proctor made a determined assault 
upon the fort, and his regulars gained the ditch, 
into which they crowded preparatory to 
attempting to scale the parapet. At this 
moment the only cannon in the fort, which 
had been doubly charged with musket-balls, 
opened upon them from a masked port-hole. 
The British were cut down by the score, and 
retreated in confusion. That night, fearing 
that Harrison would come to Croghan's 
relief, Proctor abandoned the siege, and re- 
treated towards Maiden. 

.V 

Battle of Lake Erie. 

It was clear that nothing of importance 
could be accomplished in this quarter as long 
as the British held Lake Erie. Oliver Hazard 
Perry, a young lieutenant of the United 
States navy, volunteered to win back the 
lake from the enemy, who held it with a 
small squadron under Captain Barclay. By 
-extraordinary exertions Perry built and 
equipped a fleet at Presque Isle, now Erie. 
It consisted of nine vessels of various sizes, 
from one which carried twenty-five guns 
down to one which carried one gun. Its 
total armament amounted to fifty-five guns. 
It was manned by a small force of sailors 
from the east, and by a large number ol 
volunteers from General Harrison's army. 
As soon as his fleet was in proper condition 
Perry stood out into the lake to seek the 



enemy. The British squadron consisted ot 
six vessels, carrying sixty-three guns. Each 
fleet carried about five hundred men. 

The two squadrons soon encountered each 
other, and on the tenth of September a severe 
battle was fought between them at the 
western end of the lake. Perry at the open- 
ing of the fight displayed a flag from his 
vessel bearing the words of the brave Law- 
rence, " Don't give up the ship." It was 
greeted with cheers from the men. During 
the battle the American flag-ship, the " Law- 




COMMODORE PERRY. 

rence," was disabled, and Perry passed in an 
open boat, under a heavy fire, to the " Nia- 
gara," the next largest ship, and tranferred 
his flag to her. The result was that the 
British fleet was defeated and forced to sur- 
render. Perry announced his victory to 
General Harrison in the following character- 
istic message : " We have met the enemy and 
they are ours. Two ships, one brig, a 
a schooner, and a sloop." 

This victory was of the highest importance 
to the Americans. It gave them the com- 
mand of Lake Eri^, and opened the way to 



528 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 




PERRY S VICTORY ON LAKE ERIE. 



Canada. Harrison hastened to profit by it, 
and advanced rapidly towards Detroit and 



Maiden. Proctor aban- 
doned those places and 
retreated with his own 
forces and Tecumseh 
and his Indians into 
Canada. At Detroit 
Harrison was joined 
by thirty-five hundred 
mountedKentuckians, 
under the aged Gov- 
ernor Shelby, one of 
the heroes of King's 
Mountain, and Col- 
onel Richard M.John- 
son. He at once en- 
tered Canada in pur- 
suit of Proctor, and 
by a forced march of 
sixty miles came up 
with him on the banks 
of the Thames, on the 
fifth of October. A 
short but desperate 
battleensued, in which 
Tecumseh was killed 
and his Indians put 
to flight. The British 
were routed, and Proc- 
tor saved himself only 
by the speed of his 
horse. 

By these successes 
the Americans won 
back Michigan Terri- 
tory, and for the pres- 
sent gave peace and 
security to the north- 
western frontier. The 
Kentuckians returned 
home, and Colonel 
Lewis Cass, who was 
soon after appointed 
governor o. Michigan, was left to garrison 
Detroit with his brigade. With fifteen 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



529 



hundred regulars Harrison embarked on 
Lake Erie and sailed for Buffalo to assist 
in the invasion of Canada from that quar- 
ter. 

A small fleet of armed vessels was main- 
tained in Lake Ontario by each of the com- 
batants. The American fleet was commanded 
by Commodore Chauncey. In April General 
Dearborn embarked a force of seventeen 
hundred picked men in these vessels and 



stores fell into the hands of the captors. 
They were transferred to Sackett's Harbor. 

As it was not part of the plan of General 
Dearborn to hold York, the place was eva- 
cuated. Just before the withdrawal of the 
Americans a small building, known as the 
Parliament House, was burned. The British 
attributed this act to the Americans, who 
disclaimed it. The American officers 
believed that the house was set on fire by 




BATTLE OF THE THAMES — DEATH OF TECUMSEH. 



sailed across Lake Ontario to attack York, 
now Toronto, the capital of Upper Canada. 
The Americans landed a short distance below 
the town, and advanced upon it. On the 
the twenty-seventh of April the place was 
carried by assault. The British fired the 
magazine of one of the works from which 
they were driven, and General Pike, the 
commander of the storming party, and one 
or two hundred of his troops were killed by 
the explosion. A large amount of military 
34 



the diafifected Canadians, who had threat- 
ened to burn it. The burning of this build- 
ing was made by the British the pretext for 
the destruction of the capitol and other 
public buildings at Washington, the next 
year. 

From York General Dearborn sailed to 
the Niagara to attack Fort George. The 
commander of this work, on the approach of 
the Americans, blew up his magazines and 
retreated to Burlington Heights, near the 



530 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



western end of the lake. Dearborn followed 
them in pursuit, but was attacked and driven 
back by the British on the night of the sixth 
of June. Two American generals, Winder 
and Chanler. were made prisoners in this 
engagement. Dearborn fell back in haste 
to Fort George. 

In the meantime General Prevost, having 
learned of Dearborn's absence from Sackett's 
Harbor, attacked that place, on the twenty- 
ninth of May, with one thousand men. He 
was repulsed with such vigor by the gar- 
rison, under General Brown, that he retreated 
to his ships, leaving his wounded behind. 

Failure of a Canadian Expedition. 

Soon after this General Dearborn suffered 
another reverse at Fort George, and allowed 
a detachment of six hundred men of his 
army to be cut off by the British. In con- 
sequence of these failures General Dearborn 
was removed by the President, who appointed 
General Wilkinson, the commander of the 
troops at New Orleans, as his successor. 

It was proposed that General Wilkinson 
should enter Canada with his troops and 
advance upon Montreal, and that General 
Hampton, commanding the forces on Lake 
Champlain, should join him on the St. Law- 
rence. Wilkinson and Hampton were not 
on friendly terms, and neither of them were 
possessed of sufficient patriotism to overlook 
their personal differences for the good of 
their country. Wilkinson advanced as far 
as the rapids of the St. Lawrence, and sent 
a body of troops, under General Brown, to 
cover the descent of the rapids by the army. 

An engagement occurred at Chrysler's 
Farm, on the eleventh of November ; the 
British were driven back ; bnt the Americans 
lost more than three hundred men. Wilk- 
inson now sent word to Hampton t ) move 
forward to his support, but the latter 
answered that he had abandoned the expe- 



dition, and was going into winter quarters. 
Under these circumstances Wilkinson fell 
back to French Mills, about nine miles from 
St. Regis, where he went into winter quar- 
ters. Hampton prepared to pass the winter 
at Plattsburg on Lake Champlain. Thus the 
expedition was ruined by the quarrels of its 
commanders. 

British Depredations. 

In December the Americans abandoned 
Fort George, and retreated across the 
Niagara river. Before doing so General 
McClure, the commanding officer, burned 
the village of Newark, in order to prevent 
enemy from using it as quarters for their 
troops during the winter. There was no 
necessity and no excuse for the destruction 
of this village, and it was speedily avenged 
by the enemy. About the middle of Decem- 
ber the British crossed the Niagara river, 
surprised Fort Niagara, and put the garrison 
to the sword. In retaliation for the burning 
of Newark they burned every town and 
house that could be reached on the Amer- 
ican side of the river, including Lewistown, 
Youngstown, Manchester, Black Rock, and 
Buffalo. 

The war was not confined to the northern 
frontier. In the spring of 1813 Tecumseh 
had visited the Creek tribes in the southwest 
and aroused their war spirit. In August 
seven hundred Creeks attacked and captured 
Fort Mims, on the west bank of the Alabama 
river, near the mouth of the Tombigbee. 
Between three and four hundred settlers, 
who had taken refuge in the fort, were mas- 
sacred. 

The south was soon aroused by the news 
of this massacre, and in a short while a force 
of seven thousand volunteers was marching 
into the Indian country in four divisions. 
One division, under General Andrew Jack- 
son, of Tennessee, moved southward from 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



Nashville; another from East Tennessee, 
under General Cocke ; a third from Georgia, 
under General Floyd, and a fourth from Mis- 
sissippi Territory. In addition to these 
forces the lower Creeks took up arms against 
their brethren, and the Cherokees and Choc- 
taws joined the Amer- 
ricans. The principal 
villages of the hostile 
Creeks lay on and near 
the Coosa and Talla- 
poosa Rivers, and their 
hunting-grounds ex- 
tended much farther 
north. 

The Tennessee for- 
ces, under General 
Jackson, were the first 
to enter the Indian 
country, and a num- 
ber of unimportant 
encounters occurred. 
On the third of Nov- 
ember the Indians 
were defeated in a 
bloody battle at Tal- 
lasehatche, and on the 
eighth of the same 
month at Talladega. 
These were hard-won 
victories for the Amer- 
icans, and terrible 
blows to the savages. 
On the twenty-ninth 
of November the 
Georgia volunteers 
under General Floyd, 
attacked the Creek 
town of Autossee, and killed two hundred 
warriors. 

The Creeks were badly armed, but their 
spirit was unbroken by their reverses. Early 
in the year 1814 they assumed the offensive, 
and on the twenty-second of January attacked 



531 

General Jackson at Emucfau. Jackson suc- 
ceeded in repulsing them, but in spite of his 
victory deemed it best to fall back to Fort 
Strother. On the twenty-fifth the Indians 
again attacked him and were again defeated. 
Soon after this Jackson, being largely rein- 




CAPTAIN (afterward SIR PHILIP) BROKE. 



forced, advanced into the Indian country 
with an army of four thousand Tennes- 
seeans. 

At the Horse-Shoe Bend of the Tallaposa 
the Creeks had their principal settlement, an 
intrenched camp, in which they had collected 



532 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



their women and children, under the pro- 
tection of one thousand warriors. They 
were attacked here on the twenty-seventh of 
March, 1814, by Jackson's army, and their 
camp was carried, after a desperate fight, in 
which six hundred warriors were killed and 
two hundred and fifty women and children 
were made prisoners. This terrible blow 
put an end to the resistance of the Creeks. 
They sought peace, and were compelled to 
purchase it by the surrender of more than 
two-thirds of their hunting-grounds. 

Hot Naval Engagements. 

The year 18 13 was eventful and important 
in the naval history of the republic, and 
once more the navy sustained the spirits of 
the country, which had been cast down by 
the failure of the army. On the twenty-fifth 
of February the American sloop-of-war 
" Hornet," Captain Lawrence, captured the 
British brig " Peacock," ofif the mouth of 
Demerara River, after an action of fifteen 
minutes. The " Peacock " was so terribly 
cut up by her adversary's fire that she sank 
in a few minutes after she struck her flag. 
Captain Lewrence returned to the United 
States and was promoted to the command of 
the frigate " Chesapeake, which was lying in 
Boston harbor preparing for sea. 

While there Lawrence was challenged by 
Captain Broke, of the British frigate " Shan- 
non," which was cruising off Boston harbor. 
Although his ship was badly manned and 
his crew undisciplined, Lawrence accepted 
the challenge and put to sea on the first of 
June to meet the " Shannon." The action 
was begun about thirty miles east of Boston 
Light and lasted but fifteen minutes. The 
"Shannon" was in every way superior to 
the " Chesapeake," and the latter ship was 
forced to strike her flag, with a loss of one 
hundred and forty-six of her crew. Captain 
Lawrence was mortally wounded. As he 



was being carried below his last words were, 
"Don't give up the ship!" — words which 
have since become the watchword of the 
service of which he was one of the brightest 
ornaments. 

Two Commanders Fall. 

The rejoicings in England over the cap- 
ture of the " Chesapeake" were very great. 
They were highly gratifying to the Ameri- 
cans, and especially to the little navy of the 
Union, whose splendid services had won the 
respect of the " mistress of the seas." 

In the summer of 181 3 the "United 
States," " Macedonian " and "Hornet." while 
attempting to get to sea from New York 
through Long Island sound, were driven into 
the harbor of New London, and blockaded 
there by a British squadron. In August the 
American sloop of war " Argus " was cap- 
tured while cruising in the English channel 
by the " Pelican." In September the Ameri- 
can brig " Enterprise," twelve guns. Captain 
Burrows, captured the British brig " Boxer," 
Captain Blythe, off the coast of Maine. Both 
commanders fell in the engagement, and were 
buried with equal honors. 

During the summer of 18 13 the British 
fleet of Sir George Cockburn entered the 
Chesapeake repeatedly and ravaged its 
shores. All the shipping that could be 
reached by the enemy was destroyed, and 
the towns of Frenchtown, Georgetown, 
Havre de Grace and Fredericktown were 
plundered and burned. An attack was made 
on Norfolk, but was repulsed with heavy 
loss. Cockburn then plundered the town 
of Hampton, and sailed to the southward. 
The barbarities committed by this fleet 
along the Chesapeake and its tributaries 
were horrible. Neither age nor sex were 
spared by the British sailors and marines, 
and women were ravished, and old men and 
little children murdered, with the knowledge 




53: 



534 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



of the admiral, who made no effort to stop 
the outrages. 

During the winter of i8 13-14 a communi- 
cation was received from the British govern- 
ment, stating that although Great Britain 
had declined the Russian mediation, she was 
willing to enter into direct negotiations with 
the United States, either at London or Got- 
tenburg, in Sweden. The President at once 
accepted the English offer, and Henry Clay 
alnd Jonathan Russell were added to the 
commissioners already in Europe. Gotten- 
burg was at first selected as the place of 
meeting, which was afterwards changed to 
Ghent. 

Great Britain Ready for Peace. 

At this time the opposition to the war was 
very great in many parts of the Union, The 
New England States continued bitterly hos- 
tile to it, and the legislature of Massachusetts, 
in a remonstrance addressed to Cong-ress, 
denounced the war as unreasonable, and 
urged the conclusion of a peace. Congress 
itself was more divided upon the support of 
the war than it had ever been. It contained 
many new men, some of them destined to 
play prominent parts in the future history of 
the country. Pre-eminent among those was 
Daniel Webster, of New Hampshire, who 
from the first took a high position as one of 
the most gifted men in Congress. 

Hostilities were resumed by the Americans 
on the Niagara frontier with the beginning of 
the spring of 18 14. Early in May General 
Brown, whose force had been increased to 
five thousand men, crossed the Niagara. 
Fort Erie surrendered to him without a blow 
on the third of July. On the fourth General 
Scott, with the advanced guard of the army, 
moved towards the British, who had taken 
position, under General Riall, at Chippewa, 
fifteen miles distant. Scott was joined by 
General Brown, with the rest of the army, 



on the night of the fourth, and the -next day^ 
a severe engagement occurred, in which the 
British were defeated, with the loss of five 
hundred men. The loss of the Americans 
was three hundred. 

Victory at Lundy's Lane. 

After his defeat at Chippewa General Riall 
fell back to Burlington Heights, and the 
Americans advanced to Queenstown, but 
soon after withdrew to Chippewa. Being 
strongly reinforced by a body of troops, 
under General Drummond, Riall advanced 
from Burlington Heights to attack the Amer- 
icans, followed by General Drummond's 
command ; and at the same time General 
Brown, who had heard of Drummond's arri- 
val, set out from Chippewa to attack the 
British. The advanced forces of the Amer- 
icans were commanded by General Scott. 
The two armies unexpectedly met at Bridge- 
water, or Lundy's Lane, immediately opposite 
Niagara Falls, at sunset, on the twenty-fifth 
of July. The British occupied a strong 
position, and notwithstanding the lateness 
of the hour, Scott resolved to attack them. 
The main body of the Americans, under 
General Brown, soon arrived, and the battle 
became general. The British had posted a 
battery on a hill which commanded the field, 
and were doing great execution in the Amer- 
ican ranks. It was captured by the regiment 
of Colonel James Miller, and General Drum- 
mond, who had arrived on the field and had 
taken command in place of General Riall, 
who had been wounded and captured by the 
Americans, advanced to recover it. 

Drummond made three determined efforts 
to retake the battery, but was driven back 
each time. It was now midnight, and about 
eight hundred men had fallen on each side. 
The Americans had exhausted their ammu- 
nition and were dependent now upon the 
cartridges they obtained from the boxes of 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON 
the fallen British. Finding all their efforts 



535 



vain the British sullenly withdrew and left 
the field to the Americans. The latter v/ere 
so exhausted by their hard march of fifteen 
miles and five hours of constant fighting^ 
that they made no effort at pursuit, and soon 
withdrew from the hill to their camp. As 
they had no means of hauling off the cap- 
tured guns they were obliged to leave them 
on the field. General's Brown and Scott 
were both wounded during the battle, as 
were nearly of all the field officers. 

Repulse at Fort Erie. 

The victory of Lundy's Lane was particu- 
larly gratifying to the Americans. It was 
won, not over Canadian militia, but over 
veteran troops who had served under Wel- 
lington in the wars with Napoleon. It broke 
the long series of defeats sustained by the 
Americans since the opening of the war, 
and showed what could be accomplished by 
American soldiers under competent and 
determined commanders and in anything 
like a fair fight. 

General Browne withdrew to Fort Erie 
after the battle, and being disabled by his 
wounds, relinquished the command to Gen- 
eral Gaines. General Drummond moved 
forward and on the fourth of August laid 
siege to Fort Erie. On the fifteenth he 
attempted to carry the fort by an assault at 
midnight, but was repulsed wiih a loss of 
one thousand men. In spite of this reverse 
he pressed the siege with vigor, and in the 
meantime General Brown recovered from his 
wounds and resumed the command of the 
fort. On the seventeenth of September the 
Americans made a sortie against the batteries 
of the Brittish, which were two miles in 
advance of their camp. By a sudden dash 
from the fort they stormed and carried the 
batteries, spiked the guns, set fire to the 
magazines, indicted a loss of six hundred in 



killed and wounded upon the enemy, and 
retreated into the fort, carrying with them 
four hundred prisoners. The American loss 
in this brilliant sally was three hundred men. 
Drummond immediately raised the siege 
and retreated across the Chippewa. 

Around Lake Champlain. 

In October a reinforcement of four thou- 
sand men arrived from Lake Champlain 
under General Izard, who assumed the com- 
mand of the American Army on the Niagara, 
He was one of the old-style commanders, 
and at once proceeded to neutralize the 
gallant achievements of Brown and Scott. 
He did nothing until November, when, fear- 
ing that Drummond would be reinforced, he 
blew up Fort Erie and retreated across the 
Niagara, leaving the entire Canadian shore 
in the possession of the British. 

General Izard had succeeded General 
Hampton in command of the army on Lake 
Champlain. Upon his withdrawal to the 
Niagara, General Macomb took command of 
the troops that remained on Lake Champlain, 
and held Plattsburg with a force of about 
three thousand men. Hearing that General 
Prevost was advancing to attack him, 
Macomb called on the militia of New York 
and Vermont to come to his aid, and about 
three thousand of them joined him, bringing 
his force to six thousand men. General 
Prevost having been reinforced from Eng- 
land, advanced against Plattsburg with a 
force of twelve thousand veteran troops, for 
the purpose of invading the State of New 
York. 

Upon the approach of this force Macomb 
fell back behind the Saranac, a deep and 
rapid stream which empties into the lake at 
Plattsburg, and the small American squadron, 
under Commodore Macdonough, was moored 
across the entrance of Plattsburg bay. This 
squadron carried eighty-six guns, and was 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



536 

manned by eight hundred and fifty-six men. 
The British army was accompanied by a 
squadron superior in strength to that of the 
Americans, and upon which they depended 
for the control of Lake Champlain. It was 
commanded by Captain Downie, mounted 
ninety-five guns, was manned by one thou- 
sand men, and had plenty of ammunition. 




SCENE OF THE BATTLE OF LAKE CHAMPLAIN 

Prevost arrived before Plattsburg on the 
seventh of September, and proceeded to erect 
batteries to cover his passage of the Saranac. 
On the eleventh of September he made a 
combined attack by land and water upon the 
American position. The British squadron 
advanced to force an entrance into Platts- 
burg bay, and the British army at the same 
time attempted to force a passage of the 
Saranac. As the enemy's fleet advanced, 



Macdonough called the crew of his flag-ship 
around him, and kneeling on the quarter- 
deck of his vessel, prayed God to crown the 
American arms with victory that day. 

After a severe engagement of two hours 
and a quarter, the British fleet was defeated 
and forced to surrender, with the exception 
of a few gunboats, which escaped. While this 
^_ battle was going on, 

Prevost tried repeat- 
edly to cross the Sara- 
nac, but was each time 
driven back with heavy 
loss. During the night 
the British army re- 
treated in disorder, 
abandoning their sick 
and wounded and a 
large quantity of mili- 
tary stores, having lost 
twenty-five hundred 
men in the engage- 
ment 

The country had 
ample cause to regret 
the weakness of its 
navy during this war. 
The exploits of those 
vessels which had 
managed to get to sea 
had shown what could 
be accomplished by 
this branch of the 
public service, and 



our deficiency in this respect enabled the 
•nemy to blockade the ports of the Union, 
and to use the Chesapeake bay with as 
much freedom as if it were one of their 
own harbors. In the summer of 18 14 a 
fleet of sixty British ships under Admirals 
Cockburn and Cochrane, having on board 
a land-force of five thousand men under 
General Ross, assembled in the Chesa- 
peake. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



537 



Admiral Cochrane endeavored to induce 
the slaves of Virginia and Maryland to 
desert their masters, and offered them free 
transportation to the West Indies and 
Canada. As it was not known at what 
•point General Ross would land his troops, 
General Winder of Maryland was ordered 
to collect a force of fifteen thousand militia 
from the neighboring States. He proposed 
to occupy a central position from which he 
could cover Washington City, Annapolis, 
and Baltimore, and was anxious to call out 
the militia at once ; but General Armstrong, 
the secretary of war, decided that it would 
be time enough to call out the militia when 
the British had revealed their designs more 
plainly. He did not believe the British had 
any idea of advancing upon Washington, 
and thought Baltimore could defend itself. 
Mr. Madison submitted to the decision of 
the secretary of war, and the national capital 
was left defenceless. 

Attack on Washington. 

In the meantime, the British commanders, 
learning the exposed condition of the city of 
Washington, determined to attack it. They 
divided their fleet for this purpose, one por- 
tion ascending the Potomac, and another the 
Patuxent. The latter division conveyed the 
troops of General Ross, and landed them at 
Benedict, on the Patuxent, about fifty miles 
from Washington. General Ross at once 
set out for Washington, advancing slowly 
and meeting with no resistance. As he had 
no horses, his troops were obliged to drag 
their three or four cannon by hand, and the 
British made but about ten miles a day. A 
few determined troops might have driven 
them back, ana the roads might at least have 
been obstructed and the progress of the 
enemy impeded. 

General Winder gathered a small force of 
militia, and took position at Bladensburg, on 



the east branch of the Potomac, about three 
miles from Washington. He was joined here 
by Commodore Barney with five hundred 
sailors and marines from the gunboat flotilla 
in the Patuxent, which Barney, unable to 
offer any resistance, had burned upon the 
approach of the British fleet. On the twenty- 
fourth of August the British reached Blad- 
ensburg, and attacked the force under Gen- 
eral Winder. The militia fled at the first 
fire, but Barney and his sailors and marines 
stood their ground, and served their guns 




COMMODORE MACDONOUGH. 

with vigor until their position was turned on 
both flanks by the superior force of ihe 
enemy, when they retreated, leaving their 
guns and wounded in the hands ot che vic- 
tors. The so-called battle of Bladensburg 
was little more than a skirmish. 

General Ross halted to resi his men, \vho 
were worn out with the heat, and towards 
sunset resumed his march, and entered Wash- 
ington a little before dark. The government 
had abandoned the city some hours before, 
and had removed the greater part of its 
papers and archives, and such public property 



538 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



as could be carried away, and only a few 
frightened citizens remained in the town. 
Admiral Cochrane had some time before 
announced that the British forces were 
ordered " to destroy and lay waste all towns 
and districts of the United States found 
accessible to the attacks of British arma- 
ments," and the army of General Ross now 
proceeded to carry out these infamous in- 
structions. They burned the capitol, and 
with it the library of Congress, the buildings 
occupied by the treasury and state depart- 
ments, and plundered the President's mansion 
and set it on fire. A number of stores and 
private dwellings were also pillaged and set 
on fire. The navy yard, with all its contents 
and several vessels on the stocks, was entirely 
destroyed. 

Capture of American Vessels. 

The British afterwards attempted to excuse 
their shameful conduct in Washington by 
alleging that it was in retaliation for the burn- 
ing of the parliament house at York in 
Canada, an act which had been disclaimed 
by the Americans, and which the British had 
not been able to prove was their work. 
General Ross occupied Washington during 
the night of the twenty-fourth, and until 
dark on the twenty-fifth. Then, fearing lest 
the Americans would assemble in such force 
as to intercept him, he retreated stealthily 
from Washington on the night of the twenty- 
fifth, and on the twenty-ninth reached Bene- 
dict and re-embarked his troops. The Eng- 
lish vessels sent up the Potomac succeeded 
in passing Fort Washington, which made 
little or no effort to stop them, and on 
the twenth-eighth anchored off Alexandria. 
Twenty-one vessels were captured, and the 
town saved itself from bombardment by pay- 
ing a ransom of sixteen thousand barrels of 
flour and one thousand hogsheads of to- 
bacco. 



After resting his men, General Ross 
ascended the Chesapeake to the Patapseo, 
for the purpose of attacking Baltimore, which 
was defended by Fort McHenry at the mouth 
of the harbor, and a force of Maryland militia 
and some volunteers from Pennsylvania. A 
force of eight thousand men was landed at 
the mouth of the Patapseo, under General 
Ross, and on the twelfth of September ad- 
vanced towards the city, while the fleet 
ascended the river to capture Fort McHenry 
and force its way into the harbor. A small 
party of Americans contested the advance of 
the British army, and a skirmish ensued in 
which General Ross was killed. 

Gallant Defence of Fort McHenry. 

A sharp encounter followed, each side 
losing about two hundred and fifty men. 
The American militia retired in good order, 
and on the morning of the thirteenth the 
British resumed their march towards Balti- 
more. The Americans were discovered in 
considerable force, occupying a line of in- 
trenchments defended by artillery, and com- 
manded by General Samuel Smith, an officer 
of the revolution. The British commander 
now deemed it best to await the result of 
the engagement between the fleet and Fort 
McHenry, which was in progress at the 
time. The British fleet maintained a heavy 
fire upon the fort, which replied with vigor, 
and soon made it apparent to the enemy that 
they could not silence it or pass it. The 
attack on the fort proving a failure, the 
British withdrew to North Point on the 
nig-ht ot the thirteenth and reembarked on 
their ships. 

During this cannonade Francis S. Key, of 
Baltimore, who had visited the British fleet 
to obtain the release of certain prisoners, 
and who was detained by the admiral during 
the bombardment, wrote the famous song of 
"The Star -Spangled Banner," which has 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



539 



since become the national song of Amer- 
ica. 

The Chesapeake was not the only part of 
the coast that suffered from the ravages of 
the British. The shores of Maine were 
ravaged with great barbarity. Stonington, 
Connecticut, was subjected to a four days' 
bombardment by a British fleet, but the 
militia repulsed every attempt 
of the enemy to land. The 
foreign commerce of the coun- 
try was completely destroyed. 
The superior naval strength of 
the British enabled them to 
blockade the Atlantic ports 
so thoroughly that the gov- 
ernment ordered the lights 
along the coasts to be des- 
troyed, as they only served as 
guides to British cruisers. 

The opposition of the New 
England States to the war, 
which had caused them such 
severe loss, increased daily, 
and at length the legislature of 
Massachusetts recommended 
a convention of delegates from 
the seaboard States to devise 
amendments to the Constitu- 
tion for the purpose of secur- 
ing them from a recurrence 
of such evils as they were 
suffering from. The conven- 
tion met at Hartford, Con- 
necticut, on the fourteenth of 
December, 1814, and was composed of 
delegates from the New England States. 
The convention was bitterly opposed by the 
advocates of the war, who charged it with 
the intention to make a separate peace with 
Great Britain, which would have been a 
practical secession from the Union. The 
convention continued in session for twenty 
days, and adopted an address to the country 



very moderate in its tone. It proposed to 
amend the Constitution by making the rep- 
resentation in the lower House of Congress 
equal by basing it upon the free population 
only by forbidding embargo and non-inter- 
course laws ; and by making the President 
ineligible for a second term. One of the 
strong opponents of the embargo was the 




'^•N 



A NEW ENGLAND FARM HOUSE. 

eminent jurist and scholar, Joseph Story, 
whose influence was widely felt at this 
time, The convention was for many years 
exposed to the bitterest denunciation of the 
great mass of the American people. One 
of the results of the opposition to the 
war was the complete destruction of the 
old Federalist party which had opposed the 
war. 



540 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



Previous to the assembling of the conven- 
tion the President, in hope of reHeving the 
embarrassments occasioned by the opposi- 
tion of New England to the war, advised the 
repeal of the embargo and non-intercourse 
acts, and the abandonment of the entire re- 
strictive system. His recommendations 
were carried out by Congress. 

In the meantime stirring events were 
transpiring in the south. At this time 
Florida was a possession of Spain, which 




was supposed to be a neutral power. Great 
Britain had laid Spain under heavy obliga- 
tions in her struggle against Napoleon, and 
the British had now no difficulty in entering 
Florida, and using it ^s a base of operations 
against the south. Their fleet entered Pen- 
sacola harbor and obtained possession of 
the forts. From this point they began to 
stir up the Creek Indians to make war on 
the Americans, and fitted out an expedition 
against Fort Bowyer, commanded by Major 
Lawrence, who defended the harbor of 



Mobile. On the fifteenth of September an 
attack was made upon this fort, and was 
repulsed with the loss to the enemy of a 
vessel and a number of men. 

Jackson and New Orleans. 

General Jackson, having collected a force 
of three thousand Tennesseeans, marched to 
Pensacola, entered the town on the seventh 
of November, demanded that the British 
should leave the place at once, and notified 
the Spanish Governor that he should hold 
him responsible for the occupation of the 
town or the forts by the British for purposes of 
hostility towards the United States, The 
British immediately blew up a fort which 
they had erected seven miles below the town 
and embarked in their ships. 

Confident that New Orleans would be the 
next object of attack by the British, and 
knowing that the city was poorly prepared 
to resist, General Jackson at once sent 
General Coffee with the mounted Tennessee- 
ans to that city, and followed with the rest 
of his troops as rapidly as possible. New 
Orleans was at this time a city of about 
twenty thousand inhabitants, less than one- 
half of whom were whites. The whites were 
principally of French birth or parentage, and 
cared little for the United States. They could 
not be relied upon to hold the city against 
the British. The defences were in a misera- 
ble state, and the people •were demoralized 
and insubordinate. Jackson set to work with 
vigor. He proclaimed martial law, and put 
down the opposition to his measures for the 
safety of the city with a firm hand. He 
called for volunteers to defend the city, and 
urged the free men of color to come forward 
and enroll themselves. They responded in 
considerable numbers. The prisons were 
emptied, and the prisoners enrolled in the 
ranks of the army. The services of Lafitte, 
a noted smuggler chief of Barataria bay, and 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



541 



of his band, were accepted. The British had 
endeavored to secure the aid of this 
band as pilots, as they knew the coast 
thoroughly, but Lafitte and his men had re- 
fused to hold any communication with them. 

While Jackson was thus engaged, the 
British fleet arrived on the coast of Louisi- 
ana, and cast anchor off the mouth of Lake 
Borgne, the shortest 
passage by water to 
New Orleans. It had 
on board a force of 
twelve thousand vet- 
eran troops, just re- 
leased from the wars 
against Napoleon, and 
four thousand marines 
and sailors. The Bri- 
tish army was com- 
manded by Sir Ed- 
ward Pakenham, the 
brother-in-law of the 
Duke of Wellington, 
and an officer of tried 
ability, and under him 
were Generals Gibbs, 
Keene, and Lambert, 
veterans of the penin- 
sular war. 

The Americans had 
a small flotilla in Lake 
Borgne, and by ex- 
traordinary exertions, 
Jackson managed to 
collect a force of five 

thousand troops, only one thousand of whom 
were regulars. On the fourteenth of Decem- 
ber the British sent their boats into Lake 
Borgne, and after a severe engagement cap- 
tured the American flotilla, and opened the 
way to the city. On the twenty-second of 
December the British landed twenty-four 
hundred men under General Keene, who 
advanced to a point on the bank of the Mis- 



sissippi, about nine miles below New Orleans. 
Jackson attacked this party on the night of 
the twenty-third with the regulars and 
Coffee's Tennesseeans dismounted, and drove 
them to take shelter behind a levee. The 
success of the Americans in this engagement 
greatly encouraged them to hope for a 
similar issue to the final conflict. 




THE PLAIN OF CHALMETTE — SCENE OF THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS. 



The next day Jackson took position on 
solid ground behind a broad and deep 
trench that extended across the plain of 
Chalmette from the Mississippi to an im- 
passable swamp, and covered his position 
with a line of intrenchments. The British, 
believing Jackson's force to be much 
stronger than it really was, made no attempt 
to interfere with him for several days, and. 



542 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



he employed this delay in strengthening his 
line with bales of cotton. The British on 
the twenty-eighth of December opened a 
heavy cannonade upon the American line. 
Jackson replied with energy with his five 
pieces of artillery, and the firing was con- 
tinued without accomplishing anything defi- 
nite for several hours. On the first of 
January, 1815, they attempted a second can- 
nonade, but the American guns soon silenced 
their fire. On the fourth of January a body 
of twenty-two hundred Kentucky riflemen, 
who had descended the Mississippi to his 
assistance, reached Jackson's camp. Only 
one-half of them were armed. Jackson could 
not supply the remainder with arms, but set 
them to work to construct a second line of 
intrenchments in the rear of his first. 

Brilliant American Victory. 

Having finished their preparations, the 
British erected a battery of six eighteen- 
pounders on the night of the seventh of 
January, and on the morning of the eighth 
advanced to carry the American line by 
storm. Their centre was led by General 
Pakenham in person, and other columns 
under Generals Gibbs and Keene moved 
against the right and left wings of the 
Americans. The open space over which the 
enemy were obliged to pass was nearly a 
mile in width, and was completely com- 
manded by Jackson's guns. The British 
advanced in splendid style, and were soon 
within range of the American artillery, 
which opened on them with terrible effect. 
They never wavered, but closing up their 
ranks firmly pressed on. As they came 
within musket shot the Kentucky and Ten- 
nessee riflemen opened a fatal fire upon them 
which literally mowed them down They 
wavered and broke. General Pakenham 
attempted to rally them, and was shot down. 
"Grenerals Gibbs and Keene were wounded 



while engaged in the same attempt, the 
latter mortally. The command devolved 
upon General Lambert, who made two more 
attempts to carry the line by storm. Each 
time the fatal fire of the American riflemen 
drove back the tried veterans of Wellington's 
campaigns, and at last they broke and fled 
in confusion. General Lambert continued 
the retreat to the shore of the gulf, where 
the British fleet lay, and about a fortnight 
later embarked his troops and withdrew. 

Close of the War. 

The American loss in the battle of New 
Orleans was seven killed and six wounded. 
The British lost two thousand in killed and 
wounded. 

The victory was of the highest importance. 
It saved not only New Orleans but the 
mouth of the Mississippi from British con- 
trol. Had the army of General Pakenham 
been successful, there is good reason to 
believe that England would have refused to 
relinquish the Mississippi, and the war would 
have gone on, or peace would have been 
made with the mouth of the great river 
under the control of England. The victory 
closed the war, and was won as we shall see 
three weeks after the treaty of peace was 
sio"ned. 

At sea the war was carried on by the few 
American cruisers that managed to elude 
the blockade of our coast. The frigate 
" Essex," Commodore Porter, went to sea 
in 181 3, and made a number of captures in 
the Atlantic. Learning that the British 
whalers, which had been armed for the pur- 
pose of capturing American vessels, engaged 
in the same trade, were doing considerable 
damage in the Pacific, Commodore Porter 
sailed around Cape Horn and entered that 
ocean. He captured twelve armed British 
whalers in the course of a few months, 
and then learning that the British frisrate 




543 



544 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



" Phoebe " had been sent in pursuit of him, 
Porter sailed to Valparaiso to look for her. 
While he lay there the " Phoebe," accompa- 
nied by the English sloop of war " Cherub," 
arriv-ed off the harbor. 

The " Phoebe " was herself a full match 
for the " Essex," but Porter resolv^ed to fight 
both vessels. As he was leaving the harbor 
a sudden squall carried away his maintop- 
mast, and left him at the mercy of his ene- 
mies, which at once attacked him. His 
defence was one of the most srallant and 




COMMODORE DECATUR. 

desperate in history, but he was forced to 
surrender, but not until he had lost fifty- 
eight of his crew killed, and sixty-six 
wounded. 

In January, 1815, the frigate " President," 
Commodore Decatur, managed to elude the 
blockade of New York, and get to sea. She 
was chased by a British squadron of five 
vessels, and a running fight ensued. Being 
entirely disabled, the " President " was forced 
to surrender. 

In February, 181 5, while cruising off the 
port of Lisbon, one fine moonlight night, 



the " Constitution," Captain Stewart, encoun- 
tered two British sloops of war, the "Cyane," 
24, and the " Levant," 18, and captured both 
of them after a short engagement. These 
vessels were captured after peace was signed, 
and were restored to the British. On the 
twenty-third of March, the " Hornet," Cap- 
tain Biddle, captured the British brig " Pen- 
guin" of the Cape of Good Hope. The 
" Penguin " was so much injured that Biddle 
was forced to destroy her. On the thirtieth 
of June the " Peacock," Captain Warrington, 
ignorant of the close of the 
war, captured the " Nau- 
tilus " in the East Indies. 
The latter vessel was res- 
tored to the British. Thus 
the war, which opened so 
gloomily for the Americans, 
closed with a series of bril- 
liant successes for them. 

In the meantime negotia- 
tions for peace had been 
conducted between the 
American and British com- 
missioners at Ghent, in 
Belgium. The American 
commissioners had been 
instructed to demand the 
settlement of the impress- 
ment question, and at the 
same time to give assurance that upon the 
relinquishment of that claim by England 
Congress would enact a law forbidding the 
enlistment of English sailors in either the 
navy or merchant service of the United 
States. On the fourteenth of December, 
1 8 14, the labors of the commissioners were 
brought to a close, and a treaty of peace 
between the United States and Great Britain 
was signed. 

The treaty provided that all places cap- 
tured by either party during the war should 
be restored to their rightful possessors. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



Arrangements were made for determining 
the northwest boundary of the United States, 
and for settling matters of minor importance. 
The treaty was silent on the subject of 



545 

to revive it, so that the object of the war the 
protection of American sailors from impress- 
ment by England, was attained after all. 
The treaty was unanimously ratified by the 




DECATUR AND THE DEY OF ALGIERS. 



impressments, the cause of the war. Nev- 
ertheless Great Britain ceased to exercise 
her claim to this right as regarded the 
United States, and has not since attempted 



Senate, and on the eighteenth of February 
peace was proclaimed by the President. A 
few days later the President recommended 
to Congress the passage of a law forbidding 



K46 



FROM THE RFVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



the enlistment of foreign seamen in American 
vessels. 

The proclamation of peace was hailed with 
delight in all parts of the country, especially 
in the Atlantic cities which had suffered 
heavily by the war, and the national rejoic- 
ings were intensified by the news which 
arrived a few days later of the brilliant 
victory of New Orleans. 

Soon after the conclusion of peace with 
Great Britain, the United States were called 
upon to punish the insolence of the dey 




WILLIAM C. C. CLAIBORNE. 

of Algiers. That ruler, thinking that the 
United States was too much crippled by 
their recent conflict with Great Britain to 
punish his insolence, suddenly made war 
upon them. He threatened to reduce Mr. 
Lear, the American consul, to slavery, and 
compelled him to purchase his liberty and 
that of his family by the payment of a large 
ransom. Several American merchantmen 
were captured by the Algerine pirates, and 
their crews reduced to slavery. The excuse 
offered by the dey for these outrages was 



that the presents of the American govern- 
ment were not satisfactory. 

The government of the United vStates 
determined to compel the Barbary powers 
to make a definite settlement of the questions 
at issue between them and this country, and 
in May, 1815, Commodore Decatur was 
despatched to the Mediterranean with a 
fleet ol ten vessels, three of which were 
frigates. He was ordered to compel the 
dey to make satisfaction for his past out- 
rages, and to give a guarantee for his future 
good conduct. On the voyage out Decatur 
fell in with the largest frigate in the Algerine 
service, near Gibraltar, on the seventeenth 
of June, and captured her after a fight of 
thirty minutes. On the nineteenth another 
Algerine cruiser was taken. 

Decatur Ordered to the Mediterranean. 

The fleet then proceeded to Algiers, but 
upon its arrival found the dey in a very 
humble frame of mind. The loss of his two 
best ships, and the determined aspect of the 
Americans, terrified him into submission, 
and he humbly sued for peace. He was 
required to come on board of Decatur's flag- 
ship, and there sign a humiliating treaty with 
the United States, by which he bound him- 
self to indemnify the Americans from whom 
had extorted ransoms, to surrender all his 
prisoners unconditionally, to renounce all 
claim to tribute from the American gevern- 
ment, and to cease from molesting American 
vessels in future. 

The difficulty with Algiers having been 
satisfactorily settled, Decatur sailed to Tunis 
and Tripoli, and demanded of the govern- 
ment of each of those countries in- 
demnity for some American vessels which 
had been captured by the British in their 
harbors with their connivance. The demand 
was coupled in each case with a threat of 
bombardment, and was complied with. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES MADISON. 



547 



About the middle of the summer Commo- 
dore Bainbridge joined Decatur with the 
" Independence," seventy-four, the "Con- 
gress," and several other vessels^ but the 
energetic Decatur had settled all difficulties, 
and had so humbled the Barbary powers 
that they never again renewed their aggres- 
sions upon American commerce. The 
American fleet then visited the principal 
ports of the Mediterranean. The brilliant 
record made by the navy during the war 
with England secured it a flattering recep- 
tion everywhere. 

Indian Tribes at Peace. 

In the autumn of 1815 the Indian tribes, 
deprived of the support of Great Britain, 
made peace with each other and with the 
United States. The northwestern frontier 
was thus secured against the further hostility 
of the savages. 

The finances of the country were in a 
wretched condition at the close of the war. 
All the banks but those of New England 
had suspended specie payments, and none 
were now in a condition to return to a specie 
basis. The public debt was over ^100,000,000 
and there was a general lack of confidence 
throughout the country. Mr. A. J. Dallas, 
the secretary of the treasury, in view of the 
general distress, proposed to abolish a num- 
ber of the internal taxes which had been 
levied for the support of the war. In their 
place he advised the imposition upon im- 
ports from foreign countries of duties suffi- 
ciently high not only to afford a revenue, but 
also to protect the manufactures which had 
sprung up during the war, and which were 
threatened with ruin by the competition of 
European goods. The President, in his 
annual message, warmly recommended such 
a course. Another important measure was 



also enacted. The charter of the first Bank 
of the United States expired in 181 1. Efforts 
had been made, without success, to obtain 
its renewal, and Mr. Madison in January, 
1814, had vetoed a bill for this purpose 
which had passed both Houses of Congress. 
In the spring of i8i6abill was passed by 
Congress chartering a new Bank of the 
United States for twenty years, with a capital 
of 1^35,000,000, and received the President's 
signature on the tenth of April. It was 
located in Philadelphia, but had branches in 
other States. It gave the people a uniform 
currency, good in all parts of the country, 
and redeemable on demand in gold and 
silver, and thus did much to remedy the 
financial difficulties of the times. Somewhat 
later a law was passed requiring that all 
sums of money due the United States should 
be paid in gold or silver coin, " in treasury 
notes, in notes of the Bank of the United 
States, or in notes of banks payable and paid 
on demand in specie." 

On the nineteenth of April, 18 16, the Ter- 
ritory of Indiana was admitted into the 
Union as a State, making the nineteenth 
member of the Confederacy. William C. C. 
Claiborne, a distinguished lawyer and states- 
man and former governor of the Territory, 
was one of the senators-elect of the new 
State, and became a famous member of that 
body. 

The Presidential election took place in the 
fall of 1 8 16. Mr. Madison having declined 
to be a candidate for a third term, the 
Democratic party nominated James Monroe, 
of Virginia, for President, and Daniel D. 
Tompkins, of New York, for Vice-President, 
and elected them by large majorities over 
the Federal candidates, who were : For 
President, Rufus King, of New York ; for 
Vice-President, John Howard, of Maryland., 



CHAPTER XXXTV 

The Administrations of James Monroe and 
John Quincy Adams 

Inauguration of Mr. Monroe — His Tour through the Eastern States — Admission of Mississippi into the Union — Troubles 
with the Indians — General Jackson's Vigorous Measures against the Spaniards in Florida — Purchase of Florida by 
the United States — Illinois becomes a State — The First Steamship — Maine admitted into the Union — The Slavery 
Question — The Missouri Compromise — Admission of Missouri as a State — The Fourth Census — Re-election of Mr. 
Monroe — The Tariff — Protective Policy of the Government — Recognition of the Spanish Republics — The Monroe 
Doctrine — Visit of Lafayette to the United States — Retirement of Mr. Monroe — John Quincy Adams elected President 
— His Inauguration — Rapid Improvement of the Country — Increase of Wealth and Prosperity — Internal Improve- 
ments — The Creek Lands in Georgia Ceded to the United States — Death of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams — 
The Anti-Masons — The Tariff of i828^.\n(lre\v Jackson elected President of the United States. 



JAMES MONROE was inaugurated 
President of the United States, at 
Washington, on the fourth of March, 
1817. He had served during the 
revolution in the army of the United States, 
and had entered Congress soon after the for- 
mation of the government as a representative 
from Virginia, and had won great credit by 
his services in that body. He had been 
secretary of state during the eight years of 
Mr. Madison's administration, and had 
greatly increased his fame by his discharge 
of the difficult and delicate duties of this posi- 
tion. He was a man of amiable and con- 
ciliatory character, and was popular with 
both parties. 

In his inaugural address he declared his 
intention to administer the government in ac- 
cordance with the principles of Washington, 
and the sentiments of this document were 
warmly applauded throughout the country 
by Federalists as well as Democrats. The 
administration of Mr. Monroe covered a 
period generally known in our political 
history as " the era of good feeling." Party 
lines were almost blotted out, and the people 
of the country were more united than at any 
548 



previous or subsequent period in the support 
of national measures. 

A few months after his inauguration Presi- 
dent Monroe made a tour through the 
Eastern States. He was received with 
marked attention everywhere, and the Fed- 
eralist city of Boston entertained him with 
the cordial hospitality which is one of her 
characteristics. 

On the tenth of December, 18 17, the 
western portion of the Territory of Mississ- 
ippi Avas admitted into the Union as the State 
of Mississippi. The eastern portion of the 
former Territory became the Territory of 
Alabama, for which a government was pro- 
vided by Congress. 

Towards the close of the year 18 17 the 
Seminole Indians, whose lands lay within the 
Spanish province of Florida, began to com- 
mit depredations along the borders of Geor- 
gia and Alabama Territory. They were 
joined by the Creeks, and their operations 
soon became so important as to demand the 
immediate action of the federal government. 
General Gaines, commanding the federal 
troops in Alabama, attempted to check the 
Indians, but his forces were inadequate to the: 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 



549 



task, and he was compelled to ask assistance 
of the government. General Jackson, com- 
manding the southern department, was 
ordered to call out the militia and take the 
field against the Indians. He collected a force 
of one thousand mounted Tennesseeans, and 
in March, 1818, invaded 
the Indian country, and 
in a few weeks laid it 
waste, the villages and 
cornfields were burned, 
and the cattle captured 
or killed. 

Being satisfied that the 
Spaniards in Florida had 
incited the Indians to 
make war on the United 
States, General Jackson, 
as soon as he had pun- 
ished the Indians, march- 
edinto Floridaandseized 
St. Marks, on Appalachee 
bay, the only fortified 
town of the Spaniards in 
that part of Florida. An 
armed American vessel, 
cruising off the Florida 
coast, hoisted the British 
colors, and two promin- 
ent hostile Creek chiefs 
were decoyed on board, 
and were summarily 
hanged by order of Jack- 
son. 

In one of his forays 
against the Indians Jack- 
son captured two Bri- 
tish traders, Robert C. 
Ambrister, or Ambuster, and Alexander 
Arbuthnot. Thevwere accused of aiding the 
Indians, were tried and found guilty by a 
court-martial, and were promptly hanged. 
The Spanish governor indignantly protested 
against the invasion of Florida, but Jackson, 



unmoved by this protest, advanced in May to 
Pensacola, the seat of the Spanish provincial 
government, which place was immediately 
surrendered to him. The Spanish governor 
fled to Fort Barrancas, below the town. 
Jackson attacked the fort and compelled it 




JAMES MONROE. 

to surrender after a brief resistance, where- 
upon the governor continued his flight to 
Havana. The invasion of Florida by Jackson 
drew forth an indignant protest from the 
Spanish government, but his conduct was 
sustained by a decisive majority in both 



550 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



Houses of Congress. The Spanish govern- 
ment did not press the matter, as negotiations 
were soon entered upon which brought about 
an amicable settlement of the difificulty. 

The Spanish kingdom was indebted to 
certain citizens of the United States in sums 
amounting in the aggregate to five million 
dollars. Spain instructed her minister at 
Washington to conclude a treaty with the 
United States ceding Florida to them as an 
equivalent for these claims. The treaty was 
arranged in 1819. Spain ceded to the United 
States all her claims to East and West 
Florida, and to the territory claimed by her 
on the Pacific coast north of forty-two degrees 
of north latitude, and the federal government 
assumed the Spanish debt to the citizens of 
this country. Two years later this treaty 
was ratified by Spain, and on the twenty- 
second of April, 1 82 1, the President formally 
announced the acquisition of Florida by the 
United States. 

Oregon and Illinois. 

This purchase also included the territory 
in Oregon claimed by Spain, and embraced 
an area of 367,320 square miles. Florida 
was at once organized as a Territory, and 
General Jackson was appointed its first gov- 
ernor. 

On the third of December, 18 18, the Ter- 
ritory of Illinois was admitted into the Union 
as a State. 

The year 18 19 was marked by an event o^ 
great importance in the history of the world^ 
Steam had been used for some time in the 
inland navigation of the Union, but it was 
not generally believed it could be applied to 
sea-going vessels. The steamship " Savan- 
nah," built in New York, but owned in the 
city from which she was named, made a suc- 
cessful voyage from New York to Savannah 
in the early part of 1819. In May of that 
year she sailed from Savannah for Liverpool, 



and reached that port in safety From Liver- 
pool she subsequently made a voyage to St. 
Petersburg. She was the first steam vessel 
that ever crossed the Atlantic, and, wherever 
she went, was an object of the greatest 
interest. The question of steam navigation 
on the ocean was thus satisfactorily settled 
by America. 

On the fourteenth of December, 18 19, 
Alabama was admitted into the Union as a 
State, making the total number of States 
twenty-two. 

North and South. 

On the fifteenth of March, 1820, Maine, 
which had formed a part of Massachusetts, 
but had been ceded by that State to the gen- 
eral government, was admitted into the Union 
as a State. The object of the erection of 
this new State was to offset the growing 
power of the Southern States by the creation 
of a new member of the Union in New Eng- 
land. The number of the New England 
States was thus increased to six. 

For some years past the question of African 
slavery in the States had been assuming an 
important and alarming position in the public 
mind. The States of the north and west 
had gotten rid of such negro slaves as they 
had originnlly possessed, and had forbidden 
their citizens to own or bring within their 
limits for purposes of labor any persons of 
this class. The Southern States, on the 
other hand, comprised a region in which 
slave labor was particularly profitable, and it 
was believed by the people of this region 
that the industry of many parts of the south 
could not be properly developed by white 
men, as the climate was more unsuited to 
them than the negroes. The production of 
cotton, rice, sugar, and tobacco depended on 
the labor of the negro, and in the States 
where those great staples were raised slavery 
was regarded as a necessity. 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 



551 



At the period we are now considering 
slavery existed in the States of Delaware, 
Maryland, Virginia, North and South Caro- 
lina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Missis- 
sippi, Tennessee, and Kentucky. Being 
regarded by these States as necessary to their 
prosperity, they considered any and all plans 
for its removal as attacks upon their chief 
source of wealth. 

In the non-slaveholding States the feeling 
that slavery was sinful 
had been gradually 
gaining ground, and 
there were many per- 
sons in the south who 
held the same views. 
Certain religious bo- 
dies in the country had 
distinctly expressed 
their belief that it Vv^as 
contrary to the teach- 
ings of Christianity to 
own slaves, and mem- 
orials had been pre- 
sented to the legisla- 
tures of some of the 
States, and to the Con- 
gress of the United 
States, praying for the 
abolition of slavery. 

The law for the 
organization of the 
Northwest Territory 
forbade the admis- 
sion of slavery into 

the States to be formed out of that 
Territory, and thus secured them for free 
labor. Though Congress did not hesitate 
to legislate upon the subject of slavery in 
this case, it steadily refused to comply with ' 
the demands of the petitions presented to it 
praying it to take measures for the abolition 
of slavery throughout the nation. The exist- 
ence of slavery within the individual States 



was recognized and protected by the Consti- 
tution, and Congress held that it had no right 
to interfere with the domestic relations of 
those States in which slavery, thus recog- 
nized and protected, was established. 

In February, 18 19, the Territory of Mis- 
souri, which was formed out of a part of the 
Louisiana purchase, asked permission to 
form a constitution preparatory to being 
admitted into the Union as a State. When 







OLD \VA\ Ot PICKING COTTON. 

the bill for this purpose was presented to the 
House of Representatives on the thirteenth 
of February, Mr. Tallmadge, of New York, 
proposed to insert a clause providing " that 
the further introduction of slavery, or invol- 
untary servitude, be prohibited, except for 
the punishment of crimes whereof the party 
shall have been duly convicted ; and that all 
children born in said State, after the admis- 



552 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



sion thereof into the Union, shall be free at 
the age of twenty-five years. 

The announcement of this amendment 
produced a great sensation in the House, 
and throughout the country. It was believed 
by the advocates of slavery that the resolu- 
tions of the House of Representatives of 
1790, in reply to the first petition presented 
to it for the abolition of slavery, had settled 
the question of the powers of the federal 
government respecting slavery. No effort 
had been made to revive the subject in the 
admission of Kentucky, Tennessee, Louis- 
iana, Mississippi, or Alabama, in each of 
which States negro slavery existed. Many 
of the most determined opponents of slavery 
believed that, under the constitution and the 
Louisiana treaty with France, Congress had 
no right to adopt the proposed restriction 
upon the admission of Missouri as a State. 

Free and Slave Labor. 

Among these were Mr. Jefferson, then 
living in retirement at Monticello, and John 
Quincy Adams, the secretary of state in Mr. 
Monroe's cabinet. Both of these gentlemen 
were sincerely desirous of the abolition of 
slavery. Mr. Jefferson believed that the 
States alone had power to legislate upon the 
subject within their respective limits. The 
opponents of slavery, on the other hand, 
contended that while Congress had no power 
to interfere with slavery in the thirteen orig- 
inal States, it had full power to legislate 
concerning it in the Territories, which were 
the common property of the States north 
and south. The advocates of slavery con- 
tended that, as the treaty under which the 
Louisiana purchase was made contained a 
pledge to the inhabitants of that Territory 
that they should enjoy " all the privileges of 
citizens of the United States," such a restric- 
tion as that proposed by Mr. Tallmadge 
would be a violation of this pledge. 



They claimed also that as slaves were 
property, and the Territories the common 
possession of the States, the citizens of the 
slaveholding States had the right to carry 
their property into the Territories ; and that 
the probibition of slavery in the Territories 
would be to deprive the south of her share 
in their enjoyment. The anti-slavery advo- 
cates replied to this, that slave and free labor 
could not coexist on the same soil, and that 
to allow slavery in the Territories would be 
to drive free labor out of them ; and that it 
would be a great wrong to allow the intro- 
duction of a few hundred thousand slaves at 
the cost of driving millions of free men from 
the Territories. 

The National Controversy. 

The discussion of this question produced 
intense feeling between the Northern and 
Southern States, and the sectional division 
of the country was drawn too deep to be 
effaced while the cause of it remained. It 
was very clear to thinking men that the 
feelings aroused by this controversy could 
not be quieted until the institution of slavery 
should be abolished throughout the country, 
or should be introduced into every new State 
formed out of the Territories remaining to 
the republic. The excitement deepened 
daily, and at one time became so intense as 
to threaten the existence of the Union. 
Good men of all parties gave their best 
efforts to the task of effecting a settlement o( 
the difficulty, but amid the storm of passion 
which was aroused by the debate in Congress 
it was hard to accomplish anything. 

The bill allowing the people of Missouri 
to form a State constitution passed the 
House of Representatives with Mr. Tall- 
madge's amendment by a small majority. 
It was defeated in the Senate. When Con- 
gress met again in December, 18 19, the 
debate was renewed upon the Missouri 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 



553 



question. The Mouse again passed the bill for- 
bidding the existence of slavery in Missouri. 
The Senate struck out Mr. Tallmadge's 
amendment, and added to the House bill, as 
.a substitute for it, a proviso offered by Mr. 
Thomas, of Illinois, that slavery should not 
exist in any part of the Louisiana Territory 
north of thirty-six degrees and thirty minutes 
north latitude, and west of the proposed 
State of Missouri, or in any State to be 
formed out of this Territory. The House 
refused to accept the Senate's amend- 
ment, and in order to adjust their dif- 
erences a committee of conference was 
appointed by the two Houses. 

Maine, whose admission we have re- 
lated, was an applicant for admission 
into the Union at this time, and it was 
contended by the south that it was 
unjust to admit her without any restric- 
tion as to her domestic institutions, and 
yet to impose upon Missouri a restric- 
tion which would deprive a large part 
■of her population of their property, and 
■close the State against emigration from 
the south. The result of the committee 
on conference was that after long and 
exciting debates the amendment offered 
by Mr. Thomas, of Illinois, was accepted. 
Maine was admitted as a free State. It 
was enacted by Congress that slavery 
should never exist north of the line of 
thirty-six degrees thirty minutes north 
latitude; and that Missouri should be admit- 
ted into the Union as a slave State upon 
the adoption of a constitution by her people. 
This was regarded as an equitable settle- 
ment of the difficulty, and the measure is 
known as the Missouri Compromise. The 
act for the admission of Maine received the 
President's approval on the third of March, 
1820, and the State was admitted into the 
Union under it on the fifteenth of March. 
The separate act in relation to Missouri was 



approved by the President on the eighth of 
March, 1820. Its title shows its object. It 
was " An act to authorize the people of Mis- 
souri Territory to form a constitution and 
State government, and for the admission of 
such State into the Union on an equal foot- 
ing with the original States, and to prohibit 
slavery in certain Territories." As we shall 
see, the State of Missouri was not admitted 
into the Union under the famous Missouri 
Comprom'sc. 




HENRV CLAV. 

When Congress met in December, 1820, 
the constitution adopted by Missouri was 
presented to that body. It contained a clause 
which prevented free people of color from 
settling in the State. " This clause," says 
Colonel Benton, " was adopted for the sake 
of peace — for the sake of internal tranquil- 
ity — and to prevent the agitation of the slave 
question."* It was objected to in Congress 

* Benton s Thiiiy Years' View, vol. i., p. 8. 



554 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



by the party that had previously opposed the 
admission of Missouri as a slave State. This 
party argued that the constitution required 
that the citizens of one State should be 
entitled to the privileges of citizens in the 
other States ; and that as some of the States 
recognized free people of color as citizens, 
this provision of the Missouri constitution 
was in open hostility to the constitution of 
the United States, since it deprived the citi- 
zens of some of the States of their rights. 

The friends of the compromise measure 
were astounded, as they had supposed that 
it had removed all obstacles to the admis- 
sion of Missouri, which had already exer- 
cised the privileges of a State in electing 
senators and representatives to Congress, and 
in taking part in the presidential election of 
1820. The subject was reopened in Con- 
gress in all its bitterness, and the country 
again plunged into profound agitation. 

The Struggle Renewed. 

At this juncture Henry Clay exerted him- 
self with great energy to bring about a settle- 
ment of the dispute. He induced the House 
to commit the matter to a committee of thir- 
teen, of which he was made chairman. This 
committee advised the admission of Missouri 
upon the condition that the obnoxious clause 
in her constitution should be withdrawn and 
that her legislature should pass no law vio- 
lative of the rights of citizens of other States. 
Mr. Clay supposed that as this recommenda- 
tion amply met the objection to the admis- 
sion of Missouri, it would remove the last 



obstacle to the accomplishment of that object- 
To his astonishment it was defeated by a vote 
of eighty for it and eighty-three against it. 

The struggle now became more bitter than 
ever. The anti-slavery party, which had by 
this time obtained a definite existence, were 
determined that the right of the general 
government to control the slavery question 
should be acknowledged. The pro-slavery 
party were determined to resist the exercise 
of that claim. Threats were freely indulged 
to destroy the Union by the withdrawal of 
the States. Mr. Clay, undaunted by his 
failure, renewed his patriotic efforts to bring 
about a settlement of the dispute, and at 
length secured the passage of measures sub- 
stantially the same as those advised by his 
first committee. The act of Congress for 
this purpose was approved by the President 
on the second of March, 1821. The Missouri 
legislature on the twenty-sixth of June 
expunged the obnoxious article from the 
constitution of the State, and on the tenth of 
August the President issued his proclamation 
admitting Missouri into the Union.* 

The slavery question was quieted for a 
time by the admission of Missouri, but it was 
not settled. We shall encounter it again 
and again in the remaining chapters of this 
work. 

In 1820 the fourth census of the United 
States placed the population of the republic 
at 9,638,191 souls. 

In the fall of 1820 Mr. Monroe and Gov- 
ernor Tompkins were re-elected President 
and Vice-President of the United States. Mr. 



* " A general idea prevails very extensively that Missouri was admitted as a slave State in 1820, under an agree- 
ment with the Restrictionists, or Centralists, proposed by Mr. Clay, that she should be so admitted upon condition that 
negro slavery should be forever prohibited in the public domain' north of 36 degrees 30 minutes north latitude. No 
greater error in any important historical event ever existed. The truth is, Mr. Clay was not the author of the territorial 
line of 36 degrees 30 minutes, incorporated in the act of 1820, nor was Missouri admitted under the provisions of that 
act. On the contrary, she was admitted on the tenth of August, 1S21, by presidential proclamation, upon the ' Funda- 
mental Conditions,' in substance, that the State government, in all its departments, should be subject to the constitution 
of the United States, as all the State governments were, and are." — A Compendium of the History of the United States, 
By Hon. Alexander H. Stephens, p. 329. 



ADMINISTP.ATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 



555 



Monroe received at the polls a majority of 
the votes of every State in the Union, and 
every electoral vote but one, which was one 
in the college of New Hampshire, and was 
cast for John Quincy Adams. Mr. Monroe 
entered upon his second term on the fourth 
of March, 1821. 

Next in importance to the slavery ques- 



world, and compelled the States to depend 
upon their own exertions for the supply of 
their wants. During this period numerous 
manufacturing enterprises had sprung up, 
especially in New England, where capital 
was idle and labor abundant. 

At the close of the war the country was 
flooded with European goods, which were 




UNIQUE COTTON HARVESTER. 



tion was that of the tariff, or the imposition 
of a protective duty in favor of home manu- 
factures. In his inaugural address the Presi- 
dent had recommended the imposition of 
such a system of duties. During the war 
the non-intercourse laws of Congress, and 
the rigid blockade maintained by the British 
fleet, entirely cut the United States off from 
commercial intercourse with the rest of the 



sold at reduced prices for the especial pur- 
pose of ruining American manufactures. In 
their weak and helpless condition the Ameri- 
can enterprises could not endure this com- 
petition, and the tariff was proposed as the 
only means of saving them from ruin. The 
first measure of this kind was passed by 
Congress in 18 16, and was opposed by the 
New England States, which were then largely 



556 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



engaged in commerce, and was supported by 
the south. In 1820 the tariff was revised. 
The New Jingland States, which had directed 
the chief efforts to manufactures since 18 16, 
had felt the beneficial effects of protective 
duties, and now became the warm supporters 
of the tariff. The south being an agricultural 
section had found that its interests demanded 
free trade, had changed its position and 
resolutely opposed the tariff. In spite of the 
■opposition to the measure, however, the 
■duties were increased in the tariff of 1820. 

Mexico and South America. 

For some years past Mexico and the 
States of South America formerly held by 
Spain as provinces had been struggling to 
achieve their independence of the mother 
country. Henry Clay had exerted himself 
with enthusiasm to obtain from Congress a 
recognition of their independence, but such 
a step had been considered premature. In 
March, 1822, however, his efforts were 
crowned with success, and a bill was passed 
by Congress in accordance with the recom- 
mendation of the President, recognizing the 
independence of Mexico and the South 
American republics, and providing for the 
establishment of diplomatic relations with 
them. 

The next year President Monroe declared 
in a message to Congress that, " as a princi- 
ple, the American continents, by the free 
and independent position they have assumed 
and maintained, are henceforth not to be 
considered as subjects for future colonization 
by any European power." This claim that 
America belongs to republicanism, and is 
not to be the scene of European schemes for 
territorial aggrandizement, has since been 
known as the " Monroe doctrine," and has 
regarded as one of the cardinal points of the 
policy of the government of the United 
States. 



The last year of Mr. Monroe's administra- 
tion was marked by an advent of the deepest 
interest to the whole country. In 1824 the 
venerable Marquis de Lafayette came to the 
United States at the express invitation of 
Congress to visit the nation whose freedom 
he had helped to achieve. He reached 
New York on the thirteenth of August, and 
was received with enthusiasm. He travelled 
through all the States, and was everywhere 
received with demonstrations of respect and 
affection, and he was given abundant evi- 
dence in all parts of the country that the 
nation cherished with love and pride the 
memory of the generous stranger who came 
to its aid in its darkest hour of trial. Re- 
turning to Washington during the session 
of Congress, Lafayette spent several weeks 
there. Congress, as a token of the gratitude 
of the nation for his services, voted him a 
a township of land and the sum of two hun- 
dred thousand dollars. The frigate " Brandy- 
wine," just finished, was appointed to convey 
him back to France, a delicate compliment, 
as the vessel was named after the stream on 
whose banks Lafayette fought his first battle 
and was wounded in the cause of American 
independence. At the time of his visit to 
the United States Lafayette was nearly 
seventy years old. 

Election of John Quincy Adams. 

In the fall of 1824 the Presidential election 
was held amid great political excitement. 
The " era of good feeling " was at an end, 
and party spirit ran high. There were four 
candidates in the field, Mr. Monroe having 
declined a third term : Andrew Jackson, 
John Quincy Adams, William H. Crawford 
and Henry Clay. 

None of these received a popular majority 
and the election was thrown into the House 
of Representatives in Congress, and resulted 
in the choice of John Quincy Adams, of 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 



557 



Massachusetts, as President of the United 
States. John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina, 
had been chosen Vice-President by the 
popular vote. 

On the fourth of March, 1825, John 
Quincy Adams was inaugurated President 
of the United States. He was the son of 
John Adams, the second President of the 
republic, and was in his fifty-eighth year. 
He was a man of great natural ability, of 
strong personal character, and of unbending 
integrity. He had been carefully educated, 
and was one of the most learned men in the 
Union. 

Apart from his general education he had 
received a special training in statesmanship. 
He had served as minister to the Nether- 
lands, and in the same capacity at the courts of 
Portugal, Prussia Russia and England, where 
he had maintained a high reputation. He 
had represented the State of Massachusetts 
in the Federal Senate, and had been secretary 
of state in the cabinet of Mr. Monroe during 
the last administration. He was therefore 
thoroughly qualified for the duties of the 
high office upon which he now entered. 

"King Cotton." 

He called to his cabinet men of marked 
ability, at the head of which was Henry 
Clay, who became secretary ot state. The 
administration of Mr. Adams was one of re- 
markable prosperity. The country was 
growing wealthier by the rapid increase of 
its agriculture, manufactures and commerce, 
and abroad it commanded the respect of the 
world. Still party spirit raged with great 
violence during the whole of this period. 

The invention of the cotton gin by Eli 
Whitney, in 1793, by which the seed was 
separated from the cotton, had so cheapened 
the cost of producing that great staple, that 
it had become the principal article of export 
from the United States, and a source of 



great and growing wealth to the whole 
country. 

Several important undertakings were 
prosecuted with vigor, or were completed 
during Mr. Adams' term of office. The 
National Road, a splendidly constructed 
highway, built by the general government, 
from Cumberland, Maryland, across the 
mountains, was completed to Wheeling, on 
the Ohio, in 1820, and was carried beyond 
that stream durin"; Mr. Adams' administra- 




JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 

tion, the design being to extend it to the 
Mississippi. It furnished a broad and well- 
built thoroughfare between the seaboard and 
the west, and exerted a marked influence 
upon the internal trade of the country. The 
road from Cumberland to Wheeling cost 
^1,700,000. 

The Erie canal, extending from Buffalo on 
Lake Erie on the Hudson at Albany, was 
projected by De Witt Clinton. The plan 
was at first pronounced impracticable, but 
Clinton succeeded in inducing the State of 



558 



FROM THE REVOLaXION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



New York to undertake the scheme, and in 
1825 the great work was completed and the 
waters of the lakes and the Hudson were 
united. The completion of this canal secured 
to the city of New York the control of the 
western trade, and added to its wealth and 
importance in a marked degree. 



Mauch Chunk railway, from the coal mines 
to the Lehigh river, in Pennsylvania, in 1827. 
These were merely local works, and of but 
little importance, except in so far as they 
helped to demonstrate to the public mind the 
possibility and the usefulness of such enter- 
prises upon a larger scale. 




STEAMBOAT LOADING WITH COTTON. 



Steam had been for some years in use as 
the motive power in the navigation of the 
rivers of the Union, and it now began to be 
applied to purposes of land transportation. 
The first railroad in this country was a mere 
tramway, for the transportation of granite 
from the quarries at Quincy to the Neponsett 
river, in Massachusetts, and was constructed 
in the year 1826. This was followed by the 



Charters for roads of more importance 
were soon obtained in several of the States. 
In 1828 work was begun on the Baltimore 
and Ohio railroad, and in 1829 on the South 
Carolina railroad, In the year 1827 there 
were three miles of railroad in operation in 
the United States. In 1875 the number of 
miles in operation is a little over seventy 
thousand. 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF MONROE AND J. Q. ADAMS. 



559 



For some time previous to the entrance of 
Mr. Adams upon office, Georgia had been 
involved in a dispute with the general gov- 
ernment and with the Creek Indians con- 
cerning the lands of the latter, which the 
United States had agreed to purchase for 
the benefit of Georgia. 
Twenty-five years passed 
after the promise was 
made, and the lands re- 
mained unpurchased be- 
cause the Indians would ,^ 
not sell them. A treaty ^ 
wasfinally made in 1825 x. ^ 
by which some of the 

chiefs ceded to the gen- •s^"*"-'^^ 

eral government the ^ '**'"^ 

lands in question, -*. 

The majority of the 
Indians declared the 
chiefs had no authority 
to enter into this treaty, 
and called upon the 
United States to repudi- 
ate it. It was cancelled 
by the general govern- 
ment, but the State of 
Georgia determined to 
enforce it. The general 
government took the 
side of the Indians, and 
for a while it seemed that 
an open conflict would 
ensue between the State 
and federal authorities. 
The matter was settled 
by the Creeks consent- 
ing to sell their lands and to accept new 
homes in the west. The Indian lands 
were purchased by the United States, and 
the Creeks emigrated beyond the Missis- 
sippi. 

On the fourth of July, 1826, died, within a 
few hours of each other, two ex-presidents of 



the republic — John Adams and Thomas Jef- 
ferson — the latter the author of the Declara- 
tion of Independence, and the former its most 
efficient supporter. Mr. Adams died at his 
home at Qainc\', Massachusetts, at the ripe 
old age of ninety years ; Mr. Jefferson, at 




STATUE OF JEFFERSON AT WASHINGTON. 

Monticello, his beautiful Virginian home, at 
the age of eighty-two. Both had filled the 
highest stations in the republic, and both had 
lived to see the country they loved take rank 
among the first nations of the globe. They 
died on the fiftieth anniversary of American 
independence. 



S6o 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



In the year 1826 a new party made its 
appearance in our politics. A man named 
William Morgan, residing in the western 
part of New York, published a book purport- 
ing to reveal the secrets of the order of Free- 
masons. He suddenly disappeared, and it 
was charged that he had been seized and 
murdered by the Freemasons in revenge for 
his exposures. The affair caused great ex- 
citement in the Northern and some of the 
Western States, and gave rise to a political 



DANIEL WEBSTER. 

party known as the Anti-Masons, whose 
avowed object was the exclusion of Masons 
from office. It acquired considerable strength 
in some of the States, but in a few years died 
out. 

The tariff question now engaged the atten- 
tion of the country once more. The manu- 
facturing interests were still struggling against 
foreign competition, and it was the opinion of 
the Eastern and Middle States that the gen- 
eral government should protect them by the 




imposition of high duties upon products of 
foreign countries imported into the Union. 
The south was almost a unit in its opposition 
to a high tariff. Being, as we have said, an 
agricultural section, its interests demanded a 
free market, and it wished to avail itself of 
the privilege of purchasing where it could 
buy cheapest. The south and the west were 
the markets of the east, and the interests of 
that section demanded the exclusion of for- 
eign competitio.n in supplying these markets. 
In July, 1827, a convention of manu- 
facturers was held at Harrisburg, Penn- 
sylvania, and a memorial was adopted 
praying Congress to increase the duties 
on foreign goods to an extent which 
would protect American industry. When 
Congress met in December, 1827, the 
protective policy was the most important 
topic of the day. It was warmly dis- 
cussed in Congress and throughout the 
country. The interests of New England 
were championed by the matchless elo- 
quence of Daniel Webster, who claimed 
that as the adoption of the protective 
policy by the government had forced 
New England to turn her energies to 
manufacturers, the government was 
bound to protect her against competi- 
tion. 

After a very able and exhaustive dis- 
cussion, the tariff bill was passed by the 
House on the fifteenth of April, 1828,, 
and was approved by the President a little 
later. It was termed by its opponents the 
" Bill of Abominations." 

In the midst of this excitement the Presi- 
dential election occurred. Mr. Adams was 
a candidate for re-election, but was over- 
whelmingly defeated by Andrew Jackson, of 
Tennessee. John C. Calhoun was chosen 
Vice-President. The election of Jackson 
was regarded as a popular condemnation of 
the protective policy of the government. 



CHAPTER XXXV 



The Administrations of Andrew Jaekson and 
Martin Van Buren 

Character of Andrew Jackson — Indian Policy of this Administration — The President Vetoes the Bill to Renew the Char- 
ter of the United States Bank — Debate Between Hayne and Webster — Jackson's Quarrel With Calhoun — Death of 
ex-President Monroe — The Cholera — Black Hawk's War — Re-election of President Jackson — The TarifT — Action of 
South Carolina — The Nullification Ordinance — Firmness of the President — The Matter Settled by Compromise — Pa- 
triotism of Henry Clay — The Removal of the Deposits — The Seminole War Begun — Great Fire at New York — Settle- 
ment of the French Claims — Arkansas Admitted Into the Union — The National Debt Paid — Death of ex- President 
Madison — Martin Van Buren Elected President — Michigan Admitted Into the Union — The Panic of 1837 — Causes of 
It — Suspension of Specie Payments — Great Distress Throughout the Union — The Sub-Treasury — Repudiation of State 
Debts — The Canadian Rebellion — The President's Course — The Seminole War Ended — The Anti-Slaver)' Party — 

■ Resolutions of Congress Respecting Slavery — William Henry Harrison Elected President — The Sixth Census. 



ANDREW JACKSON, the seventh 
President of the United States, was 
inaugurated at Washington, on the 
fourth of March, 1829. 
President Jackson was in many respects 
one of the most remarkable men of his day. 
He was of Scotch-Irish descent, and was 
born in North Carohna during the contro- 
versy between the colonies and Great 
Britain, which preceded the revolution. He 
was left fatherless at an early age, and his 
youth was passed amid the stirring scenes 
of the war for independence. At the age of 
thirteen he began his career by taking part 
in the fight at Hanging Rock, under General 
Sumter, The home of the Jacksons was 
broken up and pillaged by the Tories, and 
the mother and her two sons became wan- 
derers. The sons were shortly after made 
prisoners by the Tories, and the day after 
his capture Andrew Jackson was ordered by 
a British officer to clean his boots. He 
indignantly refused, and the officer struck 
him with the flat of his sword. The boys 
were at length exchanged through the exer- 
tions of their mother. Both had contracted 
the small-pox during their captivity, and the 
elder son soon died of his disease. 
36 



Not long afterwards Mrs. Jackson, with 
some other ladies, went to Charleston to 
minister to the wants of the American pri- 
soners of war confined there by the British. 
A fever was raging among these unfortunates 
at the time, and Mrs. Jackson was soon num- 
bered among its victims. Thus, at the age 
of fifteen, Andrew Jackson was left alone in 
the world without a relative. Though young 
in years, he had been greatly matured in 
character by his trials. Even at this early 
age he was generous to a fault to his friends, 
and immovable in his resolutions when once 
formed. 

A few years later he removed to Tennes- 
see, then a Territory, and upon the admis- 
sion of the State into the Union was elected 
as her first representative in Congress. His 
services during the war of 18 12-15 have been 
related. His brilliant victory over the British 
at New Orleans made him one of the most 
noted men of the day, and his prompt and 
decisive measures against the Spaniards in 
Florida during Mr, Monroe's administration 
greatly added to his reputation. 

During the administration of John Adams- 
General Jackson occupied a seat in the United 
States Senate, and gave a cordial support to 

561 



562 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



the principles of Mr. Jefferson. Resigning 
his seat in the Senate before the close of his 
term, he was elected one of the judges of the 
Supreme Court of Tennessee. 

The election of General Jackson to the 




ANDREW JACKSON. 

Presidency was regarded with some anxiety, 
for though his merits as a soldier were con- 
ceded, it was feared by many that his known 
imperiousness of will and his inflexibility of 
purpose would seriously disqualify him for the 
delicate duties of the Presidency. Nature had 



made him a ruler, however, and his adminis- 
tration w^as marked by the fearless energy 
that characterized every act of his life, and 
was on the whole successful and satisfactory 
to the great majority of his countrymen. 

General Jackson 
began his administra- 
tion by appointing a 
new cabinet, at the 
head of which he 
placed Martin Van 
Buren, of New York, 
as secretary of state. 
Until now the Post- 
master-General had 
not been regarded as 
a cabinet officer. Gen- 
eral Jackson now in- 
vited that officer to a 
seat in his cabinet and 
a share in its delibera- 
tions, and his course 
has since been pur- 
sued by each and all 
of his successors. 

The first important 
act of the new Presi- 
dent was to recom- 
mend to Congress the 
removal of all the In- 
dian tribes remaining 
east of the Mississippi 
to new homes west of 
that stream. Such a 
measure, he con- 
tended, would give 
to them a broader 
range, and one more 
suited to their wants, and would reliev^e 
the States east of the Mississippi from all 
further apprehension of Indian wars. This 
removal involved considerable loss and hard- 
ship to the Creeks in Georgia, who had made 
an encouracfinsf advance in civilization, A 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 



56: 



bill was passed by the Twenty-first Congress 
in May, 1830, for the purpose of carrying 
this policy into effect ; but the removal of the 
Indians was not completed for some years 
afterwards. 

In his first annual message to Congress, in 
1829, the President took strong ground 
against the renewal of the charter of the 
Bank of the United States, which was about 
to expire. This was a bold step, as the bank 
was the most powerful institution in the 
United States, and had warm friends in every 
part of the country. The stockholders of 
the bank applied to the Twenty-second Con- 
gress during its first session, which began in 
December, 1831, for a renewal of their char- 
ter, and in the late spring of 1832 a bill 
renewing this charter was passed by both 
Houses of Congress. The President refused 
to sign the bill, and returned it to Congress 
with his objections. He held that Congress 
had no constitutional power to charter such 
a bank, and regarded it as inexpedient to 
continue its existence. An effort was made 
by the friends of the bill to pass it over the 
President's veto, but it failed to obtain the 
necessary two-thirds vote, and consequently 
did not become a law. The bank was there- 
fore obliged to suspend its operations at the 
expiration of its charter in 1836. 

A Historic Debate. 

In 1830 Senator Foot, of Connecticut, sub- 
mitted a resolution of inquiry to the Senate 
concerning the disposal of the public lands. 
The debate upon the resolution extended far 
beyond the subject embraced in that docu- 
ment, and in the course of it Senator Robert 
Y. Hayne, of South Carolina, a brilliant 
orator, declared that any State had the right, 
in the exercise of its sovereign power, to 
declare null and void any act of Congress 
which it should consider unconstitutional. 
This was a plain statement of the doctrine 



that the Union was simply a compact between 
tiie States, from which any of the States could 
secede at pleasure, and it was the first time 
such a sentiment had been expressed on the 
floor of Congress. Mr. Webster, of Massa- 
chusetts, replied to Mr. Hayne, in an oration 
of superb eloquence. He denied the doc- 
trine that the Union was a compact of sover- 
eign, independent States, from which any 
one of them could withdraw at pleasure ; and 
argued that the constitution was the work of 
the people themselves, not as separate States, 




ROBERT Y. HAYNE. 

but as members of a great nation, and was 
designed to make the Union perpetual ; that 
the controversies between the States and the 
general government were to be decided by 
the supreme court, the tribunal created for 
that purpose by the constitution, and not by 
the States themselves ; and that any attempt 
on the part of the people of a State to with- 
draw from the Union was treason. 

The debate added greatly to the fame of 
both senators, and the sentiments of Mr. 
Webster were unanimously re-echoed by the 



564 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



north, and by a large majority at the south. 
The effect of the debate was to direct the' 
attention of the people to a study of the 
principles of the constitution. Different 
views were maintained. The Northern and 
Western States regarded the Union as indis- 
soluble, while the Southern States held that 
it was a compact of sovereign States, and 




A LUMBERMAN S CAMP IN THE WOODS OF MAINE. 

that any State could withdraw from the 
Union for just cause. 

During the session of the Twenty-first 
Congress a breach occurred between Presi- 
dent Jackson and Mr. Calhoun, the vice- 
president. The former was told for the first 
time that Mr. Calhoun, while a member of 
Mr. Monroe's cabinet, had endeavored to 
prevent the government from sustaining him 



in his invasion of Florida in 181 8. General 
Jackson deeply resented this, and the breach 
between himself and Mr. Calhoun widened 
daily. Shortly afterwards Mr. Calhoun re- 
signed the vice-presidency, and was elected 
to the Senate by the legislature of South 
Carolina in 1831. In the same year Mr. 
Clay was elected to the Senate from Ken- 
tucky, and Edward 
Livingston was made 
secretary of state. 

On the fourth of 
July, 1 83 1, ex-Presi- 
dent Monroe died in 
New York, in the se- 
venty-fourth year of 
his age. 

In June, 1832, the 
Asiatic cholera made 
its first appearance in 
the United States, and 
swept with fearful ra- 
pidity over the whole 
country. Thousands 
of persons of all ages 
and conditions died 
of it within a few 
months, and a feeling 
of general terror per- 
vaded the country. 
Its principal ravages 
occurred in the North- 
ern States and in the 
valley of the Missis- 
sippi. 
In the spring of 1832 the Sacs and Foxes, 
and some other tribes of Indians, inhabiting 
the region now known as Wisconsin, made 
incursions against the frontier settlements of 
Illinois. General Atkinson was sent by the 
general government with a force of troops to 
crush them, and, with the assistance of the 
militia, after a series of skirmishes, drove 
them beyond the Mississippi. Black Hawk, 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 



565 



a chief of the Sac nation, and the leader of 
the movement, was taken prisoner. He was 
kindly treated, and to impress him with the 
folly of attacking a great nation, he was 
taken to Washington, and then to the prin- 
cipal eastern cities, that he might see for 
himself the power of the whites. 

Jackson Re-elected. 

Early in 1831 General Jackson was nomi- 
nated for re-election to the Presidency by 
the legislature of Pennsylvania. The Presi- 
dential election took place in the fall of 
1832. General Jackson was supported by 
the Democratic party, and Mr. Clay by the 
Whigs, for the Presidency. The contest 
was marked by intense bitterness, for Jack- 
son's veto of the charter of the Bank of the 
United States, his other vetoes of public 
improvement bills, and his attitude in the 
" Nullification " controversy between the 
United States and South Carolina had 
created a powerful opposition to him in all 
parts of the country. In spite of this op- 
position he was re-elected by a triumphant 
majority, and Martin Van Buren, of New 
York, the Democratic nominee, was chosen 
vice-president. 

In the meantime serious trouble had arisen 
between the general government and the 
State of South Carolina. During the year 
1832 the tariff was revised by Congress, 
and that body, instead of diminishing the 
duties, increased many of them. This action 
gave great offence to the Southern States, 
which regarded the denial of free trade as a 
great wrong to them. They were willing to 
submit to a tariff sufficient for a revenue, but 
were utterly opposed to a protective tariff 
for the reasons we have already stated. The 
States of Virginia, Georgia and South Caro- 
lina were the most energetic in their opposi- 
tion to the measure, but the first two, upon 
its passage, submitted to it, hoping to carry 



out their w'shes by constitutional means at 
some future time. 

The State of South Carolina, holding the 
views advocated by Mr. Hayne in the 
Senate, in his debate with Mr. Webster, 
resolved to " nullify " the law within its own 
limits. A convention of the people of the 
State was held, which adopted a measure 
known as the " Nullification Ordinance." 
This ordinance declared that the tariff act of 
1832, being based upon the principle of pro- 




JOHN C. CALHOON. 

tection, and not upon the principle of raising 
revenue, was unconstitutional, and was there- 
fore null and void. Provision was made by 
another clause for testing the constitutionality 
of the law before the courts of the State. 

The State assumed the right to forbid the 
collection of the duties imposed by the tariff 
within its limits ; and if the general govern- 
ment should resist the course of the State 
by force, the State of South Carolina was 
declared to be no longer a member of the 



566 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



Union. This ordinance was to take effect 
on the twelfth of February, 1833, unless in 
the meantime the general government should 
abandon its policy of protection and return 
to a tariff for revenue only. 

Matters had reached this state when the 
Presidential election occurred in the fall of 
1832. The country at large was utterly 
opposed to the course of South Carolina, 
and denied its right to nullify a law of Con- 
gress or to withdraw from the Union in 
support of this right. Intense excitement 




EDWARD LIVINGSTON. 

prevailed, and the course of the President 
was watched with the gravest anxiety. He 
was known to be opposed to the protective 
policy ; but it was generally believed that he 
was firm in his intention to enforce the laws, 
however he might disapprove of them. 

Congress met in December, 1832, and in 
his annual message President Jackson urged 
upon that body a reduction of the tariff. 
The message gave great satisfaction to the 
opponents of the tariff. A few days later 
the President issued a proclamation against 



nullification, moderate in language, but firm 
in tone. He expressed his opinion that the 
course of South Carolina was unlawful and 
wrong, and intimated that he would exert 
the power intrusted to him to compel obedi- 
ence to the constitution and laws of the 
Union. He appealed to the people of South 
Carolina not to persist in the enforcement of 
their ordinance, as such a course on their 
part must inevitably bring them in collision 
with the forces of the federal government; 
and told them plainly that any citizen of any 
of the States who should take up arms 
against the United States in such a conflict 
would be guilty of treason against the United 
States. 

Referring to the action of the convention,, 
he said : " This ordinance is founded, not on 
the indefeasible right of resisting acts which 
are plainly unconstitutional, and too oppres- 
sive to be endured ; but on the strange posi- 
tion that any one State may not only declare- 
an act of Congress void, but prohibit its 
execution; that they may do this consist- 
ently with the constitution ; that the true 
construction of the instrument permits a 
State to retain its place in the Union, and 
yet be bound by no other of its laws than 
those it may choose to consider as constitu- 
tional." 

Trouble in South Carolina. 

The leaders of the South Carolina move- 
ment were Governor Hayne and John C. 
Calhoun, then a senator of the United States 
from South Carolina. Governor Hayne re- 
plied to the President with a counter procla- 
mation, in which he warned the people of 
the State against " the dangerous and perni- 
cious doctrines " of the President's procla- 
mation, and called upon them to disregard 
" those vain menaces " of military force, and 
" to be fully prepared to sustain the dignity 
and protect the liberties of the State, if need 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 



567 



be, with their hves and fortunes." The 
State prepared to maintain its position by 
force. Troops were organized and arms 
and mihtary stores were collected. 

The President, on his part, took measures 
promptly to enforce the law. He ordered a 
large body of troops to assemble at Charles- 
ton under General Scott, and a ship of war 
was sent to that port to assist the federal 
officers in collecting the duties on imports. 
Civil war seemed for a time inevitable. The 



ginia sent Benjamin Watkins Leigh, a dis- 
tinguished citizen, as commissioner to South 
Carolina, to urge her to suspend the execu- 
tion of her ordinance until March 4th, as 
there was a probability that a peaceful set- 
tlement of the difficulty would be arranged 
before that time. South Carolina consented 
to be guided by this appeal. 

Henry Clay, with his usual patriotic self- 
sacrifice, now came forward in the Senate 
with a compromise which he hoped would 




THE UNITED STATES TREASURY AT WASHINGTON, D. C. 



President was firmly resolved to compel the 
submission of South Carolina and to cause 
the arrest of Mr. Calhoun and the other 
leading nullifiers and bring them to trial for 
treason. The issue of such a conflict could 
not be doubtful. 

Fortunately a peaceful settlement of the 
trouble was effected. Mr. Verplanck, of 
New York, a supporter of the administra- 
tion, introduced a bill into Congress for a 
reduction of the tariff, and the State of Vir- 



put an end to the trouble. He was an ardent 
advocate of the protective system, but he was 
prepared to sacrifice it to the welfare of the 
country. He introduced a bill providing 
for the gradual reduction in ten years of all 
duties then above the revenue standard. 
" One-tenth of one-half of all the duties for 
protection above that standard was to be 
taken off annually for ten years, at the end 
of which period the whole of the other half 
was to be taken off, and thereafter all duties 



568 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



were to be levied mainly with a view to 
revenue and not for protection." This 
measure with some modifications was 
adopted by both Houses of Congress, and 
was approved by the President on the second 
of March, 1833. The people of South Caro- 
lina rescinded their " Nulhfication Ordi- 
nance," and the trouble was brought to an 
end.* 

It was generally believed that the Union 
had escaped from a grave peril. The firm- 
ness of the President received the approval 
of the nation, except in South Carolina. The 
action of that State was generally condemned, 
and the result was looked upon as a decided 
triumph of the national authority. 

Renewed Excitement. 

On the fourth of March, 1833, General 
Jackson entered upon his second term of 
office. The troubles which had disquieted 
the country had been satisfactorily settled, 
and the President took advantage of the 
peaceful condition of affairs to visit New 
York and the New England States. He 
was received everywhere with enthusiasm. 

Upon his return to the capital the Presi- 
dent took a step which plunged the country 
into great excitement once more. The 
charter of the Bank of the United States 
made that institution the legal depository of 
the funds of the United States. The secre- 
tary of the treasury, with the sanction of 
Congress, alone had authority to remove 
them. The President was of the opinion 
that the public funds were not safe in the 
keeping of the bank, and announced his in- 
tention to remove them from the Bank of 



the United States and deposit them with 
certain State banks. The majority of the 
cabinet were opposed to the measure, and 
the secretary of the treasury, William J. 
Duane, when ordered by the President to 
withdraw the funds, refused to obey him as 
he considered the President's course " un- 
necessary, unwise, arbitrary and unjust." He 
was at once removed from his position by 
President Jackson, who appointed Roger 
B. Taney, of Maryland, in his place. Mr. 
Taney issued an order to the collectors, for- 
bidding them to deposit the public moneys 
paid to them in the Bank of the United 
States. As for the funds already in the pos- 
session of the bank it was decided to with- 
draw them as they were needed for the pay- 
ment of the current expenses of the govern- 
ment. This measure was productive of 
great financial distress throughout the 
Union, which continued for some time. 

President Jackson Censured. 

The President's course also produced open 
war between himself and the Senate, in 
which body he was opposed by Clay, Cal- 
houn and Webster, its foremost members. 
He was defended by Benton, of Missouri, 
and Forsyth, of Georgia, but in spite of their 
efforts a resolution declaring the President's 
course unconstitutional and severely censur- 
ing him for it was adopted by the Senate. 
The President remained firm, however. He 
submitted an able protest against the action 
of the Senate, and by the help of the House 
of Representatives defeated the bank on 
every point. The Senate subsequently 
recognized the propriety of the President's 



* " Mr. Clay, on this occasion," says Hon. Alexander H. Stephens, " had to break with his old political friends, while 
he was offering up the darling system of his heart upon the altar of his country. Whatever else may be said of him, no 
one can deny that Henry Clay was a patriot— every inch of him— a patriot of the highest standard. It was said that when 
he was importuned not to take the course he had resolved upon, for the reason amongst others that it would lessen his 
chances for the presidency, his reply was, ' I would rather be right than be president.' This showed the material he was 
made of. It was worthy a Marcellus or CzXo:'— The War Between the States, vol. i.,p. 438. 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 



569 



action, and of its own motion expunged the 
resolution of censure from its journal. 

In pursuance of its policy towards the In- 



ship of their great chief, Osceola, opposed a 
determined resistance to the efforts of the 
general government. Major Dade, Avith one 




OSCEOr.A, CHIKF OF THE SEMINOLES. 



dians, the government attempted in 1835 to 
remove the Seminoles from Florida beyond 
the Mississippi. They were unwilling to 
relinquish their lands ; and under the leader- 



hundred and seventeen men, was sent from 
Tampa Bay to the assistance of General 
Clinch at Fort Drane, which was threatened 
by the Indians. He was attacked on the 



570 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



twenty-eighth of December, 1835, while on 
the march, and he and all but four of his 
men were massacred. On the same day 
another blow was struck at Fort King, many 
miles away from the scene of this massacre. 
Mr. Thompson, the Indian commissioner, 
and a party of his friends, while dining out- 
side of the walls of the fort, were attacked 
by a band of Seminoles led by Osceola in 
person, and killed and scalped. General 
Clinch at once took the field against the 
savages, and on the thirty-first of December 
defeated them at Withlacooche, ninety miles 
north of Tampa Bay. In February, 1836, 
General Gaines won an important victory 
over the savages near the same place. 

The Seminole "War. 

The Creeks joined the Seminoles in May, 
1836, and the war spread into Georgia. The 
former were soon crushed by the United 
States troops, and were sent west of the 
Mississippi. The Seminoles continued the 
war, and as often as they were defeated in 
the open field would take refuge in the 
swamps and everglades, where it was diffi- 
cult for the whites to follow them, and from 
which they maintained a constant and effect- 
ive warfare upon their enemies. Osceola 
was always ready to make a treaty, and never 
hesitated to break it. At last he was con- 
quered by his own weapon of deceit. In 
October, 1837, he came into the American 
camp under a flag of truce. He was at once 
seized, with all his followers, by General 
Jessup, the American commander. Osceola 
was sent as a prisoner to Fort Moultrie, 
in South Carolina, where he died of a 
fever. The war went on for several years 
longer. 

The winter of 1834-5 was one of the 
coldest ever known in America. The Chesa- 
peake Bay was frozen from its head to the 
Capes, and on the eighth of February, 1835, 



the mercury stood at eight degrees below 
zero as far south as Charleston. On the 
fourth of January the mercury congealed at 
Lebanon, New York. On the night of De- 
cember 16, 1835, a fire broke out in the city 
of New York, and in fourteen hours con- 
sumed the greater part of the business por- 
tion of the city, and destroyed over seven- 
teen million dollars worth of property. 

Dispute with France Settled. 

In the last years of his administration Pres- 
ident Jackson brought to a successful close 
a vexatious dispute with France, which had 
long been a source of annoyance to the coun- 
try. American merchants held claims to the 
amount of five million dollars against France* 
for the " unlawful seizures, captures, and 
destruction of vessels and cargoes" during 
the wars of Napoleon. The government of 
Louis Philippe acknowledged the justice of 
these claims, and in 1831 a treaty was nego- 
tiated between the United States and France 
for their payment. 

The Chamber of Deputies refused three 
times during as many years to appropriate 
the money for the payment of these claims, 
and in 1834 President Jackson ordered the 
United States minister at Paris to demand 
his passports, and advised Congress to make 
reprisals on French vessels. This vigorous 
course brought France to her senses, and at 
this juncture Great Britain offered her media- 
tion for the settlement of the difficulty. The 
Chamber of Deputies appropriated the neces- 
sary sum, and the American claims were 
paid and the matter settled to the satisfaction 
of all parties. 

Claims for similar seizures were brought 
against Spain, Naples, and Denmark, and 
were satisfactorily settled through the firm- 
ness of the President. Treaties of friendship 
and commerce were negotiated with Russia 
and Turkey. 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 



571 



On the fifteenth of June, 1836, Arkansas 
was admitted into the Union as a State. 

One of the most important acts of General 
Jackson's administration was the payment 
of the national debt. He not only left the 
nation free from debt, but handed over to 
his successor a sur- 
plus of forty millions 
of dollars in the na- 
tional treasury. 

On the twenty- 
eighth of June, 1836, 
ex-President James 
Madison died at 
Montpelier, his home, 
in Virginia, in the 
eighty-sixth year of 
his age. 

The Presidential 
election was held in 
the fall of 1836. Gen- 
eral Jackson having 
declined to be a can- 
didate for a third term, 
the Democratic party 
supported Martin Van 
Buren for President 
and Richard M. John- 
son, of Kentucky, for 
Vice-President. Mr. 
Van Buren was elected 
by a large majority; 
but the electors hav- 
ing failed to make a 
choice of a candidate 
for Vice-President, 
that task devolved 
upon the Senate, 

which elected Colonel Richard M. Johnson 
by a majority of seventeen votes. 

On the twenty-sixth of January, 1837, 
Michigan was admitted into the Union as a 
State, making the twenty-sixth member of 
the Confederacy. The original thirteen 



States had been doubled in number, and the 
Union was strong at home, and respected 
abroad. 

At the close of his tenn General Jackson 
retired from public life, and passed the 
remainder of his days at bis beautiful home. 




MARTIN VAN BUREN. 

near Nashville, in Tennessee, which he had 
named the " Hermitage." He had conducted 
one of the most remarkable administrations 
in our history, and one of the most success- 
ful, and had shown himself to be an earnest, 
incorruptible, and self-sacrificing patriot, and 



572 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



a man of unbending honesty and of extra- 
ordinary energy and inflexibility of purpose. 
Martin Van Buren, the new President, 
entered upon the duties of his office on the 
fourth of March, 1837. He was in his fifty- 
fifth year, and had occupied many distin- 
guished positions in public life. He had 
represented the State of New York in the 
Senate of the United States, and had been 
governor of that State, He had been min- 
ister to England, had been made secretary of 
state at the commencement of General Jack- 
son's first term, and had been elected Vice- 
President of the United States at the period 
of Jackson's re-election. 

"Wild Speculation. 

The extraordinary prosperity which had 
prevailed throughout the nation during the 
last year of Jackson's term came to a sudden 
end almost immediately after the inaugura- 
tion of Mr, Van Buren. For some time past 
a reckless spirit of speculation had engrossed 
the nation, and had led to excessive banking 
and the issuing of paper money to an extent 
far beyond the necessities of the country. 
The State banks, with which the public funds 
had been deposited by President Jackson, 
supposed they would be able to control these 
funds for an indefinite period, as the revenue 
of the government was largely in excess of 
its expenses ; and they made loans freely, 
and upon not the best securities, in all cases. 
Few of the new banks which sprang into 
existence had enough gold and silver in their 
vaults to redeem the notes with which they 
flooded the country. Fictitious values pre- 
vailed in every department of trade, and the 
banks vied with each other in affording the 
means for the wildest speculations. 

In the midst of this excitement two acts 
of the general government brought matters to 
a crisis. The speculation mania had extended 
to the public lands, and in order to restrain 



it within manageable bounds President Jack- 
son caused the secretary of the treasury to 
issue an order to the collectors at the local 
offices to receive only gold and silver in pay- 
ments for land. This order was generally 
known as the " Specie Circular." In the 
summer of 1836 a law was passed by Con- 
gress requiring the President to distribute 
among the States the funds on deposit in the 
banks. This was an unexpected measure to 
the banks, and forced them to call in their 
loans to meet the withdrawal of the govern- 
ment funds. The operations of the " Specie 
Circular" at the same time sent large quan- 
tities of their notes back to them to be 
redeemed in coin. 

This complication of difficulties brought 
them at once to the end of their resources, 
and they were rendered powerless to extend 
their usual facilities to their customers. The 
result was that the business of the country 
was thrown into a state of hopeless confusion, 
and by the spring of 1837 the failures in 
New York alone amounted to one hundred 
million dollars. All parts of the country 
were affected by the financial troubles, and 
in New Orleans the failures amounted to 
twenty-seven million dollars. 

Suspension of Specie Payments. 

Petitions were addressed to the President 
from all parts of the Union, praying him to 
take some steps to relieve the general distress, 
and in May a deputation of merchants and 
bankers from New York waited upon Presi- 
dent Van Buren, and urged him to postpone 
the immediate collection of duties for which 
merchants had given bonds, to withdraw the 
treasury orders requiring sums due the United 
States to be paid in gold and silver, and to 
convene Congress in extra session for the 
purpose of devising measures of relief 

The President complied with their request 
to suspend the collection of duties for which 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 



573 



bonds had been given, but declined to take 
the other steps asked of him. Within a few 
days after his answer was known the banks 
of New York suspended specie payments, 
and their example was followed by the rest 
of the banks throughout the Union. 

The Country in Distress. 

The distress of the country was very 
great. Hundreds of thousands of laborers 
were thrown out of employment, and busi- 
ness of all kinds was at a standstill. The 
government, which a few months before had 
been out of debt and in possession of a sur- 
plus of forty millions, now found itself 
unable to provide funds for its ordinary ex- 
penses. The President was compelled to 
summon an extra session of Congress, which 
met on the fourth of September, 1837. The 
President in his message attributed the em- 
barrassed condition of the country to the 
excessive issues of bank notes, the great fire 
in New York in 1835, and the reckless 
speculations of the people for several years 
past. He suggested no special legislation 
for the relief of these troubles, as he regarded 
such a course as beyond the constitutional 
authority of the general government. 

Indeed, the government could do but little 
to restore public confidence ; that was the 
task of the people themselves, and it was not 
accomplished for several years. To meet 
the necessities of the government and pro- 
vide a legal currency Congress, at the re- 
commendation of the President, issued 
treasury notes to the amount of ten millions 
of dollars. Another recommendation of the 
President did not give such general satisfac- 
tion. The President advised the creation of an 
independent treasury for the public funds, as 
a means of avoiding the risks assumed by 
the government in depositing its funds in the 
banks. These treasuries were to be located 
at certain central points, and the sub- 



treasurers were to be appointed by the Presi- 
dent, and were to give bonds for the proper 
fulfilment of their duties. The President 
believed that the adoption of this measure 
would withdraw large sums of money from 
active circulation and so put a stop to specu- 
lation. 

The bill for the creation of the inde- 
pendent treasury was warmly opposed in 
and out of Congress, as it was feared by 
many that the withdrawal of so much gold 
and silver from circulation would seriously 
injure the business of the country. Mr. 
Calhoun supported the measure with all his 
great abilities, and IMr. Clay and Mr. Web- 
ster opposed it. The measure failed at the 
extra session, but became a law in 1840. In 
1 84 1 it was repealed, and in 1846 it was re- 
enacted. It is still in force, and its wisdom 
and usefulness are now generally admitted. 

Great Increase of Debt. 

The spirit of speculation had extended to 
the State governments as well as to private 
individuals, and State bonds had been issued 
to the amount of one hundred million dol- 
lars. The pretext for this excessive increase 
of debt was the necessity of raising funds to 
carry out their system of internal improve- 
ments. The panic involved the States in its 
effects, and eight of them found themselves 
unable in 1838 to pay the interest on their 
bonds. In course of time they made good 
their obligations, but the State of Mississippi 
and the Territory of Florida not only refused 
to pay the interest on their bonds, but repu- 
diated their debts. The sale of their bonds 
had been made principally in Europe, and 
their repudiation of their debts aroused great 
indignation on the other side of the Atlantic, 
and brought disgrace upon the whole nation. 
The effects of this were seen a kw years 
later, when the United States sought to 
negotiate a national loan in Europe. Not a 



574 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



bond could be sold or a dollar obtained 
there. 

In 1837 a movement was made by the 
people of Canada to throw off their connec- 
tion with Great Britain and to establish their 
independence. It aroused the sympathies 
of a large number of the people of the United 
States, and in northern New York associa- 
tions called "Huntei-s' Lodges" were formed 
for the purpose of aiding the Canadian 



of Schlosser on the American shore to the 
island. The British authorities in Canada 
determined to destroy the boat. One dark 
night in December, 1837, a detachment from 
Canada was sent to Navy Island for this 
purpose. 

Not finding the " Caroline " they went 
over to Schlosser, where she was moored at 
her dock. The boat was captured after a 
short struggle, in which one American was 




CANADIAN TRAPPERS. 



patriots. The President of the United States 
and the Governor of New York endeavored 
to suppress these illegal associations, but 
without success. 

A body of seven hundred Canadians and 
American sympathizers took possession of 
Navy Island in the Niagara River. The 
island is a part of Canada, and lies near the 
shore of that country. The force on the 
island employed the steamboat " Caroline " 
to convey men and provisions from the town 



killed, and was carried out into the stream 
and set on fire. She drifted down to the 
falls and plunged over them in a blaze. The 
British minister at Washington at once de- 
clared the responsibility of his government 
for the capture of the boat, and justified it on 
the ground of self-defence. 

In the meantime the President had sent 
General Wool with a strong force to the 
Canadian border with orders to prevent any 
expedition from leaving this country to aid 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF JACKSON AND VAN BUREN. 



575 



the Canadians. He compelled the force on 
Navy Island to surrender, but the border 
war continued until the close of 1838, when 
it was put down. 

On the first of September of this year 
(1838) the United States, by their agent, 
received the liberal donation which was be- 
queathed to them in trust for the " general 
diffusion of knowledge among men," by 
James Smithson,an Englishman, which con- 
stitutes the endowment of the Institute in 
Washington city that 
bears his name. The 
amount of the legacy 
received, in American 
coin, was $S7S<^^9' 

In 1840 the question 
was to some extent re- 
vived. Alexander Mc- 
Leod, a British subject 
residing in Canada, 
boasted that he had been 
engaged in the capture 
of the " Caroline," and 
had killed the American 
who fell in the conflict. 
Shortly afterwards he 
visited the New York 
side of the river and was 
at once arrested upon a 
charge of murder by the 
authorities of that State. 



the attack, he was acquitted. This conflict 
between the Federal and State authority led 
to the passage by Congress of a law requir- 
ing similar offences to be tried before the 
United States courts. 

In the midst of the Canadian controversy 
a quarrel sprang up between the State of 
Maine and the British provinces of New 
Brunswick, concerning the northeast bound- 
ary of the United States. Both parties pre- 
pared for a conflict, but the President sent 




THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, WASHINGTON, D. C. 



The British government 
demanded his unconditional release on the 
ground that he had simply obeyed the orders 
of his government, which was alone respon- 
sible for his act. The general government of 
the United States also demanded the surrender 
of McLeod to the Federal authorities. The 
State of New York, however,'held that the 
offence with which McLeod was charged had 
been committed on her soil, and brought the 
prisoner to trial. As he succeeded in prov- 
ing that he was not engaged in or present at 



General Scott to the scene of danger, and 
he, by his moderation and firmness, suc- 
ceeded in maintaining peace until the matter 
could be settled by treaty. 

The war with the Seminole Indians in 
Florida continued through the whole of this 
administration. The capture and death of 
Osceola, which wq have related, though a 
severe blow to his followers, did not dis- 
hearten them. On the twenty-fifth of 
December, 1838, Colonel Zachary Taylor 



576 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



inflicted a severe defeat upon the Indians at 
Lake Okeechobee. The war was at length 
brought to an end in 1842, but not until it 
had lasted seven years and had cost many 
valuable lives and the enormous sum of 
nearly forty million dollars. The Seminoles 
were subdued and were removed from Florida 
to new homes beyond the Mississipi. 

The Missouri Compromise did not quiet 
the agitation of the slavery question. It 
gave to the country only a momentary 
respite. The Anti-slavery or Abolition party 
had now become one of the recognized politi- 
cal organizations of the country. Its avowed 
object was the abolition of slavery in every 
State in which it existed. It was argued in 
opposition to their principles that the consti- 
tution recognized and protected slavery in 
the States in which it existed ; but they met 
this assertion by the bold declaration that 
they would continue their agitation until 
they had destroyed either slavery or the 
Union. They did not wish to live under a 
constitution which protected slavery, and 
which one of their principal leaders de- 
nounced as " a covenant with death and an 
agreement with hell." The body embraced 
the extreme Anti-slavery men of the north. 

Opposition to the Abolitionists. 

Among its adversaries were some of the 
sincerest opponents of slavery, who hoped 
to accomplish their ends by constitutional 
means and by the influences of a better and 
more enlightened public opinion, and who 
deprecated and opposed the violence of the 
extreme Abolitionists. The leader of the 
ultra party in Congress was John Quincy 
Adams, who had been returned to the House 
of Representatives from Massachusetts in 
1 83 1. Memorials were presented to Con- 
gress praying the abolition of slavery in the 
District of Columbia, and gave rise to excit- 
ing debates in that body, which affected the 



whole country profoundly, and did much to 
widen the breach between the Northern and 
Southern States. This agitation continued 
through the whole of Mr. Van Buren's term 
of office. 

Congress Must Not Interfere. 

Early in the session of 1838-39, Mr. Ath- 
erton, of New Hampshire, offered a series of 
resolutions expressing the relations of the 
general government towards the States, and 
declaring the inability of Congress to inter- 
fere with slavery in those States in which it 
already existed, or in the District of Colum- 
bia, or the Territories. These resolutions 
were adopted by the House by decisive 
majorities, and were regarded by Mr. Clay 
and by the leading public men of the country 
as effectually disposing of the troublesome 
question as far as the general government 
was concerned. The resolutions were as 
follows : 

" Resolved, That this government is a govern- 
ment of limited powers, and that by the constitution 
of the United States Congress has no jurisdiction 
whatever over the institution of slavery in the sev- 
eral States of the confederacy." 

The vote upon this resolution stood : 196 

for it, and 6 against it. 

The second resolution was in these words : 

" Resolved, That petitions for the abolition of 
slavery in the District of Columbia and the Terri- 
tories of the United States, and against the removal 
of slaves from one State to another, are a part of a 
plan of operations set on foot to affect the institu- 
tion of slavery in the Southern States, and thus indi- 
rectly to destroy that institution within their limits." 

On this resolution the vote stood : 136 for 
it, and 65 against it. 

The third resolution was in these words : 
" Resolved, That Congress has no right to do that 
indirectly which it cannot do directly ; and that the 
agitation of the subject of slavery in the District of 
Columbia, or the Territories, as a means, and with 
a view, of disturbing or overthrowing that institution 
in the several States, is against the true spirit and 




37 



VIEW OF THE NATIONAL CAPITOL AT WASHINGTON. 



577 



578 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



meaning of the constitution, an infringement of the 
rights of the States affected, and a breach of the 
public faith upon which they entered into the con- 
federacy." 

The vote on this resolution was : 164 in 
favor of it, and 40 against it. 

The fourth of this series was in these 
words : 

" Resolved, The constitution rests on the broad 
principle of equality among the members of this 
confederacy, and that Congress, in the exercise of 
its acknowledged powers, has no right to discrimi- 
nate between the institutions of one portion of the 
States and another, with a view of abolishing the 
one and promoting the other." 

The vote on this resolution was: 174 in 
favor of it, and 24 against it. 

Resolution Against Slavery Agitation. 

The fifth and last of Mr. Atherton's reso- 
lutions was in these words : 

" Resolved, That all attempts on the part of Congress 
to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia, or the 
Territories, or to prohibit the removal of slaves from 
State to State, or to discriminate between the insti- 
tutions of one portion of the confederacy and another, 
with the view aforesaid, are in violation of the con- 
stitution, destructive of the fundamental principle 
on which the union of these States rests, and beyond 
the jurisdiction of Congress ; and that every peti- 
tion, memorial, resolution, proposition, or paper, 
touching or relating in any way, or to any extent 



whatever to slavery, as aforesaid, or the abolition? 
thereof, shall on the presentation thereof, without 
any further action thereon, be laid upon the table, 
without being debated, printed, or referred." 

The vote on the first branch of this reso- 
lution was, 146 in favor, and 52 against it ;: 
on the second branch of the resolution the 
vote stood, 126 for it, and 78 against it. 

As we shall see, this declaration of Con- 
gress was far from quieting the agitation. 
upon this troublesome question. The slavery 
conflict had in reality just begun. 

In the fall of 1840 the Presidential election 
was held. Mr. Van Buren and Vice-Presi- 
dent Johnson were nominated for re-election 
by the Democratic party, and the Whigs 
supported General William Henry Harrison, 
of Ohio, for President, and John Tyler, of 
Virginia, for Vice-President. The financial 
distress of the country had been but slightly 
relieved, and was generally attributed by the 
people to the interference of the government 
with the currency. This feeling made the 
Democratic nominees exceedingly unpop- 
ular, and the political campaign, which was 
one of the most exciting ever conducted in 
this country, resulted in the election ot Har- 
rison and Tyler by overwhelming majorities. 

In 1840 the sixth census showed the popu- 
lation of the United States to be 17,069,45 3 ► 




CHAPTER XXXVI 

The Administrations of William Henry Harrison and 

John Tyler 

An Extra Session of Congress Summoned — Death of President Harrison — ^John Tyler becomes President of the United 
States — Meeting of Congress — The Bankrupt Law — President Tyler Vetoes the Bills to Revive the United States 
Bank— His Quarrel with His Party— The " Tyler Whigs"— The Tariff of 1842— The Treaty of Washington— The 
United States will not Tolerate the Exercise of the Right of Search — Dorr's Rebellion — The Mormons — Invention of 
the Electric Telegraph — Explosion on the " Princeton " — Efforts to Secure the Annexation of Texas — Early History 
ot Texas — The Texan War of Independence — Battle of San Jacinto — Texan Independence Established — Texas Ap- 
plies for Admission into the Union — Opposition to the Measure — Significance of the Vote at the Presidential Election — 
James K. Polk Elected President — Texas Admitted into the Union — Iowa and Florida become States. 



ON THE fourth of March, 1841, 
William Henry Harrison was 
inaugurated President of the 
United States at Washington in 
the presence of an immense concourse of 
citizens from all parts of the Union. He 
was in his sixty-ninth year, and had spent 
forty years of his life in the public service. 
His services during the Indian hostilities 
which preceded the war of 1 812-15, ^'^^ ^^^ 
exploits during that war, have been related. 
He had served as governor of Indiana Ter- 
ritory, and had been both a member of Con- 
gress and a senator of the United States. 

He was a man of pure life and earnest 
character, and the certainty of a change of 
policy in the measures of the federal govern- 
ment had caused the people of the country 
to look forward to his administration with 
hope and confidence. He began by calling 
to seats in his cabinet men of prominence 
and ability. At the head of the cabinet he 
placed Daniel Webster, as secretary of state. 
The President issued a proclamation con- 
vening Congress in special session on the 
thirty-first of May, 1841. He was not 
destined to fulfil the hopes of his friends, 
I however. He was suddenly seized with 



pneumonia, and died on the fourth of April, 
1 841 — just one month after his inaugura- 
tion. 

It was the first time that a president of the 
United States had died in office, and a gloom 
was cast over the nation by the sad event. 
The mourning of the people was sincere, for 
in General Harrison the nation lost a faith- 
ful, upright and able citizen. He had spent 
forty years in prominent public positions, 
and had discharged every duty confided to 
him with ability and integrity, and went to 
his grave a poor man. 

" Brave old Cincinnatus ! he left but his plow." 

Upon the assembling of Congress, that 
body, "out of consideration of his expenses 
in removing to the seat of government, and 
the limited means he had left behind," appro- 
priated the equivalent of one year's presi- 
dential salary — twenty-five thousand dollars 
— to Mrs. Harrison, 

According to the terms of the constitution, 
upon the death of General Harrison, the office 
of president of the United States devolved 
upon the vice-president, John Tyler, of Vir- 
ginia. *Mr. Tyler was not in the city of 
Washington at the time of the death of his 
predecessor, but repaired to that city without 

579 



58o 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



loss of time, upon being notified of the need 
of his presence, and on the sixth of April 
took the oath of office before Judge Cranch, 
chief justice of the District of Columbia. 
Mr, Tyler was in his fifty-second year, and 
had served as governor of Virginia, and as 
representative and senator in Congress from 
that State. On the ninth of April President 
Tyler issued an address to the people of the 
United States, in which there was no indica- 
tion of a departure from the policy announced 
in the inaugural of General Harrison. He 




WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

retained the cabinet ministers of his prede- 
cessor in their respective positions. 

On the thirty-first of May the Twenty- 
seventh Congress convened in extra session. 
It was known as the " Whig Congress," as 
a large majority of its members were of that 
party. Had this party remained united they 
could have controlled the action of Congress 
to suit themselves, but as we shall see, the 
policy of the executive soon divided them. 
The first act of this Congress was to^ repeal 
the sub-treasury bill which had been passed 
in 1840. The effects of the commercial 



crisis had involved thousands of merchants 
in hopeless bankruptcy, and under the old 
laws they had no means of recovering their 
lost position, as they were crushed down by 
their debts. Neither their creditors nor the 
country at large derived any benefit from 
this state of affairs, and Congress at once 
passed a general bankrupt law for the relief 
of persons thus situated. It was highly 
beneficial to the country, and was repealed in 
1843, when the necessity for it had ceased 
to exist. 

Important Veto by President Tyler. 

Efforts were made to revive the Bank 
of the United States, and a bill was passed 
establishing an institution known as the 
" Fiscal Bank of the United States." Mr. 
Tyler, who was a member of the strict con- 
structionist school, now found himself at 
variance with a majority of his party in both 
Houses of Congress. As he did not believe 
that Congress could constitutionally charter 
such an institution, he vetoed this bill. The 
advocates of the measure could not com- 
mand the requisite two-thirds majority for 
the passage of the bill over the president's 
veto, and his action was sustained. Another 
bill was passed by Congress of a similar 
character, establishing " The Fiscal Corpora- 
tion of the United States," but this also was 
vetoed by the president for the same reasons. 
His veto was sustained by Congress in this 
instance also. The vetoes of these measures 
were generally approved by the strict con- 
structionists throughout the Union, without 
regard to party; but they were bitterly de- 
nounced by the majority of the Whigs, who 
charged the president with having violated 
the implied pledges upon which he was 
elected, and with having betrayed his party. 

The Whigs were for the time forgetful of 
the fact that at the time of his nomination 
to the vice-presidency Mr. Tyler was known 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 



S8i 



to be opposed to the Bank of the United 
States. The members of the cabinet, with 
the single exception of the secretary of state, 
resigned their positions in consequence of 
Mr. Tyler's course. Mr. Webster retained his 
position in order to complete the important 
negotiations he was 
at the time conducting 
with England. The 
places of the other 
members of the cabi- 
net were filled by the 
President with pro- 
minent members of 
the strict construc- 
tionist school of the 
Whig party, who sus- 
tained the President. 

The second session 
of the Twenty-seventh 
Congress met in De- 
cember, 1 84 1, and con- 
tinued its sittings until 
August, 1842. It was 
noted as the longest 
session ever held up 
to this tim.e. It found 
the Whig party divid- 
ed, and the opposing 
factions bitterly hostile 
to each other. The 
majority, led by Mr. 
Clay, opposed the 
administration. The 
minority, because of 
their support of the 
President, received 
the name of " Tyler 

Whigs." The principal question agitated 
during this session was the tariff. Accord- 
ing to the compromise act of 1833, the 
duties this year were to be regulated accord- 
ing to a revenue standard. 

The majority in Congress, however, paid 



no regard to the pledge given in this com- 
promise, and a new tariff bill was passed by 
both Houses of Congress, regulating the 
duties on a strongly protective basis, and 
with the avowed object of reviving the pro- 
tective policy. It was vetoed by the Presi- 




JOHN TYLER. 

dent. Another measure of a similar though 
slightly modified character was passed, and 
this was vetoed also. Congress then passed 
the tariff of 1842, in which the principles of 
the compromise of 1833 were altogether set 
aside, and the duties made strictly protective. 



582 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



It required a sharp struggle in Congress to 
secure the passage of this bill, which received 
the executive signature on the thirtieth of 



August. 

Settlement of Disputes. 

In the meantime Mr. Webster succeeded 
in bringing the negotiations with Great Bri- 
tain to a successful close. These negotia- 
tions had grown out of the revolutionary 
disturbances in Canada, and the controversy 
respecting the northeast boundary of the 
United States during the administration of 
Mr. Van Buren, which we have related. 
The boundary question was of older origin 
than the former controversy, and had been 
pending between the United States and Eng- 
land for fifty years. Mr. Webster, imme- 
diately upon his entrance upon the office of 
secretary of state, had, with the approval of 
the President, signified the desire of this 
country to terminate the controversy, and 
Lord Ashburton had been sent by the British 
government as special minister to the United 
States, with full power to settle all the con- 
troversies between the two countries. The 
treaty of Washington was concluded in 1842, 
and was accepted by both countries as a 
settlement of the questions at issue between 
them. 

By the terms of this treaty the northeastern 
boundary was arranged as it exists at present ; 
the United States obtained the free naviga- 
tion of the St. John's river to the sea ; and 
gained possession of the important military 
position of Rouse's Point, at the outlet 
of Lake Champlain. The two countries 
mutually agreed to surrender upon proper 
demand all fugitives from justice escaping 
from the territory of one into that of the 
other ; and to maintain a certain number of 
ships of war on the African coast to aid in 
suppressing the slave trade. 

When the treaty was completed two sub- 



jects presented themselves to the negotiators. 
One of these was the right claimed by Great 
Britain for her cruisers to stop and if neces- 
sary to search merchant vessels belonging 
to other nations on the high seas ; the other 
was the impressment of seamen from Amer- 
ican merchant vessels by British cruisers. 
Mr. Webster, in a paper of great ability, ad- 
dressed to the American minister at London, 
but intended for the British foreign minister, 
denied the right of search, and sustained his 
position by arguments that were simply irre- 
futable. 

In a letter to Lord Ashburton Mr. Web- 
ster refused to consider the impressment 
question, as the United States could in no 
case admit such a claim on the part of Great 
Britain, and declared that every case of im- 
pressment would be considered an act of 
hostility and would be repelled as such. He 
declared as the unalterable policy of this 
country the doctrine that " Every merchant 
vessel on the high seas is rightfully con- 
sidered as a part of the territory to which it 
belongs ; " that " in every regularly docu- 
mented American merchant vessel the crew 
who navigate it will find their protection in 
the flag which is over them ; " and that " the 
American government, then, is prepared to 
say that the practice of impressing seamen 
from American vessels cannot hereafter be 
allowed to take place." The tone of the 
secretary of state, though firm, was courteous 
and conciliatory, and the negotiations were 
conducted in the same spirit of conciliation 
by the British minister. 

Insurrection in Rhode Island. 

With this treaty the United States for- 
mally took their position as one of the great 
powers of the world. The negotiations being 
completed, Mr. Webster resigned his place 
in the cabinet in May, 1843, and was suc- 
ceeded by Abel P. Upshur, of Virginia. 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 



583 



In 1842 an insurrection broke out in the 
State of Rhode Island, which required the 
intervention of the United States for its sup- 
pression. It is known as the Dorr rebelHon. 
The old charter of the colony, granted by 
Charles II., in 1663, had up to this time 
served as the constitution of the State. It 
was found to be unsuited to the requirements 
of the people in their more prosperous condi- 
tion, and an effort was made to change it. 
Two parties were formed, one in favor of the 
proposed changes, the other opposed to them. 
Each party nominated its candidate for the 
office of governor and elected him. The 
" suffi-age party," which favored the changes, 
elected Thomas W. Dorr governor, took up 
arms, and attacked the State arsenal for the 
purpose of arming their followers. They were 
repulsed by the State militia assisted by the 
United States troops. Dorr was arrested, 
tried for treason, and sentenced to imprison- 
ment for life. He was released in 1845. 
The opponents of the " suffrage party " 
deemed it best to yield to the popular wish, 
however, and in November, 1842, a new 
constitution, embracing the desired changes, 
was adopted by the legislature. 

Mormons Found a City. 

About the same time a series of disturb- 
ances occurred in the State of Illinois, which 
were but the forerunners of a more serious 
embarrassment to the general government at 
a later period. A new religious sect had 
sprung up some years before in the western 
part of New York. They called themselves 
Mormons, and were founded by a cunning 
imposter named Joseph Smith, who professed 
to have received a new revelation from God, 
written on plates of gold. Among the arti- 
cles of the Mormon faith is one which teaches 
the doctrine of a plurality of wives. Feeling 
that the east was not favorable to their 
growth, the Mormons at an early day 



removed to the west. They settled at first 
in Missouri, but so exasperated the people 



So 



of that State by their conduct, at they were 
soon driven out of Missouri. 



ri;"'-*'% 




ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 



585 



Crossing the Mississippi, they settled in 
IlHnois, and founded a city which they called 
Nauvoo, and built a temple. Their numbers 
increased rapidly from emigration from 
nearly every country in Europe. The new- 
comers were mainly persons of low position 
and without education. Conscious of their 
strength they raised troops, and set the 
authority of the State of Illinois at defiance. 
The State endeavored to reduce them to 
obedience, and their conduct, as in Missouri, 



westward, and after a long and painful jour- 
ney across the plains, reached the valley of 
Salt Lake, and established a settlement 
there. Out of this settlement grew the Ter- 
ritory of Utah. 

In 1844 occurred one of the most im- 
portant events in the history of the world. 
In 1832 Samuel F. B. Morse, a native of 
Massachusetts, invented the electric tele- 
graph. He spent some years in perfecting 
his invention, and in 1 838 applied to Congress 





THE MORMON HAND-CART COMPANY CROSSING THE PLAINS. 



turned the people against them. Several 
conflicts ensued between the Mormons and 
the authorities. In one of these Joe Smith, 
the prophet, and his brother were seized and 
put in jail, and while lying there were 
murdered by the mob in July, 1844. This 
brought matters to a crisis, and the people 
of Illinois determined to drive the Mormons 
across the Mississippi. Nauvoo was attacked 
in 1845, and the AFormons were compelled to 
leave the State. In 1846 they bent their steps 



for a small appropriation to assist him in 
building a line of wire to demonstrate the 
usefulness of his discovery. He was obliged 
to wait five years for a favorable answer, and 
it was not until he had given up all hope of 
receiving aid from Congress that that body, 
on the last day of the session of 1843, appro- 
priated the sum of thirty thousand dollars to 
construct a telegraph line between Washing- 
ton City and Baltimore, a distance of forty 
miles. The line v/as completed in 1844, and 



586 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



was successfully operated by Professor Morse. 
This was the first line established in the 
world. In the thirty-one years which have 
elapsed since then the use of the telegraph 
has become general throughout the civilized 
world, and in the United States alone over 
sixty thousand miles of telegraph lines are 
in operation at the present time. 

On the twenty-eighth of February, 1 844, 
the President, accompanied by the members 



spectators. This sad event was greatly 
lamented throughout the country. Judge 
Upshur was succeeded as secretary of state 
by John C Calhoun, then a senator from 
South Carolina. 

The last years of Mr. Tyler's administra- 
tion were devoted to the effort to secure the 
annexation of the republic of Texas to the 
United States. The territory embraced 
within the limits of Texas constituted a part 




MORMON TABERNACLE AT SALT LAKE, UTAH. 



of his cabinet and a number of distinguished 
•citizens, officers of the army and navy, and 
ladies, went on board the new steam frigate 
■" Princeton," lying in the Potomac, to wit- 
ness the experimental firings of a new cannon 
■of unusual size on board that ship, to which 
the name of " The Peacemaker " had been 
given. At one of the discharges the gun 
exploded, causing the instant death of 
Messrs. Upshur and Gilmer, the secretaries 
• of state and of the navy, and several other 



of the Spanish-American possessions, and 
was generally regarded as a part of Mexico. 
During the last century a number of forts 
had been erected in Texas by the Spaniards 
as a means of holding the province against 
the French, and each fort was made a mis- 
sionary station, from which efforts were 
made to convert the Indians, but without 
success. The United States were, in the 
early part of the present century, inclined to 
regard Texas as rightfully a part of the 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 



587 



"Louisiana purchase, but this claim was 
waived when Florida was purchased. 

Early in the present century pioneers from 
the United States began to find their way to 
Texas which was then a wild country, in- 
habited only by roving Indians and the gar- 
risons of the few Spanish forts within its 
limits. One of these emigrants, Moses Austin, 
of Durham, Connecticut, conceived the plan 
of colonizing Texas with settlers from the 
United States. 

For this purpose he obtained from the 
Spanish government, in 1820, the grant of 
an extensive tract of land ; but before he 
could put his plans in execution he died. 
His son, Stephen F. Austin, inherited the 
rights of his father under this grant, and 
went to Texas with a number of emigrants 
from this country, and explored that region 
for the purpose of locating his grant. He 
selected as the most desirable site for his 
colony the country between the Brazos and 
Colorado rivers, and founded a city, which 
he named Austin, in honor of the originator 
of the colony, to whom Texas owes its 
existence as an American commonwealth. 
Having seen the settlers established in their 
new homes, Mr. Austin returned to the 
United States to collect other emigrants for 
his colony. 

During his absence Mexico and the other 
Spanish provinces rose in revolt against 
Spain, and succeeded in establishing their in- 
dependence. Texas, being regarded as a part 
of the Mexican territory, shared the fortunes 
of that country. Upon his return to Texas, 
Austin, in consideration of the altered state of 
affairs, went to the city of Mexico and obtained 
from the Mexican government a confirma- 
tion of the grant made to his father. Such 
a confirmation was necessary in order to 
enable him to give the settlers valid titles to 
the lands of his colony. Mexico at first 
exercised but a nominal authority over the 



new settlements, and the colonists were 
allowed to live under their own laws, subject 
to the rules drawn up by Austin. In order 
to encourage settlements in Texas, the Mexi- 
can Congress on the second of May, 1824, 
enacted the following law, declaring, " That 
Texas is to be annexed to the Mexican prov- 
ince of Cohahuila, until it is of sufficient 
importance to form a separate State, when it 
is to become an independent State of the 
Mexican republic, equal to the other States 
of which the same is composed, free, sover- 




PROFESSOR MORSE. 

eign, and independent in whatever exclu- 
sively relates to its internal government and 
administration." 

Encouraged by this decree, large num- 
bers of Americans emigrated to Texas, and 
to these were added emigrants from all the 
countries of Europe. The population grew 
rapidly, new towns sprang up, and Austin's 
colony prospered in a marked degree, until 
1830, when Bustamente having made himself 
by violence and intrigue president of the 
so-called Mexican republic, prohibited the 



588 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



emigration of foreigners to the Mexican 
territory, and issued a number of decrees 
very oppressive to the people, and in viola- 
tion of the constitution of 1824. In order 
to enforce these measures in Texas, he occu- 
pied that province with his troops, and placed 
Texas under military rule. The Texans 
resented this interference with their rights, 
and finally compelled the Mexican troops to 
withdraw from the province. In 1832 




A VILLAGE IN TEXAS. 

another revolution in Mexico drove Busta- 
mente from power, and placed Santa Anna 
at the head of affairs as president or dictator. 
Texas took no part in the disturbances of 
Mexico, but after the accession of Santa 
Anna to power, formed a constitution, and 
applied for admission into the Mexican 
republic as a State, in accordance with the 
constitution of 1824, and the act of the 
Mexican Congress which we have quoted. 



Stephen F. Austin was sent to the city of 
Mexico to present the petition of Texas for 
this purpose. He was refused an answer 
to this petition for over a year, and at last 
wrote to the authorities of Texas, advising 
them to organize a State government without 
waiting for the action of the Mexican Con- 
gress. 

For this recommendation, which the Mexi- 
can government regarded as treasonable, 
Santa Anna caused the arrest 
of Austin, and kept him in 
prison for over a year. Texas 
now began to manifest the 
most determined opposition 
to the usurpation of Santa 
Anna, and measures were 
taken to maintain the rights 
of the province under the 
constitution of 1824. Troops 
were organized, and prepara- 
tions made to resist the force 
which it was certain Mexico' 
would send against them. 

Santa Anna did not allow 
them to remain long in sus- 
pense, but at once despatched 
a force under General Cos, tO' 
disarm the Texans. On the 
second of October, 1835, Cos 
attacked the town of Gon- 
zalez, which was held by a 
Texan force, but was repulsed 
with heavy loss. A week later,, 
on the ninth of October, the Texans captured 
the town of Goliad, and a little later gained 
possession of the mission house of the 
Alamo. Both places were garrisoned, and 
the Texan army, which was under the com- 
mand of Austin, in the course of a few 
months succeeded in driving the Mexicans 
out of Texas. 

On the twelfth of November, 1835, a con- 
vention of the people of Texas met at the 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 



589 



city of Austin, and organized a regular State 
government. Prominent among the members 
was General Sam Houston, a settler from the 
United States. Soon after the meeting of the 
convention General Austin resigned the com- 
mand of the army, and was sent to the 
United States as the commissioner of that 
State to this government, and was succeeded 
as commander-in-chief by General Sam 
Houston. Henry Smith was elected gov- 
ernor of Texas by the people. 

Orders to Shoot Prisoners. 

As soon as Santa Anna learned that his 
troops had been driven out of Texas, and 
that the Texans had set up a State govern- 
ment, he set out for that country with an 
army of seventy-five hundred men. He 
issued orders to his troops to shoot every 
prisoner taken, and intended to make the 
struggle a war of extermination. He arrived 
before the Alamo late in February, 1836. 
This fort was very strong, and was held by 
a force of one hundred and forty Texans 
under Colonel Travis. It was besieged by 
the whole Mexican army, and was subjected 
to a bombardment of eleven days. At last, 
on the sixth of March, the garrison being 
worn out with fatigue, the fort was carried 
by assault, and the whole garrison was put 
to the sword. Among the heroes who fell 
at the Texan Thermopylae was the eccentric 
but chivalrous Colonel Davy Crockett of 
Tennessee, who had generously come to aid 
the Texans in their struggle for liberty. The 
capture of the Alamo cost the Mexicans a 
loss of sixteen hundred men, or over eleven 
men for every one of its defenders. 

On the 17th of March, 1836, the conven- 
tion adopted a constitution for an independ- 
ent republic, and formally proclaimed the 
independence of Texas. David G, Burnett 
was elected president of the republic. 

The fort at Goliad was held by a force of 



three hundred and thirty Texans, under 
Colonel Fanning, a native of Georgia. On 
the twenty-seventh of March it was attacked 
by the Mexican army. The garrison main- 
tained a gallant defence, but their resources 
being exhausted, and the Mexicans being 
reinforced during the night, Fanning decided 
to surrender his force, if he could obtain 
honorable terms. He proposed to Santa 




SANTA ANNA. 

Anna to lay down his arms and surrender 
the post on condition that he and his men 
should be allowed and assisted to return to 
the United States. The proposition was 
accepted by Santa Anna, and the terms of 
the surrender were formally drawn up and 
were signed by each commander. As soon as 
the surrender was made, however, and the 
arms of the Texans were delivered, Santa 



590 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



Anna, in base violation of his pledge, caused 
Fanning and the survivors of the garrison, 
to the number of three hundred men, to be 
put to death. 

The massacres of the Alamo and Goliad, 
and the steady advance of the Mexican army 
under Santa Anna caused a feeling of pro- 
found alarm throughout the new republic. 
The government was removed temporarily 
to Galveston, and General Houston retreated 




GENERAL HOUSTON. 

behind the San Jacinto. Santa Anna pur- 
sued the Texan forces, and at length came 
up with them on the banks of that stream. 
Houston had but seven hundred and fifty 
men with him, and these were imperfectly 
armed and without discipline. 

With this force he surprised the Mexican 
camp, on the twenty-first of April, and routed 
the Mexican army, inflicting upon it a loss 
of over six hundred killed, and taking more 
than eight hundred prisoners. Santa Anna 



himself was among the prisoners. Houston 
at once entered into negotiations with him 
for the withdrawal of the Mexican forces 
from Texas. This was done at once, and 
the independence of Texas was achieved. 
Santa Anna also recognized the independ- 
ence of the new republic, but the Mexican 
Congress refused to confirm this act. 

Houston was now the idol of the Texan 
people as the deliverer of their country from 
the hated Mexicans. At the next gen- 
eral election he was chosen President of 
the republic, and was inaugurated on the 
twenty-second of October, 1 836. General 
Mirabeau B. Lamar was the third Presi- 
dent of the republic of Texas, and entered 
upon his office in 1838. He was suc- 
ceeded in 1844 by Anson Jones, the 
fourth President. The territory of the 
republic was sufficiently large to make 
five States the size of New York, and 
its climate and soil were among the most 
delightful and fertile in the world. It 
contained a population of about twO' 
hundred thousand, and was increasing 
rapidly in inhabitants and in prosperity. 
On the third of March, 1837, the inde- 
pendence of the republic of Texas was 
acknowledged by the United States, and 
in 1839 by France and England. Being^ 
young and feeble, and being settled al- 
most entirely by Americans, the people 
of Texas at an early day came to the 
conclusion that their best interests required 
them to seek a union with the United States, 
and as early as August, 1837, a proposition 
was submitted to Mr. Van Buren looking to 
such a union. It was declined by him, but 
the question was taken up by the press and 
people of the Union, and was discussed with 
the greatest interest and activity. 

The south was unanimously in favor of 
the annexation of Texas, as it was a region 
in which slave labor would be particularly 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF HARRISON AND TYLER. 



59^^ 



profitable ; and a strong party in the north 
opposed the annexation for the reason that it 
would inevitably extend the area of slavery. 
An additional argument against annexation 
was that it would involve a war with Mexico, 
which had never acknowledged the inde- 
pendence of Texas. 

In April, 1844, Texas formally applied for 
admission into the United States, and a 



ing issues of the campaign. Its candidates 
were James K. Polk, of Tennessee, and 
George M. Dallas, of Pennsylvania. The 
Whig party supported Henry Clay, of Ken- 
tucky, and Theodore Frelinghuysen, of New 
Jersey, and opposed the annexation of 
Texas. 

During this campaign, which was one of 
unusual excitement, the Anti-slavery party 




GENERAL POST OFFICE, WASHINGTON. 



treaty for that purpose was negotiated with 
her by the government of this country. It 
was rejected by the Senate. 

In the fall of 1844 the Presidential election 
took place. The leading political question 
of the day was the annexation of Texas. It 
was advocated by the administration of 
President Tyler and by the Democratic 
party. This party also made the claim of 
the United States to Oresron one of the lead- 



made its appearance for the first time as a 
distinct political organization, and nominated 
James G. Birney as its candidate for the 
Presidency. 

The result of the campaign was a decisive 
victory for the Democrats. This success 
was generally regarded as an emphatic 
expression of the popular will respecting 
the Texas and Oregon questions. Mr. 
Birney did not receive a single electoral 



592 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



vote, and of the popular vote only sixty-four 
thousand six hundred and fifty-three ballots 
were cast for him. 

When Congress met in December, 1844, 
the efforts for the annexation of Texas were 
renewed. A proposition was made to receive 
Texas into the Union by a joint resolution 
of Congress. A bill for this purpose passed 
the House of Representatives, but the Senate 
added an amendment appointing commis- 
sioners to negotiate with Mexico for the 
annexation of Texas, which she still claimed 
as a part of her territory. The President 
was authorized by a clause in these resolu- 
tions to adopt either the House or the Senate 
plan of annexation, and on the second of 
March, 1845, the resolutions were adopted. 
Senator Benton, of Missouri, the author of 
the Senate plan, was of the opinion that the 
matter would be left to Mr. Polk, the Presi- 
dent-elect, to be conducted by him ; and that 
gentleman had expressed his intention to 
carry out the Senate plan, as he hoped an 
amicable arrangement could be made with 
Mexico. Mr. Tyler, however, determined 
not to leave the annexation of Texas to his 
successor, and at once adopted the plan 
proposed in the House resolutions, and on the 
night of Sunday, March 3d, a messenger 
was despatched with all speed to Texas to 
lay the proposition before the authorities of 
that State. It was accepted by them, and 



on the fourth of July, 1845, Texas became 
one of the United States. 

The area thus added to the territory of 
the Union comprised two hundred and 
thirty-seven thousand five hundred and four 
square miles. It was provided by the act of 
admission that four additional States might 
be formed out of the territory of Texas, 
when the population should increase to an 
extent which should make such a step desir- 
able. Those States lying north of the Mis- 
souri Compromise line — 36° 30' north lati- 
tude — were to be free States ; those south of 
that line were to be free or slaveholding, " as 
the people of each State asking admission 
may desire." To Texas was reserved the 
right to refuse to allow the division of her 
territory. 

On the third of March, 1845, the President 
approved an act of Congress admitting the 
Territories of Iowa and Florida into the 
Union as States. 

No President has ever been more unpop- 
ular during his administration than Mr. 
Tyler. His administration speaks for itself 
however, and bears out the truth of his mem- 
orable words : " I appeal from the vituper- 
ation of the present day to the pen of impar- 
tial history, in the full confidence that neither 
my motives nor my acts will bear the inter- 
pretation which has, for sinister purposes, 
been placed upon them." 



CHAPTER XXXVII 



The Administration of James K. Polk — The War 

With Mexico. 



The Oregon Question — Position of President Polk respecting it — The Question Settled — Treaty for Settlement of Claims 
against Mexico — Mexico Resents the Annexation of Texas — General Taylor Ordered to Texas — He Advances to the 
Rio Grande — Battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma — The War with Mexico Begun — Invasion of Mexico — 
Occupation of Matamoras — Action of the United States Government — Taylor Advances into the Interior — The Storm- 
ing and Capture of Monterey — The Armistice — Return of Santa Anna to Mexico — President Polk Duped — Santa 
Anna Seizes the Mexican Government — General Wool Joins General Taylor — Troops Taken from Taylor's Army — 
Advance of the Mexicans — Battle of Buena Vista — Conquest of California by Fremont and Stockton — Occupation of 
Santa Fe — New Mexico Conquered — Doniphan's March — Occupation of Chihuahua — Sailing of Scott's Expedition — 
Reduction of Vera Cruz — Santa Anna Collects a New Array — Battle of Cerro Gordo — Occupation of Puebla by 
Scott — Trouble with Mr. Trist — Vigorous Measures of Santa Anna — Scott Advances upon the City of Mexico — EI 
Penon Turned — Battles of Contreras and Churubusco — Capture of Molino del Rey — Storming of Chapultepec — 
Capture of the City of Mexico — Siege of Puebla Raised — Flight of Santa Anna — Treaty of Peace Negotiated — Close 
of the War — Acquisition of California and New Mexico — Discovery of Gold in California — Rapid Emigration to the 
Pacific — Death of John Quincy Adams — The Wilmot Proviso — Revival of the Slavery Question — General Taylor 
Elected President. 



THE inauguration of James K. Polk, 
as President of the United States, 
took place on the fourth of March, 
1845. He had served the country 
as governor of the State of Tennessee, and 
for fourteen years had been a member of the 
House of Representatives in Congress from 
that State, and had been several times chosen 
speaker of that body. His cabinet was 
selected from the first men of his party. 
James Buchanan was secretary of state ; 
Robert J. Walker was secretary of the treas- 
ury ; William L. Marcy, secretary of war, 
and George Bancroft, the historian, secretary 
of the navy. 

Two important questions presented them- 
selves to the new administration for settle- 
ment: the troubles with Mexico growing out 
of the annexation of Texas, and the arrange- 
ment of the northwestern boundary of the 
United States. 

The question of the northwestern bound- 
ary had been left unsettled by the treaty of 

38 



Washington in 1842. Great Britain was 
anxious to arrange the matter, and late in the 
year 1842 Mr. Fox, the British minister at 
Washington, proposed to Mr. Webster, then 
secretary of state, to open negotiations. The 
British proposition was accepted, but nothing 
further was done until February, 1844, when 
Sir Richard Packenham, the British minister 
at Washington, proposed to take up the 
question of the Oregon boundary and settle 
it. Mr. Upshur, the secretary of state, 
accepted the offer, but was killed a few days 
later by the explosion on board tne " Prince- 
ton." Six months later, Sir Richard Pack- 
enham renewed the proposal to Mr. Calhoun, 
who had become secretary of state, and nego- 
tiations were entered upon in earnest. 

The territory of Oregon lay between the 
forty-second and fifty-fourth parallels of north 
latitude, and extended from the Rocky moun- 
tains on the east to the Pacific ocean on the 
west. This region was originally claimed 
by Spain, by whose subjects it was first 

593 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



594 

discovered. At the cession of Florida, Spain 
ceded to the United States all her territory- 
north of the forty-second parallel of north 
latitude, from the headwaters of the Arkan- 
sas to the Pacific. Mexico, upon achieving 
her independence, had acknowledged by a 
treaty with the United States the validity of 
this boundary. The line of fifty-four degrees 
forty minutes north latitude was established 
by treaty between the United States, Great 
Britain and Russia as the southern boundary 
of the Russian possessions in America. 




JAMES K. POLK. 

The United States claimed the entire re- 
gion of Oregon in virtue of the cession of 
Spain in the Florida treaty ; the discoveries 
of Captain Gray of Boston, who circumnavi- 
gated the globe, and in 1792 discovered to a 
certain extent and explored the Columbia 
river ; the explorations of Lewis and Clarke 
in 1805 and 1806 of the southern main 
branch of the Columbia, and of the river 
itself from the mouth of that branch to the 
sea ; and the settlement of Astoria, planted 
at the mouth of the Columbia in 181 1 by 
John Jacob Astor of New York. Oregon 



was also claimed by England, who also rested 
her pretensions on discovery, and on the set- 
tlement made by the Northwest Company 
on Eraser's river in 1806, and on another 
near the head waters of the north branch of 
the Columbia. 

** All of Oregon, or None." 

In 18 1 8 the United States and Great 
Britain had agreed upon the forty-ninth 
degree of north latitude, as the boundary 
between the United States and British Amer- 
ica from the Lake of the Woods to the sum- 
mit of the Rocky mountains. Mr. Calhoun 
now opened the negotiations by proposing 
to continue this line to the Pacific. The 
British minister would not consent to this, 
but proposed to extend the forty-ninth paral- 
lel from the mountains to the north branch 
of the Columbia, and then to make the boun- 
dary follow that stream from this point of 
intersection to the sea. Mr. Calhoun at once 
declined to accept this boundary, and the 
further consideration of the subject was post- 
poned until Packenham could receive addi- 
tional instructions from his government. 

During the Presidential campaign of 1844 
the Democratic party adopted as its watch- 
word, " all of Oregon or none," and the ex- 
citement upon the question ran high. The 
election of Mr. Polk showed that the Ameri- 
can people were resolved to insist upon their 
claim to Oregon, and when the new President 
in his inaugural address took the bold ground 
that the American title to " Oregon terri- 
tory " " was dear and indisputable," and 
declared his intention to maintain it at the 
cost of war with England, the matter assumed 
a serious aspect, and for a while it seemed 
that party passion would involve the two 
countries in hostilities. President Polk, upon 
a calmer consideration of the subject, caused 
the secretary of state to reopen the negotia- 
tions by proposing to Great Britain the forty- 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



595 



ninth parallel of latitude as a boundary. The 
British minister declined the proposition, and 
the matter was dropped. 

According to the treaties of l8i8 and 
1828, the joint occupation of Oregon could 
be terminated by either party by giving the 
other twelve months' notice. The President 
now proposed to give the required notice, 
which was done by a resolution of Congress. 



British ministry decided at length to reopen 
negotiations, and Sir Richard Packenham 
shortly after communicated to Mr. Buchanan 
the willingness of his government to accept 
the forty-ninth parallel as a boundary. 

The time at which the joint occupation would 
terminate was rapidly drawing to a close, and 
the President was anxious to settle the mat- 
ter, but at the same time was not willing to 




A BASIN ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER, OREGON AND MOUNTAIN-PEAK IN THE DISTANCE. 



This put an end to the old arrangement, and 
compelled the two countries to make a new 
settlement of the difficulty ; and this was the 
object of the President in terminating the 
joint occupation. 

The subject was brought to the notice of 
the British Parliament by Sir Robert Peel 
who expressed his regret that the last offer 
of the United States had been declined. The 



assume the responsibility of accepting a 
boundary which fell so far short of the 
popular expectations. At the suggestion of 
Senator Benton, of Missouri, he asked the 
advice of the Senate as to the propriety of 
accepting the British offer, and pledged him- 
self to be guided by its decision. The Senate 
advised him to accept it, and when the treaty 
was sent to it, ratified it after a warm debate 



596 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



extending over two days. Thus the matter 
was brought to a close. 

By the treaty, which was concluded in 
1846, the forty-ninth parallel of north lati- 
tude was made the boundary between the 
United States and the British possessions, 
from the summit of the Rocky Mountains 
to the middle of the channel between Van- 
couver's Island and the mainland, and thence 
southerly through the middle of the Straits 
of San Juan de Fuca to the Pacific. The 
navigation of the Columbia river and its main 
northern branch was made free to both 
parties. 

Trouble with Mexico. 

In the meantime the Mexican difficulty 
had been found much harder of settlement. 
Mexico had never acknowledged the inde- 
pendence of Texas, and since the defeat at 
San Jacinto had repeatedly threatened to 
restore her authority over the Texans by force 
of arms. She warmly resented the annexa- 
tion of Texas by the United States, and a few 
days after that event was completed, General 
Almonte, the Mexican minister at Washing- 
ton, entered a formal protest against the 
course of the United States, demanded his 
passports and left the country. 

Some years before this a number of 
American ships trading with Mexican ports 
had been seized and plundered by the Mex- 
ican authorities, who also confiscated the 
property of a number of American residents 
in that country. The sufferers by these 
outrages appealed for redress to the govern- 
ment of the United States, which had repeat- 
edly tried to negotiate with Mexico for the 
collection of these claims, which amounted 
to six millions of dollars. Mexico made 
several promises of settlement, but failed to 
comply with them. In 1840, however, a new 
treaty was made between that country and 
the United States, and Mexico pledged her- 



self to pay the American claims in twenty 
annual instalments of three hundred thousand 
dollars each. Three of these instalments 
had been paid at the time of the annexation 
of Texas ; but Mexico now refused to make 
any further payment. 

Troops Sent to Texas. 

Mexico claimed that the limits of Texas 
properly ended at the Neuces river, while 
the Texans insisted that their boundary was 
the Rio Grande. Thus the region between 
these two rivers became a debatable land, 
claimed by both parties, and a source of 
great and immediate danger. It was evident 
that Mexico was about to occupy this region 
with her troops, and the legislature of Texas, 
alarmed by the threatening attitude of that 
country, called upon the United States gov- 
ernment to protect its territory. The Presi- 
dent at once sent General Zachary Taylor^ 
with a force of fifteen hundred regular troops, 
called the "army of occupation," to "take 
position in the country between the Neuces 
and the Rio Grande, and to repel any inva- 
sion of the Texan territory." 

General Taylor accordingly took position 
at Corpus Christi, at the mouth of the 
Neuces, in September, 1845, and remained 
there until the spring of 1846. At the same 
time a squadron of war vessels under Com- 
modore Conner was despatched to the Gulf 
to cooperate with General Taylor. Both of 
these officers " were ordered to commit no 
act of hostility against Mexico unless she 
declared war, or was herself the aggressor 
by striking the first blow." 

At the commencement of the dispute 
between the two countries, Herrera was 
President of Mexico. Although diplomatic 
communications had ceased between the 
United States and Mexico, he was anxious 
to settle the quarrel by negotiation, but at 
the Presidential election held about this time 



ADMINISTRATION 

Herrera was defeated, and Paredes, who was 
bitterly hostile to the United States, was 
chosen President of the Mexican republic. 
Paredes openly avowed his determination to 
drive the Americans beyond the Neuces. 

In February, 1846, General Taylor was 
ordered by President Polk to advance from 
the Neuces to a point on the Rio Grande, 
opposite the Mexican town of Matamoras, 
and establish there a fortified post, in order 
to check the Mexican forces which were 
assembling there in large numbers for the 
purpose of invading Texas. Taylor at once 
set out, and leaving the greater part of his 
stores at Point Isabel, on the Gulf, advanced 
to the Rio Grande, and built a fort and 
established a camp opposite and within 
cannon shot of Matamoras. General Am- 
pudia, commanding the Mexican forces at 
Matamoras, immediately notified General 
Taylor that this was an act of war upon 
Mexican soil, and demanded that he should 
"break up his camp and retire beyond the 
Neuces " within twenty-four hours. 

First Blood Shed. 

Taylor replied that he was acting in 
accordance with the orders of his govern- 
ment, which was alone responsible for his 
conduct, and that he should maintain the 
position he had chosen. He pushed forward 
the work on his fortificafions with energy, 
and kept a close watch upon the Mexicans. 
Neither commander was willing to take the 
responsibility of beginning the war, and Am- 
pudia, notwithstanding his threat, remained 
inactive. His course did not satisfy his gov- 
ment, and he was removed and General 
Arista appointed in his place. Arista at 
once began hostilities by interposing detach- 
ments of his arniv between Taylor's iorce 
and his depot of supplies at Point Isabel. 
On the twenty-sixth of April Taylor sent a 
party of si.xty dragoons under Captain 



OF JAMES K. POLK. 597 

Thornton to reconnoitre the Mexican lines. 
The dragoons were surprised with a loss of 
sixteen killed. The remainder were made 
prisoners, and Thornton alone escaped. This 
was the first blood shed in the war with 
Mexico, the beginning of the struggle. 

Gallant Major Brown. 

A day or two later, being informed by 
Captain Walker, who, with his Texan 
Rangers was guarding the line of communi- 
cation with Point Isabel, that the Mexicans 
were threatening the latter place in heavy 
force. General Taylor left Major Brown with 
three hundred men to hold the fort, and 
marched to Point Isabel to relieve that place. 
He agreed with Major Brown that if the fort 
should be attacked or hard pressed, the 
latter should notify him of his danger by 
firing heavy signal guns at certain intervals. 
He reached Point Isabel, twenty miles dis- 
tant, on the second of May without meeting 
any opposition on the march. 

General Arista, attributing Taylor's with- 
drawal to fear, determined to capture the 
fortification on the opposite side of the 
river. On the third of May he opened fire 
upon it from a heavy battery at Matamoras, 
and sent a large force across the Rio Grande, 
which took position in the rear of the fort 
and intrenched themselves there. In the 
face of this double attack the little garrison 
defended themselves bravely, but at length 
Major Brown fell mortally wounded. The 
command devolved upon Captain Hawkins, 
who now felt himself justified in warning 
Taylor of his danger, and began to fire the 
signal guns agreed upon. 

Taylor was joined at Point Isabel by a 
small detachment, and his force was increased 
to twenty-three hundred men. He listened 
anxiously for the booming of the signal guns 
from the fort on the Rio Grande, and at 
length they were heard. He knew that the 



598 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



need of assistance must be great, as the little 
band in the fort had held out so long with- 
out calling for help, and he at once set out 
to join them. He left Point Isabel on the 
seventh of May, taking with him a heavy- 
supply train. The steady firing of the sig- 
nal guns from Fort Brown (for so the work 
was afterwards named in honor of its gallant 
commander) urged the army to its greatest 
exertions. 



Ringgold's light battery on the right, Dun- 
can's battery on the left, and a battery of 
eighteen-pounders in the centre. The 
artillery was thrown well in front of the 
infantry, and the order was given to advance. 
The Mexicans at once opened fire with their 
batteries, but the distance was too great to 
accomplish anything. The American bat- 
teries did not reply until they had gotten 
within easy range, when they opened a fire 




BATTLE OF PALO ALTO. 



On the eighth of May the Mexican army, 
six thousand strong, was discovered holding 
a strong position in front of a chaparral, near 
the small stream called the Palo Alto, in- 
tending to dispute the advance of the Ameri- 
cans, Taylor promptly mad^^ his disposi- 
tions to attack them. His troops were 
ordered to drink from the little stream and 
to fill their canteens. The train was closed 
up, and the line was formed with Major 



the accuracy and rapidity of which astonished 
the Mexicans. 

Their lines were broken and they fell back, 
and the Americans advanced steadily through 
the chaparral, which had been set on fire by 
the discharge of cannon, until a new position 
within close range was reached. Paying no 
attention to the Mexican artillery, the 
American guns directed their fire upon the 
enemy's infantry and cavalry, and broke 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



599 



them again and again. The battle lasted 
five hours and ceased at nightfall. It was 
fought entirely by the artillery of the two 
armies, and was won by the superior hand- 
ling and precision of the American guns. 

The loss of the Mexicans was four hun- 
dred killed and wounded ; that of the 
Americans nine killed and forty-four 
wounded. Early in the battle Major Ring- 
gold was mortally wounded and died a little 



occupying a much stronger position than 
they had held at Palo Alto. Their line was 
formed behind a ravine, called Resaca de la 
Palma, or the Dry River of Palms. Their 
flanks were protected by the thick chaparral, 
and their artillery was thrown forward beyond 
the ravine and protected by an intrenchment, 
and swept the road by which the Americans 
must advance. During the night fresh troops 
had joined the Mexican army, and had 




MAJOR RINGGOLD MORTALLY WOUNDED. 



later. He was regarded as one of the most 
gifted officers of the army, and to him was 
chiefly due the precision and rapidity of 
movement acquired by the " flying artil- 
lery" of the American army, which were so 
successfully tested during this war. 

The American army encamped on the 
battle-field, and the next morning, May 9th, 
as the Mexicans had retreated, leaving their 
dead unburied, resumed its advance. In the 
afternoon the Mexicans were discovered 



increased their force to seven thousand 
men. 

Taylor formed his line with his artillery 
in the centre. The artillery was ordered to 
advance along the road commanded by the 
Mexican battery, and the infantry were 
directed to move as rapidly as possible 
through the chaparral, and drive out the 
Mexican sharpshooters. The infantry execut- 
ed this order in handsome style, but the 
chaparral was so dense that each man was 



6oo 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



obliged to act for himself as he forced his way 
throught it. The Mexican battery was 
handled with great skill and coolness, and 
held the centre in check until some time 
after the infantry had forced their way close 
to the edge of the ravine. 

At this juncture Captain May was ordered 
to charge the Mexican guns, and started 
down the road at a trot. As he reached the 
position of the American artillery, Lieutenant 



guns. Leaving the battery to the American 
infantry which now hurried forward to secure 
it, the dragoons charged the Mexican centre 
and broke it. The whole American line then 
advanced rapidly ; the Mexicans gave way, 
and were soon flying in utter confusion 
towards the Rio Grande, which they crossed 
in such haste that many of them w^ere 
drowned in the attempt to reach the Mexican 
shore. 




CHARGE OF THE DRAGOONS. 



Ridgely suggested that May should halt and 
allow him to draw the Mexican fire. Ridgely 
opened a rapid fire on the Mexican guns, 
which answered immediately. At the same 
moment May dashed at the Mexican battery 
with his dragoons, and reached it before the 
cannoneers could reload their pieces. They 
were sabred at their guns, and the battery 
was carried. Captain May himself made a 
prisoner of General La Vega, as the latter 
was in the act of discharfjinc: one of the 



General Arista, the Mexican commander, 
fled alone from the field, leaving all his pri- 
vate and official papers behind him. The 
Americans lost one hundred and twenty-two 
men killed and wounded; the Mexicans- 
twelve hundred. All the Mexican artillery, 
two thousand stand of arms, and six hundred 
mules were captured by the Americans. 

General Taylor advanced from the battle- 
field to Fort Brown, the garrison of which 
had heard the distant roar of the battle, and 




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ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



60 r 



had seen the flight of the Mexicans across 
the Rio Grande. 

The defeat of the Mexicans at Palo Alto 
and Resaca de la Palma had greatly disheart- 
ened them. They not only abandoned their 
intention to invade Texas, but gave up all 
hope of holding the Rio Grande frontier. 
On the night of the seventeenth of May their 
army evacuated Matamoras, and retreated 
upon ]\Ionterey. On the eighteenth the 
American army crossed the Rio Grande, and 
occupied Matamoras. General Taylor 
scrupulously respected the municipal 
laws of the town, and protected the 
citizens in the exercise of their civil and 
religious privileges. All supplies needed 
by the troop*; were purchased at a liberal 
price, and no plundering or disorder was 
allowed or attempted. 

In the meantime the news of the attack 
upon the dragoons under Captain Thorn- 
ton had reached the United States, ^nd 
with it the rumor that the American 
army was confronted on the Texan side 
of the Rio Grande by a vastly superior 
force of Mexicans, and that its destruc- 
tion was almost certain. The President 
sent a special message to Congress on the 
eleventh of May, in which he informed 
that body that " war existed by the act 
of Mexico," and called upon Congress to 
recognize the state of war, and to provide 
for its support by appropriating the necessary 
funds, and to authorize him to call for vol- 
unteers. 

Under the impression that the perilous 
bituation of Taylor's army made instant 
action necessary. Congress appropriated ten 
millions of dollars for the prosecution of the 
war, and authorized the President to accept 
the services of fift} thousand volunteers. 
One-half of this force was to be mustered 
into the service ; the remainder held as a re- 
serve. The President's call was responded 



to with enthusiasm all over the land, and in 
the course of a few weeks two hundred 
thousand volunteers offered their services. 
General Wool was ordered to muster the 
volunteers accepted by the President into the 
service. 

Preparations were made by the American 
government to prosecute the war with vigor 
At the suggestion of General Scott a com- 
prehensive plan of operations was adopted- 
Two separate expeditions were to be organ- 




GENERAL WIXFIELD SCOTT. 

ized. One, called the " Army of the West,"" 
was to assemble at Fort Leavenworth, on 
the Missouri, to cross the plains and the 
Rocky mountains, and to invade and con- 
quer the northern provinces of Mexico. A 
powerful fleet was to be sent around Cape 
Horn to attack the Mexican ports on the 
Pacific and cooperate with the Army of the 
West. A second force, called the "Army of 
the Centre," was to advance from Texas to 
the city of Mexico, and, if it was thought 
best, was to cooperate with the " Army of 



<6o2 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



'Occupation " under General Taylor. As we 
shall see, the plan was afterwards modified, 
and the advance upon the Mexican capital 
•was made from Vera Cruz on the Gulf of 
Mexico. 

Towards the last of May the news of the 
brilliant victories on the Rio Grande was re- 
ceived at Washington, and was hailed with 
rejoicings throughout the Union. On the 
thirtieth of May Congress conferred upon 
General Taylor the rank of major-general by 
.brevet as a reward for his victories. 

On the twenty-third of May the Mexican 
Congress formally declared war against the 
United States, and the call of the Mexican 
government for volunteers for the defence of 
that country was responded to with enthu- 
siasm. 

Thanks to the energy of General Wool, 
twelve thousand volunteers were mustered 
into the service of the United States in six 
weeks. Nine thousand of these were sent 
forward rapidly to reinforce General Taylor, 
and with the remainder Wool marched to 
San Antonio, in Texas, to await further 
orders, and be ready for action. 

Strong Intrenchments. 

General Taylor had been delayed at Mata- 
■moras for three months by the weakness of 
Ms force; but, as soon as reinforcements 
reached him, he prepared to advance into 
"the interior. His first movement was directed 
against the city of Monterey, the capital of 
the State of New Leon, where the Mexicans 
had collected an army. His army numbered 
about nine thousand men of all arms, and of 
these a little over twenty-three hundred men 
were detached for garrisons, leaving an active 
force of six thousand six hundred and seventy 
men. On the twentieth of August General 
Worth's division marched from Matamoras, 
.and a fortnight later General Taylor set out 
tfrom the Rio Grande with the main army. 



On the ninth of September the American 
forces encamped within three miles of Mon- 
terey. 

Monterey is an old Spanish city, nearly 
three hundred years old. It lies in a beauti- 
ful valley, and is about two miles in length, 
by one mile in breadth. The mountains 
approach close to it, and protect it on all 
sides but two. On one of these sides it is 
approached from the northeast by the road 
from Matamoras, and on the other by a rocky 
gorge through which rung the road connect- 
ing the city with Saltillo. The city has three 
large plazas or public squares, and is built 
like the towns of old Spain, with narrow 
streets, and houses of stone one story in 
height, with strong walls of masonry rising 
about three feet above the flat roofs. The 
city itself is enclosed with strong walls, in- 
tended for artillery. 

Battle of Monterey. 

Every means of defence had been ex- 
hausted by the Mexicans. Forty-two heavy 
cannon were mounted on the city walls, the 
streets were barricaded, and the flat roofs 
and stone walls of the houses were arranged 
for infantry. Each house was a separate for- 
tress. A strongly fortified building of heavy 
stone, called the Bishop's palace, stood on 
the side of a hill without the city walls, and 
on the opposite side of the city were redoubts 
held by infantry and artillery. The com- 
mand of Monterey and its defences was held 
by General Ampudia, and the garrison con- 
sisted often thousand veteran troops. 

Ten days were passed by the American 
army in reconnoitering the town, its peculiar 
situation rendering such movements very 
difficult. On the afternoon of the twentieth 
of September General Worth was ordered to 
turn the hill on which stood the Bishop's 
palace, gain the Saltillo road, and carry the 
works in that direction. This movement was 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



603 



•successfully accomplished ; but in order to 
gain the desired position Worth was obliged 
to cut a new road across the mountain. His 
troops bivouacked for the night just out of 
range of the enemy's guns. During the 
'night the Americans built a battery to com- 
mand the Mexican citadel. 

On the morning of the twenty-first of Sep- 
tember the American artillery opened fire on 
Monterey, and the infantry advanced to carry 



During the night of the twenty-first the 
Mexicans evacuated the lower part of the 
city, but kept their hold upon the citadel and 
the upper town, from which they maintained 
a vigorous fire upon the American positions. 
At daybreak, on the twenty-second, Worth's 
division, advancing in the midst of a fog and 
rain, carried the crest commanding the 
Bishop's palace, and by noon had captured 
the palace itself The guns of the captured 




CAPTURE OF A BATTERY AT MONTEREY. 



the Mexican works. The brigade of General 
•Quitman carried a strong work in the lower 
part of the town, and at the same time 
-General Butler, with a part of his division, 
forced his way into the town on the right. 
While these operations were in progress 
-General Worth's division seized the Saltillo 
road, and secured the enemy's line of retreat. 
Several fortified positions along the heights 
were also carried, and their guns turned 
;upon the Bishop's palace. 



works were now directed upon the enemy in 
the city below. 

The enemy had fortified the city so thor- 
oughly that the Americans were not only 
forced to carry the various barricades in suc- 
cession, but were compelled to break through 
the walls of the fortified houses, and advance 
from house to house in this way. One or 
two field pieces were drawn up to the flat 
roofs, and the Mexicans were driven from 
point to point during the twenty -second and 



6o4 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



twenty-third, until they were confined to the 
citadel and plaza. On the night of the 
twenty-third General Ainpudia opened nego- 
tiations, and on the morning of the twenty- 
fourth surrendered the town and garrison to 
General Taylor. The Mexican soldiers were 
allowed to march out with the honors of 
war. General Taylor was induced to grant 
this concession by his generous desire to 
spare the people of the city the sufferings 



days' rations — Taylor agreed to a cessation 
of hostilities for eight weeks, subject to the 
consent of his government. The Mexican, 
army withdrew from Monterey, and an 
American garrison, under General Worth, 
as governor, occupied the city. The main 
body of Taylor's army then went into camp' 
at Walnut Springs, three miles distant from 
Monterey. The Americans lost four hundred 
and eighty-eight men, killed and wounded,. 




LIEUTENANT GRANT GOING FJK AMMUNITION AT MO.NTEKEV. 



which would have been caused by a pro- 
longed defence. 

The Mexican commander represt-nted to 
General Taylor that the Mexican government 
was sincerely anxious for peace, and that it 
would respond favorably to any fair propo- 
sitions upon this subject that might be laid 
before it. In order to afford an opportunity 
for such an arrangement of the war, and influ- 
enced by the scarcity of provisions — the 
American army having at the time but ten 



in the storming of Monterey. The Mexican 
loss was much greater. 

General Grant, then an unknownyounglieu- 
tenant, was in the battle of Monterey, and- 
distinguished himself on account of "gallant 
and meritorious services." Several times 
during the battle he demonstrated his supe- 
rior judgment and courage, net more in the 
fierce charge than in volunteering to make a 
dangerous ride under fire, in search of ammu- 
i nition. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



605 



In the meantime the government of the 
"United States had been led into a terrible 
blunder by its desire to bring the war to a 
speedy close. Santa Anna, who had been 
driven out of Mexico by one of the numerous 
revolutions in that country, was living in exile 
at Havana. He declared that if he were 
allowed to return to Mexico ne would use his 
influence in favor of peace, and would secure 
a treaty for the accomplishment of that end. 
He was sure he could carry out this scheme, 
.and only needed to be sustained by the 
United States government with the sum of 
three or four millions of dollars to enable 
him to get control of the Mexican govern- 
ment. President Polk was completely duped 
by the " illustrious exile," and not only urged 
•Congress to appropriate the sum of two 
millions of dollars to assist Santa Anna, but 
issued an order to Commodore Conner, com- 
manding the American fleet in the Gulf, to 
permit Santa Anna to pass through his lines 
and return to Mexico. Santa Anna at once 
.availed himself of this order, and landing at 
Vera Cruz hastened into the interior. 

Manifesto by Santa Anna. 

Once in Mexico, Santa Anna thought no 
more of his promises to President Polk. He 
set to work to gain possession of the gov- 
ernment, but not with a view to making 
peace. He issued a manifesto, in which he 
called on his countrymen to rally under his 
banner for the defence of their homes and 
country. He assured them of his undying 
hatred of the " perfidious Yankees," pointed 
to the reverses of the government of Paredes, 
and declared that he alone could save the 
country. His appeals were successful. The 
Mexican people rose at his call, deposed 
Paredes, and elected Santa Anna President. 
The repeated defeats of their armies were 
forgotten in the new enthusiasm which Santa 
Anna's presence and proclamations aroused, 



and in the course of a few months that leader 
found himself at the head of a well-equipped 
army of twenty thousand men, which was 
being steadily increased by the arrival of 
fresh recruits. 

Justice to the Enemy. 

In the meantime General Wool, with a 
reinfDrcement of three thousand troops, had 
marched from San Antonio to join General 
Taylor. He had reached Monclova, about 
seventy miles from Monterey, when he heard 
of the capture of the latter place by Taylor. 
His route had lain across an uninhabited 
and desert region, in which the troops suf- 
fered greatly for want of water. He was 
directed by General Taylor to take position 
in a fertile district in the province of 
Durango, where he could obtain supplies 
for his own command as well as for the 
army at Monterey. General Wool concili- 
ated the people of the region occupied by 
him by protecting them in their liberties and 
property, and paying fair prices for all the 
supplies furnished by them. The Mexicans 
v/ere far better treated by the conquering 
army than they had been by their own 
rulers. 

In accordance with orders received from 
Washington General Taylor put an end to 
the armistice on the thirteenth of November. 
On the fifteenth General Worth, with seven 
hundred men, occupied Saltillo, the capital 
of the State of Coahuila. Leaving a garrison 
in Monterey, under General Butler, Taylor 
moved towards the coast to attack Tampico. 
Upon reaching Victoria, the capital of the 
State of Tamaulipas,he learned that Tampico 
had surrendered to the United States squad- 
ron, under Commodore Conner, on the four- 
teenth of November. Victoria was occupied 
on the twenty-ninth of December. The 
troops under General Wool were now 
ordered to join General Worth at Saltillo, 



6o6 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



and General Taylor prepared to resume his 
forward movement into the heart of Mexico. 
At this juncture his offensive operations 
were suddenly brought to a close. 

Massing the Forces. 

The plan of the invasion adopted by the 
government of the United States had been so 
far modified that the " Army of the Centre," 
under General Winfield Scott, was ordered 
to capture Vera Cruz, the principal Mexican 
port on the Gulf, and advance upon the city 
of Mexico from that point. Troops in suffi- 
cient numbers could not be drawn from the 
United States, and General Scott, as com- 
mander-in-chief, decided to draw the desired 
number of men from Taylor's army. The order 
for the withdrawal of these troops reached 
General Taylor just as he was about to resume 
active operations. Taylor was keenly dis- 
appointed at being thus condemned to 
inactivity, but like the true soldier that he 
was, at once obeyed the orders sent him. 

Generals Worth and Quitman, with their 
divisions, and the greater portion of the 
volunteers who had come out with General 
Wool, were at once despatched to the Gulf 
coast to join the expedition against Vera 
Cruz. The withdrawal of these troops left 
General Taylor with a very small force. 
During the month of January and the early 
part of February, 1847, reinforcements from 
the United States increased his army to 
about six thousand men. A portion of these 
was placed in garrison at Monterey and Sal- 
tillo, leaving General Taylor about forty- 
seven hundred effective troops, of whom but 
six hundred were regulars. 

Early in January, 1847, General Scott sent 
Lieutenant Richey with an escort of cavalry 
to convey a despatch to General Taylor. 
Lieutenant Richey was killed by the Mex- 
icans on the way, and his despatches were 
forwarded to Santa Anna, who learned from 



them the American plan for the invasion of 
Mexico. He at once resolved upon his own 
course. Relying upon the strength of Vera 
Cruz to hold Scott's army in check, he de- 
termined to attack General Taylor at once,, 
and crush him. By the most energetic and 
despotic measures he silenced the opposition 
which prevailed in the city of Mexico, and 
obtained both men and money for his attempt. 
On the twenty-sixth of January he began his 
march upon Saltillo with twenty-three thou- 
sand well-armed and equipped men, and 
twenty pieces of artillery. 

Rapid Marches. 

The Mexican army had reached San Louis 
Potosi, about sixty miles south of Saltillo^ 
when General Wool, commanding at the 
latter place, learned of their approach. He 
at once notified General Taylor, who ad- 
vanced with his whole effective force from 
Monterey to Saltillo. As the enemy con- 
tinued to approach, Taylor left his stores at 
Saltillo, and moved rapidly to Agua Nueva,. 
eighteen miles beyond Saltillo, on the road to 
San Louis Potosi. Hisdesign was to secure the 
southern end of the pass through the Sierra 
Nevada. With this pass in possession of the 
Americans the Mexican army would be com- 
pelled to fight at once, as the country in their 
rear was incapable of supplying them with 
provisions. The reports of the reconnoitering 
parties made it evident that the Mexican 
force was vastly superior to that of the 
Americans, and General Taylor also learned 
that a strong body of Mexican cavalry, under 
General Minon, was some distance to the left 
of his position, which could be turned. A 
daring reconnoissance was made by Major 
M'CuUoch, of the Texan Rangers. He 
entered the Mexican camp, passed through 
it, and obtained accurate information of their 
numbers, and regained his own lines ia 
safety. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



607^ 



Upon receipt of M'Culloch's intelligence, 
and the report of the effort of the Mexican 
cavalry to turn his left, General Taylor fell 
back from Agua Nueva to a new position, 
eleven miles higher up the valley on the 
twenty-first of February. 

The withdrawal of the American army 
was made in good time. Santa Anna had 
sent Minon with the cavalry to gain the rear 
of Taylor's army, and at the same time en- 
deavored, by a forced march of fifty miles, 
to surprise General Taylor 
at Agua Nueva. Upon ar- 
riving in front of that place 
he found to his astonish- 
ment and disappointment 
that Taylor had abandoned 
his position. Interpreting 
this movement as a flight, 
the Mexican commander 
pushed on in pursuit of his 
adversary, and came up 
with him on the morning 
of the twenty-second of 
February. 

The position chosen by 
General Taylor was at the 
north end of the valley 
known as Las Angosturas, 
or the Narrows, and near 
the hacienda or plantation 
known as Buena Vista, from 
which latter place the battle 
took its name. It was one of great strength. 
Its flanks were protected by the mountains 
which arose abruptly from the defile, and 
the ground in front was broken by numerous 
ravines and gullies. The American forces 
were disposed so as to secure every advantage 
afforded by the nature of the ground and the 
road through the pass — the key to the whole 
position — was swept by the fire of the artillery. 
The troops were in high spirits. It was 
Washington's birthday, and this incident was 



generally commented upon as a good omen. 
About noon a Mexican oflicer brought a. 
note to General Taylor, in which Santa 
Anna demanded the surrender of the Ameri- 
can army. This demand was refused, and 
skirmishing at once began. During the 
afternoon Santa Anna sent a force under 
General Ampudia to ascend the mountains 
and turn the American left. This brought 
on severe skirmishing in this quarter, but 
nothing definite was accomplished during 




MEXICAN CART AND OXEN. 

the afternoon. Late in the afternoon the- 
Mexican cavalry under General Minon,. 
which had passed the mountains, appeared 
in the plains north of Saltillo. Minon was^ 
ordered to halt in the position he had gained 
and await the result of the battle of the next 
day at Buena Vista. His appearance caused 
great anxiety to General Taylor, who- 
hastened to Saltillo with reinforcements- 
after nightfall, as he feared Minon would, 
seek to capture that place. 



6o8 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



During the night of the twenty-second 
Santa Anna reinforced the column under 
Ampudia, and opened the battle at daybreak 
on the twenty-third of February, by endeav- 
oring to turn the American left, A little 
later he opened fire from his artillery, and 
moved forward three powerful columns of 
attack against the American centre. The 
movement of the column of Ampudia was 
successful, the left of the American line was 
completely turned, but the attack upon the 
centre was repulsed by the splendid fire of 
the American batteries. 

A Blast of Deadly Fire. 

At this moment General Taylor arrived 
■upon the field from Saltillo, bringing with 
him May's dragoons, several companies of 
Mississippi riflemen, and a portion of the 
Arkansas cavalry, embracing every man that 
could be spared from Saltillo. He had come 
at a critical moment, for the turning of his 
left flank by Ampudia had neutralized the 
natural advantage of the position. Many of 
the troops were in full retreat upon Buena 
Vista, and nothing but the courage and con- 
stancy of those who yet remained firm could 
save the day. By great exertions Colonel 
Jefferson Davis rallied the greater part of his 
own regiment — the Mississippi rifles — and a 
part of the Second Indiana, and by a rapid 
advance drove back a strong Mexican col- 
umn in his front. He had scarcely accom- 
plished this when he was assailed by a body 
of one thousand splendid Mexican lancers. 
Davis quickly formed his own men and the 
Second and Third Indiana in the shape of 
the letter V, with the opening towards the 
enemy, and posted Sherman's battery on his 
left. The line thus formed awaited in silence 
the approach of the Mexican cavalry, which 
came on at a gallop. 

As they drew near the opening of this 
■.terrible V the Mexicans, who had expected 



the Americans to fire, when they intended to 
dash in upon them before the men could 
reload, were astonished at the silence with 
which they were received, and slackened 
their pace until they came to a walk within 
eighty yards of the opening of the angle. In 
an instant Davis gave the command, and his 
men took deliberate aim. Then a volley 
flashed from the rifles and swept away the 
head of the Mexican column. The next 
moment Sherman's guns opened upon the 
cavalry with grape and canister. Under this 
combined fire horses and lancers fell in great 
numbers, forming a barricade over which the 
enemy could not pass, and the Mexicans, 
seized with a panic, wheeled about and fled 
in confusion. 

While this attack was in progress the 
Mexicans sent a body of cavalry under Tor- 
rejon to seize the plantation of Buena Vista. 
Torrejon made his attack with vigor, but 
was driven back by the Kentucky and Ar- 
kansas volunteers, assisted by Colonel May's 
dragoons. Colonel Yell, of the Arkansas 
regiment, was killed and Torrejon was 
wounded in this part of the engagement. 

Splendid Valor of the Americans. 

During all this while a steady cannonade 
had been in progress along the centre of the 
American line. The Mexicans endeavored 
to silence the American batteries, but with- 
out success. 

Santa Anna now sent a strong force to 
pass around the American left and gain the 
rear of Taylor's line, and this force was 
joined by a part of Torrejon's command, 
which was retreating from Buena Vista. 
The movement was detected by Colonel 
May, who met it with his cavalry and 
several companies of Illinois and Indiana 
volunteers. General Taylor sent to his 
assistance all the cavalry he could spare and 
Bragg's battery. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



609 



The retreat of the Mexicans, who had | the panic which had set in among them. It 
passed beyond the American left, was cut | seemed that the whole Mexican column, 




BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA 

off, and they were driven in confusion to the 
base of the mountain, while Bragg's guns 
showered canister upon them and increased 
39 



numbering five thousand men, must sur- 
render or be exterminated. In this emer- 
gency the Mexican commander raised the 



6io 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



white flag and asked for a parley, professing 
to have a message from Santa Anna to 
General Taylor, and the American guns 
ceased firing. Before the trick was dis- 
covered the Mexican right escaped under 
the cover of the flag of truce by passing 
along the base of the mountain to a point 
from which they rejoined their main army. 

Bragg' s Flying Artillery. 

Santa Anna now brought up his reserves, 
and late in the afternoon made a determined 
attack upon the American right, which had 
been greatly weakened to assist the troops 
engaged in repelling the attack on the left. 
The Mexican column, twelve thousand 
strong, easily drove back the few scattered 
volunteers that disputed their advance, and 
captured O'Brien's battery, which was with- 
out infantry support, but not until every man 
had been killed or wounded. Washington's 
guns now opened upon the enemy, and suc- 
ceeded in holding their cavalry in check for 
a moment. The Mexican infantry pushed 
on, firing as they advanced, and it was 
evident that the crisis of the battle was at 
hand. 

The battle had been going on for eight 
hours, and the American troops were greatly 
exhausted by the unusual exertions they had 
been subjected to ; while the Mexican col- 
umn, consisting mainly of their reserves, was 
fresh, and four times as strong as the whole 
American army. Keenly alive to his dan- 
ger, Taylor exerted himself in every possible 
way to bring up his scattered regiments in 
time to save the position. The flying artil- 
lery of Captain Bragg was the first to reach 
the field. There was not an infantry soldier 
near to support him, and the salvation of the 
army depended upon Bragg's efforts. He 
unlimbered his guns within a few yards of 
the rapidly advancing Mexicans, and poured 
in discharge after discharge with a rapidity 



which seemed wonderful. The Mexican 
advance was checked, and Sherman now 
came up and opened fire from his guns upon 
them. Washington's battery a little later 
joined in the fire. The Mississippi and In- 
diana volunteers now reached the field, and 
made a spirited attack upon the enemy's 
right flank. Under this terrible fire the 
Mexicans wavered for a few moments, and 
then broke in confusion and fled from the 
field. 

The Mexicans made no further attack dur- 
ing the day, and that night Santa Anna, 
abandoning his wounded, and leaving his 
dead unburied, retreated rapidly towards 
Agua Nueva. The American loss in the 
battle of Buena Vista was two hundred and 
sixty-seven killed and four hundred and fifty- 
six wounded. That of the Mexicans was 
over two thousand killed and wounded, in- 
cluding many officers of high rank. Taylor 
followed the Mexican army on the twenty- 
fourth, as far as Agua Nueva, and collecting 
their wounded, removed them to Saltillo, 
where they were attended by the American 
surgeons. 

Honors to General Taylor. 

The victory of Buena Vista was decisive of 
the war. It saved the valley of the Rio 
Grande from invasion by a victorious Mexi- 
can army, and enabled the expedition of 
General Scott against Vera Cruz to proceed 
without delay to the accomplishment of its 
objects. It also greatly disheartened the 
Mexican people, and during the remainder 
of the year Taylor's army had nothing to do 
but to hold the country it occupied. 

General Taylor remained at Agua Nueva 
until he was satisfied that no further trouble 
was to be apprehended from the Mexican 
army, and then returned by easy stages to 
his camp at Walnut Springs, near Monterey, 
which he reached by the last of March. In 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



6ii 



the summer of 1847, leaving General Wool 
in command of the army, General Taylor 
returned to the United States, where he was 
received with distinguished honor. 

While these events were going on in 
Mexico Captain John C. Fremont, of the 
United States army, had been engaged in 
prosecuting the discoveries in the Rocky 
mountain region, which he had begun in 



that Territory, and to conciliate the good- 
will of the inhabitants toward the United 
States. Fremont had but sixty men with 
him, but he at once moved into the valley of 
the Sacramento. 

The Mexican inhabitants were seriously 
considering at tiiis time whether they should 
massacre the American settlers, or whether, 
in the event of a war between Mexico and 




GENERAL VIEW OF THE Y05EMITE VALLEV. 



1843, in which year he had explored the val- 
ley known as the Great Basin, the region of 
the Great Salt Lake, and the valleys of the 
Sacramento and San Joaquin, on the Pacific 
coast. In May, 1845, Fremont set out on his 
third expedition, and passed the winter in the 
valley of the San Joaquin, then Mexican terri- 
tory. In May, 1846, he received orders from 
Washington to move into California and 
counteract any foreign scheme for securing 



the United States, they should place Cali- 
fornia under the protection of Great Britain. 
Fremont was informed of these plots, and, 
though no war existed as yet between the 
two republics, he also learned that the Mex- 
ican General De Castro was advancing to 
drive him out of California. The American 
settlers flocked to Fremont's camp, with 
their arms and horses, and he soon found 
himself at the head of a considerable force. 



6l2 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



He was thus enabled to repulse De Castro's 
attack, and, after a few conflicts, to drive him 
from Upper California. By July, 1846, the 
Mexican authority was entirely overthrown 
in upper California, and the flag of independ- 
ence was raised by the settlers. 

Pursued by a British Squadron. 

The American squadron in the Pacific was 
commanded by Commodore Sloat, who was 
ordered by the secretary of the navy to seize 
the port of San Francisco as soon as he was 
reliably informed of the existence of war 
between the two countries, and to occupy or 
blockade such other Mexican ports as his 
force would permit. In the early summer 
of 1846 the American squadron was lying 
at Mazatlan. A British squadron under 
Admiral Seymour also lay in the harbor, and 
the American commodore became convinced 
that the British admiral was watching him 
for the purpose of interfering with his designs 
upon California. 

He therefore resolved to get rid of him 
and put to sea and sailed to the westward, as 
if making for the Sandwich islands. The 
British fleet followed him promptly, but in 
the night the commodore tacked and sailed 
up the coast to Monterey, while the British 
continued their course to the islands. Sloat 
was coldly received at Monterey by the 
authorities. Hearing of the action of Fre- 
mont and the American settlers, the com- 
modore a few days later took possession of 
the town, and sent a courier to Fremont, 
who at once joined him with his mounted 
men. California was now taken possession 
of in the name of the United States. 

About the middle of July Commodore 
Stockton arrived in the harbor, and suc- 
ceeded Commodore Sloat, who returned 
home, in the command of the squadron. 
The next day Admiral Seymour arrived at 
Monterey. He saw he was too late, and 



quietly submitted to what he could not pre- 
vent, though he was greatly astonished to 
find the town in possession of the American 
forces. On the seventeenth of August Fre- 
mont and Stockton occupied Los Angeles, 
the capital of Upper California. 

In June, 1846, General Kearney, with the 
" Army of the West," numbering eighteen 
hundred men, marched from Fort Leaven- 
worth, on the Missouri, across the plains to 
Santa Fe, the capital of the Mexican prov- 
ince of New Mexico. After a march of 
nearly one thousand miles, he occupied 
Santa Fe on the eighteenth of August. 
Leaving a garrison at Santa Fe, Kearney 
pushed on towards California, intending to 
conquer that province also ; but upon reach- 
ing the Gila river, he was met by the famous 
hunter. Kit Carson, who informed him of 
the conquest of California by Fremont and 
Stockton. Kearney thereupon sent two 
companies of dragoons under Major Sumner 
back to Santa Fe, and with the remainder 
continued his march to the Pacific coast. 

Revolt in New Mexico. 

Upon leaving Santa Fe, Kearney had 
instructed Colonel Doniphan to invade the 
country of the Navajoe Indians and compel 
them to make peace with the Americans. 
Doniphan set out in Noverp.ber, 1846, and 
crossing the mountains, succeeded in mak- 
ing a treaty with the Navajoes, by which 
they agreed to refrain from hostilities 
against the people of New Mexico. He 
then marched to the southeast to meet 
General Wool at Chihuahua. 

The inhabitants of New Mexico, encouraged 
by the absence of Doniphan v/ith so large a 
force, rose in revolt against the American 
forces, and murdered the American governor 
of the territory and several other ofiicials on 
the fourteenth of January, 1847. Colonel 
Sterling Price, commanding the troops at 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



613 



Santa Fe, at once marched against the insur- 
gents, defeated them in two engagements, 
though they greatly outnumbered his force, 
and suppressed the rebellion. The insur- 
gents obtained peace only by surrendering 
their leaders, several of whom were hanged 
by the Americans. 

Colonel Doniphan, in the meantime, had 
continued his march. His route lay through 
a barren region destitute of water or grass, 



the twenty-eighth he occupied El Paso, and 
there waited until his artillery could join him 
from Santa Fe. It arrived in the course of a 
month, and on the eighth of February he 
resumed his march to Chihuahua. 

On the twenty-eighth he encountered and 
defeated a Mexican force of over fifteen hun- 
dred men with ten pieces of artillery, at a pass 
of the Sacramento river, a tributary of the Rio 
Grande. The Mexicans lost over three hun- 




THE GREAT CANON AND LOWER FALLS, YELLOWSTONE. 



called the Jornado del Muerto — " The Jour- 
ney of Death." He pressed forward with 
firmness through this terrible region, his men 
and animals suffering greatly on the march, 
and in the latter part of December entered 
the valley of the Rio Grande. With a force of 
eight hundred and fifty-six men he defeated 
over twelve hundred Mexicans atBrazito, on 
the twenty-sixth of December, 1846, and 
inflicted upon them a loss of nearly two hun- 
dred men, losing only seven men himself On 



dred killed and a number wounded. The 
Americans lost two killed and several 
wounded. The Mexicans were completely 
routed, and left their artillery and all their 
train in the hands of the Americans. 

On the first of March, 1847, Doniphan 
entered Chihuahua, and raising the American 
flag on the citadel, took possession of the 
province in the name of the United States. 
Chihuahua was one of the largest cities in 
Mexico, and contained nearly thirty thousand 



6i4 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



inhabitants. Doniphan's force was less 
than one thousand men. He had expected 
to find General Wool here, and failing to 
meet him was in utter ignorance of the posi- 
tions of the American forces. His own 
position, in the midst of a hostile population, 
was perilous indeed, but by his firm and just 
measures he conciliated the inhabitants. He 
remained at Chihuahua for six weeks, vainly 
expecting the arrival of General Wool, and 
on the twenty-seventh of April evacuated 




EAST SIDE OF PLAZA — SANTA FE. 

that place, and set out for Saltillo, three 
hundred and fifty miles distant. He reached 
that place on the twenty-second of May. 
Remaining there but three days, he continued 
his march to Monterey, from which he pro- 
ceeded to Matamoras. The enlistments of 
his men being over, they were transported to 
New Orleans, and there mustered out of the 
service. 

Thus ended the most remarkable expedi- 
tion on record. In less than one year a 
corps of volunteers, unused to the hardships 



of war, had marched over snow-covered 
mountains and across burning deserts, a dis- 
tance of over five thousand miles, over three 
thousand of which lay through an unknown 
and hostile country, abounding in enemies 
who might have crushed them at any 
moment had they rallied in sufficient force. 

In the meantime there had been new 
troubles in California. In August, 1847, 
Commodore Stockton appointed Captain 
Fremont military commandant of California, 
and soon after sailed from 
San Francisco to Monterey, 
from which place he con- 
tinued his voyage to San 
Diego. Soon after the de- 
parture of the fleet Fremont 
learned of a conspiracy to 
overthrow his government. 
By a forced march of one 
hundred and fifty miles he 
surprised and captured the 
nisurgent leader, Don J. 
Pico. A court-martial sen- 
tenced him to death, but 
Fremont wisely spared his 
life, and Pico, in gratitude 
for this clemency, gave him 
his powerful aid in his 
efforts to tranquilize the 
country. 
General Kearney had con- 
tinued his march from New Mexico, encount- 
ering great difficulties along the route, and suf- 
fering considerably from the repeated attacks 
of superior parties of the enemy. In Decem- 
ber, 1 847, he reached San Pasqual, where he 
was obliged to halt. His situation was des- 
perate indeed; his provisions were exhausted; 
his horses had died on the march ; his mules 
were disabled ; a large number of his men 
were sick ; and his camp was surrounded by 
the enemy, who held every road by which 
he could .escape. In this situation three 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



615 



■men — Kit Carson, Lieutenant Beales of the 
navy, and an Indian, whose name is unfor- 
tunately unknown — volunteered to make 
their way through the enemy's lines to San 
Dieg6, thirty miles distant, and inform Com- 
modore Stockton of Kearney's need of 
assistance. They succeeded in reaching 
San Diego, and the commodore promptly 
sent reinforcements to Kearney, which ena- 
bled him to drive off the enemy and reach 
San Diego in safety. 

General Scott's Expedition. 

Commodore Stockton now directed his 
a.tention to suppressing the insurrection of 
the Mexican inhabitants of California, who 
had gotten possession of Los Angeles. 
Driven to extremities, they surrendered the 
town on the condition that the Americans 
should respect the rights and property of 
the citizens. 

Commodore Stockton having been re- 
lieved of his civil functions by orders from 
Washington, General Kearney claimed the 
governorship of the territory by virtue of his 
rank. Fremont refused to recognize his 
authority, and was brought to trial before a 
court-martial, which found him guilty of 
disobedience of orders and mutiny, and sen- 
tenced him to be dismissed from the service. 
The sentence was remitted by the President 
on account of Fremont's meritorious and 
valuable services, but Fremont refused to 
accept the clemency of the President and 
thus admit the justice of the sentence of the 
court, and resigned his commission. General 
Kearney remained in California as governor 
of that territory. 

The expedition under General Scott sailed 
from New Orleans late in November, 1846, 
and rendezvoused at the island of Lobos, 
about one hundred and twenty-five miles 
north of Vera Cruz. The plan of operations 
for this army was very simple — to capture 



Vera Cruz and march to the city of Mexico 
by the most direct route. At length every- 
thing being in readiness, the expedition 
sailed from Lobos Island, and on the morn- 
ing of the ninth of March, 1847, the army, 
thirteen thousand strong, landed without 
opposition at a point selected by General 
Scott and Commodore Conner a few days 
before. The city and vicinity had been 
thoroughly reconnoitred, and the troops 
were at once marched to the positions 
assigned them by the commander-in-chief. 

Vera Cruz is the principal seaport of Mexico, 
and contained at the time of the siege about 
fifteen thousand inhabitants. It was strongly 
fortified on the land side, and towards the 
Gulf was defended by the Castle of San Juan 
de Ulloa, the strongest fortress in America, 
with the exception of Quebec. 

Attack Upon Vera Cruz. 

On the tenth of March the investment of 
the city was begun by General Worth, and 
the American lines were definitely estab- 
lished around the city for a distance of six 
miles. During the day, and for several days 
thereafter, bodies of Mexicans attempted to 
harass the besiegers, and a steady fire was 
maintained upon them by the guns of the 
castle and the city as they worked at their 
batteries. The American works being com- 
pleted, and their guns in position, General 
Scott summoned the city of Vera Cruz to 
surrender, stipulating that no batteries 
should be placed in the city to attack the 
castle unless the city should be fired upon 
by that work. 

The demand was refused by General Mor- 
ales, who commanded both the city and the 
castle, and at 4 o'clock on the afternoon of 
the twenty-second of March, the American 
batteries opened fire upon the town. The 
bombardment was continued for five days, 
and the fleet joined in the attack upon the 



6i6 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



castle. The city suffered terribly ; a number 
of the inhabitants were killed, and many 
buildings were set on fire by the shells. 

On the twenty-seventh the city and castle 
surrendered, and were promptly occupied by 
the Americans. Over five thousand prison- 
ers and five hundred pieces of artillery fell 
into the hands of the victors. The c^arrison 




BOMBARDMENT OF VERA CRUZ. 

were required to march out, lay down their 
arms, and were then dismissed upon their 
parole. The inhabitants were protected in 
their civil and religious rights. The sur- 
render was completed on the morning of the 
twenty-ninth. 

Having secured the city and the castle, 
General Scott placed a strong garrison in 
each, and appointed General Worth governor 



of Vera Cruz. He then prepared to march 
upon the city of Mexico, and on the eighth 
of April the advance division, under General 
Twiggs, set out from Vera Cruz towards 
Jalapa. Deducting the force left to gafrison 
Vera Cruz, Scott's whole army amounted to 
but eighty-five hundred men. 

Santa Anna had not found the consequen- 
ees to himself of the 
battle of Buena Vista as 
bad as he had expected. 
He had succeeded in 
pursuading his country- 
men that he had not 
been defeated in that 
battle, but had simply 
retreated for want of 
provisions, and they had 
agreed to give him an- 
other trial. He had 
pledged himself to pre- 
vent the advance of the 
Americans to the capital, 
in the event of the fall 
of Vera Cruz, and with 
the aid of those of his 
countrymen who were 
willing to support him 
had quelled an insurrec- 
tion at the capital, and 
had strengthened his 
power to a greater de- 
gree than ever. With 
a force of twelve thou- 
sand men he had taken 
position at Cerro Gordo, a mountain pass 
at the eastern edge of the Cordilleras, to 
hold the American army in check, and had 
fortified his position with great skill and care. 
General Twiggs halted before the Mexican 
position to await the arrival of General Scott, 
who soon joined him with the main army. 
The Mexican lines were carefully reconnoi- 
tered, and on the eighteenth of April General 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



617- 



Scott, avoiding a direct attack, turned the 
eneniy's left, seized the heights commanding 
their position, and drove them from their 
works with a loss of three thousand prisoners 
and forty-three pieces of artillery. Santa 
Anna mounted a mule, taken from his car- 
riage, and fled, leaving the carriage and his 
private papers in the hands of the Americans. 
Besides their prisoners, the Mexicans lost 
over one thousand men in killed andvvounded. 



the second city of Mexico, containing eighty 
thousand inhabitants, was occupied. Gen- 
eral Scott established his headquarters at 
Puebla, and awaited, reinforcements. The 
terms of the volunteers would expire in 
June, and they refused to re-enlist, as they 
were afraid to encounter the yellow fever,, 
the scourge of the Mexican climate, the 
season for which was close at hand. They 
were returned to the United States and Gen- 




BATTLE OF CERRO GORDO. 



Scott's loss was four hundred and thirty-one 
killed and wounded. 

Thebrilliant victory of Cerro Gordo opened 
the way for the American army to Jalapa, 
which was occupied on the nineteenth of 
April. Continuing his advance. General 
Scott captured the strong fortress of Perote, 
situated on a peak of the Eastern Cordille- 
ras, which was abandoned almost without a 
blow by its defenders, on the twenty-second 
of April. On the fifteenth of May, Puebla, 



eral Scott was forced to spend three months 
at Puebla in inactivity. The force he had 
with him was greatly weakened by sickness,, 
and eighteen hundred men were in the hos- 
pitals of Puebla alone. 

While at Puebla General Scott was ordered 
by the secretary of war to collect duties on 
merchandise entering the Mexican ports,, 
and to apply the money thus obtained to the 
needs of the army. He was also ordered to 
levy contributions upon the Mexican people 



6i8 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



for the use of the troops. He refused to 
obey this order, declaring that the eountry 
through which he was moving was too poor 
to warrant impressments, and that such a 
;measure would exasperate the Mexicans and 
cause them to refuse to supply the army at all. 
" Not a ration for man or horse," he said, 
"would be brought in except by the bayonet, 
which would oblige the troops to spread 
themselves out many leagues to the right 
and left in search of subsistence, and stop all 
military operations." He continued to buy 
■provisions for his army at the regular prices 
■of the country, and by so doing greatly 
allayed the bitterness of feeling with which 
.the Mexicans regarded the Americans. 

Attempt to Suspend Hostilities. 

Another annoyance to which the com- 
mander-in-chief was subjected arose from 
the ill-advised action of Mr. N. P. Trist, who 
had been sent out to Mexico in the quality 
of peace commissioner. Soon after the cap- 
ture ot Vera Cruz, General Scott had sug- 
gested to the President the propriety of 
sending out commissioners to his headquar- 
ters, who should be empowered to treat for 
peace when a suitable occasion should offer 
itself. The President selected for this pur- 
pose Mr. N. P. Trist, who had been United 
States consul at Havana, and who was 
acquainted with the Spanish language — a 
singular selection. 

Mr. Trist was furnished with the draft of 
-a treaty carefully prepared in the state de- 
partment at Washington, and was intrusted 
with a despatch from Mr. Buchanan, the 
secretary of state, to the Mexican minister 
'of foreign relations. He was instructed to 
communicate confidentially to General Scott 
and Commodore Perry both the treaty and 
his instructions. General Scott was informed 
of Trist's mission by the secretary of war, 
and was directed to suspend military opera- 



tions until further orders, unless attacked. 

Mr. Trist reached Vera Cruz in due time, 
but instead of explaining his mission, as 
directed, to General Scott, he sent a note to 
the commander-in-chief from Vera Cruz, 
enclosing the letter of the secretary of 
war, and the sealed despatch to the Mexican 
minister, which he requested the general to 
forward to its destination. The letter of the 
secretary of war could not be understood by 
General Scott without the explanations Mr. 
Trist was directed to give, but failed to 
make. 

General Scott very properly resented the 
conduct of Trist as an attempt to degrade 
him by making him subordinate to that per- 
sonage, and in his reply to him declared 
that the suspension of hostilities belonged to 
the commander in the field and not to the 
secretary of war a thousand miles away. 
Trist thereupon wrote to General Scott, 
giving a full explanation of his mission, but 
did so in disrespectful terms. In conclusion 
he claimed to be the aid-de-camp of the 
President, and as such to possess the right 
to issue orders to the commander-in-chief 
Scott referred the matter to the government 
at Washington, maintaining in the meantime 
his independence of action as commanding 
general. In due time explanations came 
from Washington satisfactory to the general, 
and Mr. Trist was sharply reprimanded by 
the secretary of state " for his presuming to 
command the general-in-chief." 

Santa Anna in Disgrace. 

Aftei his defeat at Cerro Gordo, Santa 
Anna repaired to Orizaba, where he organ- 
ized a number of guerrilla bands to attack 
the American trains on the road between 
Vera Cruz and Scott's army. He then 
returned to the city of Mexico, where he 
was coldly received by the people. The 
affairs of the Mexican nation were in the 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



6i(> 



most hopeless confusion, and the people 
were utterly disheartened. Their army on 
which they had depended for the defence of 
the road to the capital had been routed at 
Cerro Gordo, and there was no force in exist- 
ence with which to stay the advance of the 
victorious Americans, Had General Scott 
been able to advance upon Mexico immedi- 
ately after his occupation of Puebla, the city 
would have fallen at once, and the war have 
been brought to an immediate close. A 
number of leaders contested the supremacy 
at the capital, and the quarrels of these fac- 
tions paralyzed the efforts of the govern- 
jTient. 

The most capable of these leaders was 
Santa Anna, and his strong qualities natur- 
ally attracted to him the largest following 
By his extraordinary energy he suppressed 
the opposition to him, secured the money he 
needed by forced loans from the people, and 
raised an army of twenty-five thousand men 
.and sixty pieces of artillery, and fortified the 
city of Mexico. The three months' enforced 
delay of General Scott's army at Puebla gave 
him time to carry out these measures, and 
he endeavored to gain still further advantages 
by opening negotiations secretly with Mr. 
Trist, and pretending to be anxious for peace. 
He declared that he needed money to enable 
him to act with freedom in arranging a 
treaty, and succeeded in getting about ten 
thousand dollars from the secret service 
fund at the disposal of General Scott ; but 
his designs were soon detected by the Amer- 
ican commander, and the supply of money 
was discontinued. 

The American Army Advances. 

Reinforcements from the United States 
arrived at Puebla in July, and on the seventh 
of August General Scott resumed his advance 
on the city of Mexico, with a force increased 
to ten thousand men. The route lay through 



a beautiful upland country, abounding in 
water, and rich in the most picturesque 
scenery. The troops pressed on with 
enthusiasm, and on the tenth of August the 
summit of the Cordilleras was passed, and 
then almost from the very spot from which, 
more than three centuries before, the follow- 
ers of Cortez looked down upon the halls of 
the Montezumas, the American army beheld 
the beautiful valley of Mexico stretching out 
for miles before them, with the city of Mexico 
lying in the midst, encircled by the strong 
works that had been erected for its defence. 

Another Important Conquest. 

The passes on the direct road to the city 
had been well fortified and garrisoned by the 
Mexicans, but the country upon the flanks 
had been left unprotected, because Santa 
Anna deemed it utterly impossible for any 
troops to pass over it, and turn his position. 
El Penon, the most formidable of these 
defences, was reconnoitered by the engi- 
neers, who reported that it would cost at 
least three thousand lives to carry it. Scott 
thereupon determined to turn El Penon, 
instead of attacking it. The city and its 
defences were carefully reconnoitered, and it 
was discovered that the works on the south 
and west were weaker than those at any 
other points. General Scott now moved to 
the left, passed El Pefion on the south, and 
by the aid of a corps of skillful engineers 
moved his army across ravines and chasms 
which the Mexican commander had pro- 
nounced impassable, and had left unguarded. 
General Twiggs led the advance, and halted 
and encamped at Chalco, on the lake of the 
same name. Worth followed, and passing 
Twiggs, encamped at the town of San 
Augustin, eight miles from the capital. 

As soon as Santa Anna found that the 
Americans had turned El Penon, and had 
advanced to the south side of the city, he left 



620 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



that fortress and took position in the strong 
fort of San Antonio, which lay directly in 
front of Worth's new position. Northwest 
of San Antonio, and four miles from the city, 
lay the little village of Churubusco, which 
had been strongly fortified by the Mexicans. 
A little to the west of San Augustin was the 
fortified camp of Contreras, with a garrison 
of about six thousand men. In the rear, 
between the camp and the city, was a reserve 
force of twelve thousand men. The whole 
number of Mexicans manning these defences 
was about thirty-five thousand, with at least 
one hundred pieces of artillery of various 
sizes. 

Driven Like Chaff. 

General Scott lost no time in movine 
against the enemy's works. General Persifer 
F. Smith was ordered to attack the en- 
trenched camp at Contreras, while Shields 
and Pierce should move between the camp 
and Santa Anna at San Antonio, and prevent 
him from going to the assistance of the force 
at Contreras. At three o'clock on the morn- 
ing of August 20th, in the midst of a cold 
rain. Smith began his march, his men hold- 
ing on to each other, to avoid being sepa- 
rated in the darkness. He made his attack 
at sunrise, and in fifteen minutes had posses- 
sion of the camp. He took three thousand 
prisoners and thirty three pieces of cannon. 

The camp at Contreras having fallen. Gen- 
eral Scott attacked the fortified village of 
Churubusco an hour or two later, and car- 
ried it after a desperate struggle of several 
hours. General Worth's division stormed 
and carried the strong fort of San Antonio, 
and General Twiggs captured another im- 
portant work. The Mexicans outnumbered 
their assailants three to one, and fought 
bravely. Their efforts were in vain, how- 
ever, and late in the afternoon they were 
driven from their defences, and pursued by 



the American cavalry to the gates of the 
city. 

These two victories had been won over a 
force of thirty thousand Mexicans by less 
than ten thousand Americans, and a loss of 
four thousand killed and wounded and three 
thousand prisoners had been inflicted upon 
the Mexican army. The American loss was 
eleven hundred men. 

Santa Anna retreated within the city, and 
on the twenty-first of August the American 
army advanced to within three miles of the 
city of Mexico. On the same day Santa 
Anna sent a flag of truce to General Scott, 
asking for a suspension of hostilities, in order 
to arrange the terms of a peace. The request 
was granted, and Mr. Trist was despatched 
to the city, and began negotiations with the 
Mexican commissioners. After protracted 
delays, designed to gain time, the Mexican, 
commissioners declined the American con- 
ditions, and proposed others which they 
knew would not be accepted. Thoroughly 
disgusted, Mr. Trist returned to the Amer- 
ican camp, and brought with him the in- 
telligence that Santa Anna had violated the 
armistice by using the time accorded him by 
it in strengthening his defences. Indignant 
at such treachery, General vScott at once re- 
sumed his advance upon the city. 

A Hard-fought Battle. 

The Mexican capital was still defended by 
two powerful works. One of these was 
Molino del Rey, " The King's Mill," a foun- 
dry, where it was said the church bells were 
being cast into cannon ; the other was the 
strong castle of Chapultepec. General Scott 
resolved to make his first attack upon Molino 
del Rey, which was held by fourteen thou- 
sand Mexicans. It was stormed and carried 
on the eighth of September, after a severe 
contest by Worth's division, four thousand 
stronsf. This was reerarded as the hardest 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



won victory of the war. The Mexicans 
were nearly four times as numerous as the 
Americans, and their position was one of 
very great strength. The Americans fought 
principally with their rifles and muskets, 
their artillery being of but little use to them, 
owing to the nature of the position. Their 
loss was seven hundred and eighty-seven 
killed and wounded — nearly one-fourth of 
the force engaged. 



621 

to the city by the causeway leading to the 
Belen gate, closely followed by Quitman's 
division. Worth's division was moved for- 
ward to attack the San Cosmo gate, while 
Quitman assailed the Belen gate. The 
defences of the causeways were taken in 
succession, and by nightfall the Belen and 
San Cosmo gates w^ere in possession of the 
Americans after a hard fight for them. The 
troops slept on the ground they had won. 




STORMING OF CHAPULTEPEC. 



The castle of Chapultepec stood on a steep 
and lofty hill, and could not be turned. If 
won at all, it must be by a direct assault. 
On the twelfth of September the American 
artillery opened fire upon it, and reduced it 
almost to ruins. On the morning of the 
thirteenth a determined assault was made by 
the Americans, and the castle was carried 
after a sharp struggle. 

The fugitives from Chapultepec retreated 



During the night of the thirteenth Santa 
Anna, with the remains of his army, retreated 
from the city, leaving the authorities to make 
the best terms they could with the conquer- 
ors. The city officials presented themselves 
before General Scott before daybreak, and 
proposed terms of capitulation. The general 
replied that the city was already in his power, 
and that he would enter it on his own terms. 
The next day, September 14, 1847, the 



FRO:\I THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



622 

American army entered the city of Mexico, oc- 
cupied the grand square, and hoisted the stars 




GENERAL SCOTT ENTERING THE CITY OF MEXICO. 



and stripes over the government buildings. 
Santa Anna retreated with four or five 



thousand men from the capital to the vicinity 
of Puebla, which was besieged by a Mexican 
force. The city contained 
eiefhteen hundred sick 
Americans, and was held 
by a garrison of five hun- 
dred men under Colonel 
Childs. This little force 
held out bravely until the 
arrival of a brigade from 
Vera Cruz, under Gen- 
eral Lane, on its way tO' 
reinforce General Scott. 
Lane drove off Santa 
Anna's army, and re- 
lieved Puebla on the 
eighth of October. Ten 
days later Santa Anna 
was reported to be col- 
lecting another force at 
Alixo. Lane set out im- 
mediately for that place, 
reached it by a forced 
match, and dispersed the 
Mexicans beyond all 
hope of reunion. 

Immediately after the 
capture of the city of 
Mexico Santa Anna re- 
signed the presidency of 
the republic in favor of 
Senor Pena y Pena, pre- 
sident of the Supreme 
Court of Justice, but re- 
tained his position as 
commander-in-chief of 
the army. The fall of the 
city was followed by the 
inauguration of a new 
government, one of the 
first acts of which was to 
dismiss Santa Anna from 
the command of the army. He at once left 
the country, and fled to the West Indies. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



625. 



The Mexican government was removed to 
the city of Queretaro, and a new congress 
was elected, which began its sessions in that 
city. Negotiations for peace had been opened 
in the meantime, and the meetings of the 
Mexican commissioners and Mr. Trist were 
held at the town of Guadaloupe Hidalgo, 
where, on the second of February, 1848, a 
treaty of peace was signed by Nicholas P. 
Trist, on the part of the United States, and 
Senors Couto, Atristain and Cuevas, on the 
part of Mexico. Though Mr. Trist's powers 
had been withdrawn by President Polk some 
time before, he ventured 
to continue his authority 
on the ground that the 
opportunity for bringing 
the war to a close was too 
favorable to be lost. The 
commissioners appointed 
by the President to super- 
sede him reached Mexico 
a little later, but found the 
treaty signed and sealed. 
It was forwarded to Wash- 
ington, and was laid by the 
President before the Senate, 
which body after a brief 
discussion ratified it. On 
the Fourth of July, 1848, 
President Polk issued a proclamation an- 
nouncing the return of peace. 

By the terms of the treaty the Rio Grande 
was accepted by Mexico as the western 
boundary of the United States and of Texas, 
and that republic ceded to the United States 
the provinces of New Mexico and Upper 
California. For this immense territory the 
government of the United States agreed to 
pay to Mexico the sum of fifteen millions of 
dollars, and to assume the debts due by 
Mexico to citizens of the United States, 
amounting to the sum of three and a half 
millions of dollars. 



The treaty having been ratified, the Ameri- 
can forces were promptly withdrawn from 
Mexico. 

By the cession of California and New 
Mexico, regions as yet unknown, a territory 
four times as large as France, was added to 
the dominions of the United States. Califor- 
nia bordered the Pacific coast for about six 
hundred and fifty miles, and extended inland 
for about the same distance. It embraced an 
area of about four hundred and fifty thousand 
square miles, compi-ising what is now known, 
as California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and 




A MEXICAN CATHEDRAL. 

parts of Colorado and New Mexico. At the 
close of the war it contained about fifteen 
thousand inhabitants. 

In February, 1848, occurred an event des- 
tined to change the whole history of the 
Pacific coast. A laborer on the plantation of 
Captain Sutter, situated in Coloma county, 
California, on a branch of the Sacramento 
river, while working on a mill-race, discov- 
ered gold in the sands of the little stream. 
The precious metal was soon found to be in 
abundance in the neighborhood, and the 
news spread rapidly. It reached the United 
States about the time of the ratification of 



624 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



the treaty, and produced the most intense 
excitement. 

In the course of a few months thousands 
of emigrants were on their way to California 
to dig gold. Some went in steamers and 
-sailing vessels around Cape Horn ; some 
crossed the Isthmus of Panama, and worked 
their way up the Pacific coast ; and others, 
and by far the greater number, undertook 
the long and dangerous journey across the 
plains and the Rocky Mountains, traveling 








HYDRAULIC MINING. 

generally in caravans. In a short time mul- 
titudes came flocking from every country in 
Eu'-ope to join the throng in search of the 
precious metal. San Francisco was the cen- 
tral point cS this vast emigration, and that 
place soon grew from a village of a few 
miserable huts to a city of over fifteen thou- 
sand inhabitants. Within two years after the 
discovery of gold the population of California 
had increased to nearly a hundred thousand ; 
two years later, in 1852, it numbered two 
hundred and sixty-four thousand. 



The influence of the discovery of gold in 
California was not limited to this country. 
It gave an impetus to the commerce and in- 
dustry of the whole world. 

On the twenty-first of February, 1848, ex- 
President John Quincy Adams, then a mem- 
ber of the House of Representatives in 
Congress, was stricken with paralysis in his 
seat in the House. He was carried into the 
speaker's room, where he died two days later, 
at the age of eighty, 

_ On the twenty-ninth of May, 

%^ 1848, Wisconsin was admitted 

- ' into the Union as a State, mak- 

m ing the thirtieth member of the 

^ confederacy. 

^ Before the return of peace 
^5 with Mexico the slavery ques- 
^ tion had been revived in the 
United States, and had been 
the cause of an agitation full 
of trouble to both sections. 
On the eighth of August, 
1846, President Polk sent a 
message to Congress asking 
an appropriation of three 
millions of dollars to enable 
him to negotiate a treaty of 
peace with Mexico, based 
upon the policy of obtain- 
ing a cession of territory 
outside the existing limits 
of Texas. During the debate upon a bill 
to grant this appropriation, Mr. David 
Wilmot, a representative from Pennsyl- 
vania, made the following amendment, 
known as the "Wilmot Proviso:" ''Provided, 
That there shall be neither slavery nor in- 
voluntary servitude in any territory which 
shall hereafter be acquired, or be annexed to 
the United States, otherwise than in the 
punishment of crimes, whereof the party 
shall have been duly convicted ; Provided 
ahvays, That any person escaping into the 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES K. POLK. 



625 



same, from whom labor or service is lawfully 
claimed in any one of the United States, 
such fugitive may be lawfully reclaimed and 
conveyed out of said territory to the person 
claiming his or her labor or service." 

The Country Profoundly Excited. 

This amendment took no notice of the 
Missouri Compromise line, and was opposed 
with great warmth by the southern members, 
who declared it an attempt to rob the 
Southern States in advance of their fair 
share of the territory that might be won by 
the joint efforts of the States. The bill 
failed in the Senate ; but the announcement 
of the Wilmot Proviso re-opened the slavery 
question in all its bitterness, and plunged the 
country into a state of profound excitement. 

The agitation was renewed in January, 
1 847, when a bill for the organization of a ter- 
ritorial government for Oregon was reported 
to the House with the Wilmot Proviso 
incorporated in it. Mr. Burt, of South 
Carolina, moved to amend the bill by 
inserting before the restrictive clause the 
words : " Inasmuch as the whole of said 
territory lies north of 36° 30' north latitude." 
This was an effort to apply to the Oregon 
bill the principles of the Missouri Com- 



promise; but the friends of the restriction 
rejected the amendment. The bill passed 
the House, but was defeated in the Senate. 
During the next session the measure was 
revived, and a territorial government was 
organized for Oregon with an unqualified 
restriction upon slavery. 

In the fall of 1 848 the Presidential election 
occurred. The Democratic party supported 
Senator Lewis Cass, of Michigan, for the 
Presidency, and General William O. Butler, 
of Kentucky, for the Vice-Presidency. The 
Whig party nominated General Zachary 
Taylor, of Louisiana, for the Presidency, 
and Millard Fillmore, of New York, for the 
Vice Presidency. The Anti-slavery or Free 
Soil party put in nomination for the Presi- 
dency Martin Van Buren, of New York, and 
for the Vice-Presidency Charles Francis 
Adams, of Massachusetts. In the election 
which followed the political campaign, the 
candidates of the Whig party were elected 
by decisive majorities. The Free Soil party 
failed to receive a single electoral vote, but 
out of the popular vote of nearly three mil- 
lions, nearly three hundred thousand ballots 
were cast for its candidates, showing a 
remarkable gain in strength in the past four 
years. 



40 




CHAPTER XXXVIII 



The Administrations of Zachary Taylor and 
Millard Fillmore 



Character of General Taylor — Department of the Interior — Death of ex-President Polk — The Slavery Agitation — 
Views of Clay and Webster — California Asks Admission Into the Union — Message of President Taylor — The Omnibus 
Bill — Efforts of Henry Clay — A Memorable Debate — Webster's " Great Union Speech " — Death of John C. Calhoun 
— Death of President Taylor — Millard Fillmore Becomes President — Passage of the Compromise Measures of 1850 — 
Death of Henry Clay — Dissatisfaction With the Compromise — The Fugitive Slave Law Nullified by the Northern 
States — The Nashville Convention — Organization of Utah Territory — The Seventh Census — The Expedition of Lopez 
Against Cuba — The Search for Sir John Franklin — The Grinnel Expedition — Dr. Kane's Voyages — Inauguration of 
Cheap Postage — Laying the Corner-stone of the New Capitol — Death of Daniel Webster — Arrival of Kossuth — The 
President Rejects the Tripartite Treaty — Franklin Pierce Elected President — Death of William R. King. 



THE fourth of March, 1849, fell on 
Sunday, and the inauguration of 
General Taylor as President of the 
United States took place on Mon- 
day, March fifth. 

The new President was a native of Vir- 
ginia, but had removed with his parents to 
Kentucky at an early age, and had grown 
up to manhood on the frontiers of that State. 
In 1808, at the age of twenty-four, he was 
commissioned a lieutenant in the army by 
President Jefferson, and had spent forty years 
in the military service of the coimtry. His 
exploits in the Florida war and the war with 
Mexico have been related. His brillant vic- 
tories in Mexico had made him the most 
popular man in the United States, and had 
won him the high office of the presidency at 
the hands of his gratefiil fellow-citizens. He 
was without political experience, but he was 
a man of pure and stainless integrity, of 
great firmness, a sincere patriot, and pos- 
sessed of strong good sense. He had received 
a majority of the electoral votes of both the 
Northern and Southern States, and was free 
from party or sectional ties of any kind. 

His inaugural address was brief, and was 
confined to a statement of general principles, 

626 



His cabinet was composed of the leaders of 
the Whig party, with John M. Clayton, of 
Delaware, as secretary of state. The last 
Congress had created a new executive de- 
partment — that of the interior — to relieve 
the secretary of the treasury of a part of his 
duties, and President Taylor was called upon 
to appoint the first secretary of the interior, 
which he did in the person of Thomas Ewing, 
of Ohio. The new department was charged 
with the management of the public lands, 
the Indian tribes, and the issuing of patents 
to inventors. 

A few months after the opening of Pre- 
sident Taylor's administration, ex-President 
Polk died at his home in Nashville, Tennessee,, 
on the fifteenth of June, 1849, in the fifty- 
fourth year of his age. 

Since the announcement of the Wilmot 
Proviso, the agitation of the slavery question- 
had been incessant, and had increased instead 
of diminishing with each succeeding year.. 
It was one of the chief topics of discussion in 
the newspaper press of the country, and 
entered largely into every political contro- 
versy, however local or insignificant in its 
nature. The opponents of slavery regarded 
the annexation of Texas and the Mexicaa 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 



627 



war as efforts to extend that institution, and 
were resolved to put an end to its existence 
at any cost. The advocates of slavery claimed 
that the Southern States had an equal ri^ht 
to the common property of the States, and 
were entitled to protec- 
tion for their slaves in 
any of the Territories 
then owned by the 
States or that might af- 
terwards be acquired by 
them. 

The Missouri Com 
promise forbade the ex- 
istence of slavery north 
of the line of 36° 30' 
north latitude, and left 
the inhabitants south of 
that line free to decide 
upon their own institu- 
tions. The Anti-slavery 
party was resolved that 
slavery should be ex- 
cluded from the territory 
acquired from Mexico, 
and in the Wilmot Pro- 
viso struck their first 
blow for the accomplish- 
ment of this purpose. 
We have seen that they 
succeded in prohibiting 
slavery, by a special act 
of Congress, in Oregon, 
although the terms of 
the Missouri Compro- 
mise would have ex- 
cluded the institution 
from that Territory. 

Their object was fully understood by the 
southern people, and was bitterly resented 
by them. The agitation of the subject aroused 
a storm of passion throughout the country, 
and produced a very bitter feeling between 
the Northern and Southern States. In his 



last message to Congress, President Polk had 
recommended that the line of 36° 30' north 
latitude be extended to the Pacific, and thus 
leave it to the people south of that line to 
decide whether they would have slavery or 




ZACHARY TAYLOR. 

not. This proposition was acceptable to the 
South ; but it was rejected by the Anti-slavery 
party. The Missouri Compromise line had 
been limited to the Louisiana purchase, 
which was entirely slaveholding, and had 
made more than one-half of it free. To 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



628 

extend the line to the Pacific would be to 
give the South a chance to establish slavery 
in territory which was free at the time of its 
acquisition by the United States. The North 
Avould not listen to such a proposition. 

During the last session of Congress in 
Mr. Polk's administration, an effort had been 
made to establish territorial governments for 
Utah and New Mexico, but had failed in 



the supreme law of the land, it was superior 
to any territorial law or act of Congress abol- 
ishing slavery; and that the constitution 
clearly and unequivocally established and 
protected slavery in the Territories. 

Mr. Webster, speaking for the north, de- 
clared that the constitution was designed for 
the government of the States, and not for the 
Territories. Congress, he said, had the right 




THE WHITE HOUSE, WASHINGTON, D. C. 



consequence of the inability of Congress to 
agree upon the question of slavery in these 
Territories. In the debate in the Senate upon 
these measures, Mr. Calhoun and Mr. Webster 
took an active part, and each presented in a 
masterly manner the views of the section he 
represented upon this great question. Mr. Cal- 
houn, speaking for the south, argued that the 
constitution recognized slavery; that as it was 



to govern the Territories independently of 
the constitution, and he maintained that it 
often exercised this right contrary to the 
constitution, as it did things in the Territories 
which it could not do in the States. He 
added : " When new territory has been ac- 
quired it has always been subject to the laws 
of Congress — to such laws as Congress 
thought proper to pass for its immediate 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 



629 



government and preparatory state in which 
it was to remain until it was ready to come 
into the Union as one of the family of States." 
He quoted in support of his position the 
clause of the constitution which declares 
that the " constitution and the laws of the 
United States which shall be made in pur- 
suance thereof, .... shall be the supreme 
law of the land." 

Congress having failed to make any pro- 
vision for territorial governments for Utah 
and New Mexico, those Territories were left 
in a condition of anarchy. One of the first 
duties devolving upon the new administration 
was the alleviation of this evil until it could 
be definitely settled by Congress. President 
Taylor instructed the federal officers in 
those Territories to encourage the people to 
organize temporary governments for them- 
selves. 

A New Accession to the Union. 

California in the meantime had grown with 
such rapidity, and had experienced so much 
trouble from its sudden increase of popula- 
tion and the lack of a definite government, 
that its leading citizens determined to seek 
admission into the Union. In the autumn 
of 1849 a convention of the people was held, 
a constitution formed, and a State govern- 
ment organized. The action of the conven- 
tion was promptly ratified by the people. 
Upon the assembly of the Thirty-first Con- 
gress in the winter of 1849, California applied 
for admission into the Union as a State, with 
a constitution forbidding slavery within her 
limits. 

The organization of the Thirty-first Con- 
gress was delayed for three weeks. Parties 
were about evenly divided, and sixty ballots 
were taken before a speaker could be chosen. 
One of the leaders on the Democratic side 
was Robert Toombs, of Georgia. The choice 
at last fell upon Howell Cobb, of Georgia, 



who was elected by a plurality. Partisan 
bitterness ran high during this struggle. 

Upon the organization of the House, Presi- 
dent Taylor sent in his first and only mes- 
sage. He recognized the danger with which 
the sectional controversy threatened the 
country, expressed his views of the situation 
in moderate terms, and intimated that he 
should faithfully discharge his duties to the 
whole country. He recommended the admis- 
sion of California with the constitution she 
had chosen ; and advised that Utah and New 




ROBERT TOOMBS. 

Mexico should be organized as Territories, 
with liberty to decide the question of slavery 
for themselves when they were ready to enter 
the Union as States. A dispute having arisen 
between Texas and New Mexico concerning 
the proper boundary between them, the Pre- 
sident recommended that it should be settled 
by the courts of the United States. 

The other questions which demanded im- 
mediate settlement were slavery in the Dis- 
trict of Columbia, and the demand of the 
Southern States for a more faithful execution 



630 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



of the provision of the constitution which 
required the arrest and return of fugitive 
slaves. 

The South opposed the admission of Cali- 
fornia with a free constitution, and the North 
demanded the abolition of the slave trade in 
the District of Columbia, and the Northern 
States were unwilling to allow their officers 
to execute the Fugitive Slave Law within 
their limits. The excitement became intense, 
and threats to dissolve the Union of the 
States were freely indulged in by the extrem- 
ists of both the North and the South. 

Opposing Views in the Senate. 

On the twenty-ninth of January, 1850, 
Henry Clay introduced into the Senate a 
series of resolutions designed to settle all the 
points in dispute by a general compromise. 
The resolutions were referred to a commitee 
of thirteen, of which Mr. Clay was made 
chairman. In due time the committee re- 
ported a bill known as the " Omnibus Bill " 
from its embracing in one measure all Mr. 
Clay's propositions. It provided for the admis- 
sion of California as a free State ; the organi- 
zation of the Territories of Utah and New 
Mexico, without reference to slavery ; the 
adjustment of the boundary between Texas 
and New Mexico by paying to the former 
ten millions of dollars ; the abolition of the 
slave trade in the District of Columbia ; and 
the enactment by Congress of a more string- 
ent and effective law for the rendition of 
fugitive slaves. 

The Omnibus bill was warmly opposed in 
Congress and in the country at large. The 
debate in the Senate brought out the views 
of the leading statesmen of the country. 
Senator Jefferson Davis declared the bill in 
no sense a compromise, because it was un- 
equal in its provisions. The South, he de- 
clared, gained nothing by the measure, as 
the constitution already required the rendi- 



tion of fugitive slaves. He proposed, there- 
fore, that the Missouri Compromise line 
should be extended to the Pacific, " with the 
specific recognition of the right to hold 
slaves in the territory below that line." 

Mr. Clay replied to this that " no earthly 
power could induce him to vote for a specific 
measure for the introduction of slavery 
where it had not existed, either north or 
south of that line. I am unwilling that the 
posterity of the present inhabitants of Cali- 
fornia and of New Mexico should reproach 
us for doing just what we reproach Great 
Britain for doing to us. If the citizens of 
those Territories come here with constitu- 
tions establishing slavery, I am for admitting 
them into the Union ; but then it will be 
their own work and not ours, and their pos- 
terity will have to reproach them and not us." 

Webster's Union Speech. 

Mr. Calhoun was too ill to take part in 
the debate in person, but he prepared a 
speech of great ability, which was read for 
him in the Senate by Senator Mason of Vir- 
ginia. He declared that the Union could be 
preserved only by maintaining an equal num- 
ber of free and slave States, in order that the 
representation of the two sections of the 
country might be equal in the Senate. 

Mr. Webster also took part in the debate, 
and on this occasion delivered what is known 
as his " great Union speech of the seventh of 
March," which occupied three days in its 
delivery. He expressed substantially the 
same views as those advocated by Mr. Clay. 
He opposed restriction of slavery in the Ter- 
ritories, and declared he would vote against 
the Wilmot Proviso. His speech created a 
profound sensation throughout the country, 
and did much to secure the final acceptance 
of the compromise measures. 

In the midst of this discussion John C. 
Calhoun died, on the thirty-first of March, 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 



631 



1850. He had entered Congress in 181 1, 
and had been in public life from that time 
until the day of his death. He had filled 
many high offices, both State and national, 
and had discharged the duties of each and 
all with disinterested 
fidelity and admitted 
ability. He was one of 
the first statesmen this 
country has ever pro- 
duced, and was the ac- 
knowledged leader of the 
South in the sectional 
controversy with the 
North. His character 
was above reproach, and 
he was a sincere and dis- 
interested patriot. His 
death was generally la- 
mented throughout the 
country, and his political 
adversaries joined heart- 
ily in the tributes of the 
nation to his many vir- 
tues and great abilities. 

A few months later 
President Taylor was 
suddenly stricken down 
with a fever, which in 
a few days terminated 
fatally. He died on the 
ninth of July, 1850, amid 
the grief of the whole 
country, which felt that 
it had lost a faithful and 
upright chief magistrate. 
Though the successful 
candidate of one poli- 
tical party, his administration had received 
the earnest support of the best men of the 
country without regard to party, and his 
death was a national calamity. He had held 
office only sixteen months, but had shown 
himself equal to his difficult and delicate 



position. He was sixty-six years old at the 
time of his death. 

By the terms of the constitution the office 
of President devolved upon Millard Fillmore, 
Vice-President of the United States. On 




MILLARD FILLMORE. 

the tenth of July he took the oath of office 
before Chief Justice Cranch of the District 
of Columbia, and at once entered upon the 
duties of his new position. 

Mr. Fillmore was a native of New York, 
and was born in that State in the year 1800. 



632 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



He had served his State in Congress, and as 
governor, and was personally one of the most 
popular of the Presidents. The cabinet of 
General Taylor resigned their offices imme- 




PORTRAITS 



LEADING MORMONS. 



diately after his death, and the new President 
filled their places by appointing a new cabi- 
net with Daniel Webster at its head as secre- 
tary of state. Mr. Fillmore was in active sym- 



pathy with Mr. Clay in his efforts to secure 
the passage of the compromise measures, as 
he deemed them the best adjustment of the 
trouble possible under the circumstances. 

The compromise measures 
were warmly debated in Con- 
gress, the sessions of which ex- 
tended through the summer into 
the latter part of September. 
The bill was then taken up and 
passed, article by article, by the 
House of Representatives, it hav- 
ing previously passed the Senate. 
The bill at once received the ex- 
ecutive approval, and became a 
law. 

The clause admitting Califor- 
nia into the Union as a State 
was adopted on the ninth of 
September, 1850. 

The course of Mr. Clay in 
securing the passage of the com- 
promise measures of 1850 was 
justly regarded as the crowning 
glory of his life. It won for him 
the love and confidence of the 
whole country without regard to 
party, and the man who " had 
rather be right than be Presi- 
dent" had the proud satisfaction 
of seeing all the faults and mis- 
takes of his earlier years for- 
gotten in the confidence and gra- 
titude with which his country- 
men regarded him. He ceased 
now to take an active part in the 
questions of the day, for it was 
fitting that his life should close 
with this great service to nis 
country. His health failed ra- 
pidly, but he continued to hold his seat in the 
Senate until the twenty-ninth of June, 1852, 
when he died at the age of seventy-five years. 
Honors were showered upon his memory in 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 



633 



all parts of the Union, and he was laid to his 
rest amid a nation's unaffected mournine:. 



measures failed to give satisfaction. The 
Fugitive Slave Law was bitterly denounced 




CUBAN FILLIBUSTERS ON THE MARCH. 



There were still many extremists both 
North and South, to whom the compromise 



by the Anti-slavery party in the North. As 
the Supreme Court of the United States had 



634 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



decided that the justices of the peace in the 
respective States could not be called upon 
to execute the law for the rendition of fugi- 
tive slaves, a clause was inserted in the Fugi- 
tive Slave Law of 1850, providing for the 
appointment of United States commission- 
ers, before whom such cases could be tried. 

The Fugitive Slave Law. 

The Northern States successively enacted 
laws for the nullification of the provisions of 
this law. All their jails and other State 
buildings were refused to the federal officers 
for the securing of fugitive slaves, and all 
State, county, and city officers were forbid- 
den to arrest or assist in arresting or detain- 
ing any fugitive slave. In many of the 
States severe punishments were denounced 
against masters coming within their limits 
to claim their slaves, and such fugitives 
entering these States were declared free. 
These laws were denounced by the slave- 
holdinglStates as violative of the constitu- 
tion of the United States, and gave rise to 
great bitterness of feeling toward the North 
It was maintained that these laws were direct 
evidence of the intention of the northern 
people to rob the South of its property in 
negro slaves. 

The extremists of the South were equally 
dissatisfied with the compromise. They 
declared that the South had sacrificed 
everything and gained nothing by it, and 
boldly avowed their intention to bring about 
the secession of the Southern States from 
the Union. In the summer of 1850 a south- 
ern convention was held at Nashville, Ten- 
nessee. Its real end was the dissolution of 
the Union, and for that purpose it urged the 
Southern States to appoint delegates to a 
" Southern Congress." The legislatures of 
South Carolina and Mississippi alone 
responded to this invitation, but the great 
mass of the southern people turned a deaf 



ear to the appeals of the disunionists, and 
the convention failed to accomplish its 
object. 

In the inauguration of a territorial govern- 
ment for Utah, the Mormons, whose settle- 
ment in that Territory while it was yet a 
possession of Mexico we have related, 
endeavored to frame their own government, 
and gave to the Territory the name of Des- 
eret, which they declared was a word of their 
peculiar language meaning " The Land of 
the Honey Bee." President Fillmore set 
aside this name and carried out the act of 
Congress by which the Territory received 
its present name. Brigham Young, the 
Mormon leader or prophet, was appointed 
governor of the Territory. 

In 1850 the seventh census showed the 
population of the United States to be 23,- 
191,876 souls. 

Capture of General Lopez. 

In the early part of President Taylor's 
administration. General Lopez, a Spaniard, 
began to enlist men in the United States 
ostensibly for the purpose of aiding the 
people of the island of Cuba to throw off 
their allegiance to Spain and establish their 
independence, but really for the purpose of 
driving out the Spaniards and securing the 
annexation of Cuba to the United States. 
He succeeded in inducing a number of 
adventurous persons to join him. 

President Taylor, upon learning of the 
movement, issued a proclamation forbidding 
citizens of the United States to engage in it. 
In spite of this warning, Lopez collected a 
force of six hundred men, and eluding the 
vigilance of the United States officers, sailed 
for Cuba. He landed at Cardenas, but 
received so little encouragement that the 
party sailed for Key West. In 1851, Lopez 
again entered. Cuba, this time at the head of 
four hundred and fifty men. His party was 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 



635 



captured almost immediately, and he and a 
number of his men were put to death by the 
Spanish authorities at Havana. 

In May, 1850, an expedition of a different 
character sailed from the United States. The 
fate of Sir John Franklin, who sailed from 
England in 184.5, in search 
of the northwest passage, 
had long enlisted the sym- 
pathies of humane and gen- 
erous souls. It was thought 
that the daring navigator 
might be confined to the 
Arctic regions by the loss 
■of his ships, and that a 
well-executed search might 
either result in the dis- 
covery and relief of Frank- 
lin or settle the question 
as to his fate. Mr. Henry 
Grinnell, a wealthy mer- 
chant of New York, fitted 
out an expedition at his 
own expense, and placing 
it under the command of 
Lieutenant De Haven, of 
the United States navy, 
■despatched it to the Arctic 
■regions to search for Frank- 
lin and his men, in May, 
1850. De Haven was ac- 
companied by Dr. E. K. 
Kane, in the capacity of 
surgeon and naturalist. 
After a year's absence the 
vessels returned, the search 
having been unsuccessful. 
The general government 
.despatched another expedition in 1 85 i , on the 
.same errand, and placed it under command of 
Dr. Kane. This expedition was absent four 
years, and the government, becoming appre- 
hensive of its fate, sent two vessels to search 
for Kane and his companions. They were 



found at the isle of Disco, in Greenland, 
having been forced to abandon their vessel 
in the ice. Nothing was learned by Dr. 
Kane concerning the fate of Sir John 
Franklin ; but the expedition resulted in the 
discovery of the open Polar sea. Nothing 




SIR JOHN FRANKLIN. 

definite was learned of the fate of Sir John 
Franklin until 1859, when the steamer 
" Fox," despatched by Lady Franklin, made 
the melancholy discovery that Sir John 
Franklin died on the eleventh of June, 1847, 
and in 1848 the " Erebus " and " Terror " 



636 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



were abandoned in the ice. The survi- 
vors of these disasters, one hundred and 
five in number, died one by one from 
cold and exhaustion on King William's 
Island. 

In the early part of 185 i Congress reduced 
the postage on prepaid letters to three cents 
to all parts of the United States, prepayment 
being made by means of stamps provided by 



under great disadvantages. His health had 
been failing for some time past, and his 
weakness was so great that he could speak 
only with difficulty. 

This oration was one of the last public acts 
of the great statesman. On the twenty-fourth 
of October, 1852, he died at his home at 
Marshfield, Massachusetts, aged seventy 
years, and in him perished the first statesman 




RELICS OF FRANKLIN S POLAR VOYAGE. 



the government. The result was a rapid and 
immense increase of the postal revenue of 
the country. 

On the fourth of July, 185 i, the corner- 
stone of the extension of the capitol at 
Washington was laid by President Fillmore 
with appropriate ceremonies. The orator of 
the day was Daniel Webster. His address 
was one of his best efforts, but was delivered 



of America. He was large and stout in 
frame, of swarthy complexion, and slow and 
heavy in movement — a man of noble and 
commanding appearance. His intellect was 
cast in the same gigantic mould as his body. 
His language was simple and chaste, and his 
arguments irresistible. His patriotism knew 
no sectional limits. " I am as ready," he 
once said, " to fight and to fall for the 



ADMINISTRATIONS OF TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. 



637 



constitutional rights of Virginia as I am for 
those of Massachusetts." 

Alexander H. Stephens has said of him : 
" He was too great a man and had too great 
an intellect not to see the truth when it was 
presented, and he was too honest and too 
patriotic a man not to proclaim the truth 
when he saw it, even to an unwilling people. 



ordeal, and that he passed it with unflinch- 
ing firmness is one of the grandest features 
in the general grandeur of his character. 
Even his detractors have been constrained to 
render him unwilling homage in this re- 
spect." * His memory was honc^red by appro- 
priate demonstrations in all parts of the 
country, and it is said that the popular 




DR. E. K KANE AND HIS COMPANIONS. 



In this quality ol moral greatness I often 
thought Mr. Webster had the advantage of 
his great contemporaries, Messrs. Clay and 
Calhoun. Not that I would be understood as 
saying that they were not men of great moral 
courage, for both of them showed this high 
quality in many instances, but they never 
gave the world such striking exhibitions of 
it as he did. Webster often passed this 



tributes on this occasion were equalled only 
by those of the nation at the death of 
Washington. 

In December, 185 1, Louis Kossuth, the 
chief of the Hungarian insurrection of 1848, 
visited the United States. His avowed 
object was to promote the cause of his 

* The War Between the States, vol. i., pp. 405, 406. 



6sS 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



countrymen, and he made frequent addresses 
in various parts of the Union, which were 
hstened to by vast multitudes who were 
charmed with his eloquence. He visited 
Washington, and was granted a public recep- 
tion by Congress. The Austrian minister at 
Washington, the Chevalier Hulseman, pro- 
tested against this reception, and his protest 
being unheeded, he withdrew from Washing- 
ton for a while. 

Protection for Cuba. 

The attempt of Lopez upon Cuba had 
greatly alarmed Spain for the safety of that 
island. England and France, sympathizing 
with her, and anxious to render the acquisi- 
tion of Cuba by the United States impossible, 
proposed to the American government to 
join them in a " tripartite treaty," in which 
each should disclaim any intention to seize 
that island, and should guarantee Spain in 
her possession of it. In December, 1852, 
Edward Everett, who had succeeded Mr. 
Webster as secretary of state, by direction of 
the President, replied to the proposition of 
England and France, declining to accept it. 

" The President," he said, " does not covet 
the acquisition of Cuba for the United States," 
but " could not see with indifference that 
island fall into the possession of any Euro- 
pean government than Spain." He stated 
that the situation of the island rendered it 
peculiarly interesting to this country by 
reason of its proximity to our coast, and its 
commanding the approach to the Gulf of 



Mexico and the mouth of the Mississippi. 
The European powers were thus given to 
understand that the United States would not 
tolerate their interference in a question purely 
American. 

The year 1852 was marked by intense ex- 
citement consequent on the political cam- 
paign which terminated in the fall in the 
Presidential election. The Democratic party 
made a strong and successful effort to recover 
its lost power, and nominated Franklin 
Pierce, of New Hampshire, for President, 
and William R. King, of Alabama, for Vice- 
President. The Whig party nominated Gen- 
eral Winfield Scott for President, and Wil- 
liam A. Graham, of North Carolina, for Vice- 
President. The Anti-slavery party put ia 
nomination John P. Hale, of New Hamp- 
shire, and George W. Julian, of Indiana. 
The election resulted in the choice of the 
candidates of the Democratic party by an 
overwhelming majority. The Anti-slavery 
party on this occasion polled but 155,825 
votes, or a little more than half of the strength 
it had shown at the previous election. 

Mr. King, the Vice- President-elect, did not 
long survive his triumph. His health had 
been delicate for many years, and he was 
obliged to pass the winter succeeding the 
election in Cuba. Being unable to return 
home, he took the oath of office before the 
American consul, at Havana, on the fourth 
of March, 1853. He then returned to the 
United States, and died at his home in Ala- 
bama on the eighteenth of April, 1853. ' 



CHAPTER XXXIX 



The Administration of Franklin Pierce. 

Dispute with Mexico — The Gadsden Purchase — Surveys for a Pacific Railway — The Japan Expedition — Treaty with 
Japan — The Koszta Affair — The " Black Warrior " Seized by the Cuban Officials — The " Ostend Conference " — Dis- 
missal of the British Minister — The Kansas-Nebraska Bill — History of the Bill — Its Passage by Congress — History of 
the Struggle in Kansas — Conflict Between the Pro-Slavery and Free-Soil Settlers — Lawrence Sacked — Civil War — 
The Presidential Campaign of 1856 — James Buchanan Elected President of the United States — Rapid Increase of 
the Republican Party. 



PRESIDENT PIERCE took the 
oath of office at the capitol at 
Washington on the fourth of 
March, 1853, in the presence of 
an immense throng. He was in his forty- 
ninth year, and had won an enviable name 
by his previous services to the country. He 
was a native of New Hampshire, and had 
represented that State for four years in th^ 
lower House of Congress, and for nearly 
a full term in the Senate of the United 
States. He had also served with distinction 
during the Mexican war as brigadier-gen- 
eral. He placed William L. Marcy, of New 
York, at the head of his cabinet as secretary 
of state. 

The first question of importance the new 
President was called upon to settle grew out 
of a dispute with Mexico concerning the 
boundary between that country and the 
Territory of New Mexico. At the time of 
the treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo the maps 
were so imperfect that the boundary line 
had not been drawn with sufficient exact- 
ness. Both countries claimed the Mesilla 
valley, which was said to be very fertile, but 
which was more important to the United 
States as affording what was generally 
regarded as the most practicable route to 
California. 

Santa Anna was now President of the 
Mexican republic again, and sent a force of 



Mexican troops to occupy the region in dis- 
pute. The matter was settled by negotia- 
tion, however, and the United States 
obtained the Mesilla valley and the free 
navigation of the Gulf of California and of 
the Colorado to the American frontier. For 
these concessions the federal government 
paid Mexico the sum of ten millions of dol- 
lars. The district thus acquired was known 
as the " Gadsden Purchase," and was subse- 
quently erected into the Territory of Ari- 
zona. 

The necessity of more rapid and certain 
communication with California had brought 
the nation to regard a railway between the 
Mississippi and the Pacific as a necessity, 
and as such an undertaking was considered 
beyond the resources of a private corpora- 
tion, it was believed that it should be built 
by the general government, or at least that 
the general government should bear a part 
of the expense. The year 1853 witnessed 
the first steps towards the construction of 
this great work. Two expeditions were de- 
spatched under the orders of the war depart- 
ment to explore the best routes for a Pacific 
railway. 

The acquisition of California brought the 
United States into new relations with the 
nations of the eastern world, as it secured for 
them a base upon the Pacific from which a 
direct trade could be conducted with China 

639 



640 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



and Japan. The empire of Japan, however, 
was closed to foreigners, and it was very de- 
sirable to open commercial relations with it. 
Towards the close of Mr. Fillmore's term of 
office, Commodore Perry, a brother of the 
hero of Lake Erie, was despatched to China 
with a fleet of seven war steamers to nego- 
tiate a treaty with the Japanese government. 
He arrived in the bay of Jeddo in the sum- 
mer of 1853. The natives were greatly 
astonished at the appearance of his steamers, 
the first that had ever been seen in those 




FRANKLIN PIERCE. 

waters, and at his boldness in venturing into 
their harbors. The Japanese officials ordered 
him to depart, but he refused, and insisted 
on seeing the emperor, and making known 
to him the object of his friendly visit. 

They at length decided to lay the matter 
before the emperor, who consented to grant 
an interview to the commodore, and named 
the fourteenth of July for that purpose. On 
the day appointed the commodore landed, 
accompanied by a strong body of marines. 
He was received with great ceremony by the 
Japanese, and delivered the President's let- 



ter, to which an answer was promised. The 
answer of the emperor was submitted to him 
several months later, and was favorable. A 
treaty was concluded between the United 
States and Japan, by which the former were 
allowed to trade in two specified ports — 
Simodi and Hokadadi. American citizens 
were permitted to reside at these ports, and 
consuls were accepted for them. Thus the 
United States had the honor of being the 
first to open the rich markets of the island 
empire to the commerce of the civilized 
world. Since then the relations between the 
two countries have steadily grown more cor- 
dial, and Japan has shown a remarkable 
rapidity and facility for adopting the civiliza- 
tion of the west. 

In July, 1853, occurred an event which did 
much to increase the respect for our navy 
among the powers of the world. Martin 
Koszta, a Hungarian, who had taken the 
preliminary steps to be naturalized in the 
United States, happening to be in Smyrna, 
in Asia Minor, on business, was seized as a 
rebel and a refugee by order of the Austrian 
consul-general, and taken on board an Aus> 
trian brig. The United States sloop-of-wai 
"St. Louis," Captain Ingraham, was lying in 
the harbor at the time, and Ingraham was 
appealed to for protection for Koszta. 

Ingraham Threatens to Fire. 

He at once demanded his release as an 
American citizen. The demand was refused 
by the authorities, and Ingraham at once 
called his crew to quarters and threatened 
to fire upon the Austrian ship if Koszta was 
not immediately released. The Austrians 
at once surrendered their prisoner, and he 
was placed in custody of the French consul 
to await the action of the government of the 
United States. The matter was settled by 
negotiation between this country and Austria, 
and Koszta was released. Austria addresseil 



ADMINISTRATION OF FRANKLIN PIERCE. 



641 



to the government at Washington a remon- 
strance against the conduct of Captain Ingra- 
ham, but his course was warmly applauded 
by his countrymen and by disinterested per- 
sons in Europe. 

In February, 1854, the American merchant 
steamer " Black Warrior" was seized by the 
Spanish authorities at Havana, on the pre- 
text that she had evaded or violated some 
uncertain revenue law, and the ship and her 
cargo were declared confiscated. This action 
of the Havana officials was regarded in the 
United States as unjust, and aroused a great 
deal of feeling against the Spaniards, and 
gave a sudden impetus to the national senti- 
ment in favor of the acquisition of Cuba. 
The affair of the " Black Warrior" was satis- 
factorily settled by the Spanish government. 

While the feeling aroused by the affair was 
at its height a conference of some of the 
American ministers in Europe, including 
Mr. Buchanan, minister to England, Mr. 
Mason, minister to France, and Mr. Soule, 
minister to Spain, and some others, was held 
(at Ostend, in Belgium, and a circular was 
'adopted recommending the acquisition of 
Cuba by the United States. This measure 
attracted much attention, and elicited con- 
siderable European criticism of the alleged 
ambitious designs of the United States. Mr. 
Soule, on his return to Madrid, was stopped 
at Calais by order of the emperor of the 
French, who had personal reasons for dis- 
liking him. The emperor, however, recon- 
sidered his action, and allowed Soule to pass 
through France to the Spanish frontier. 

British Minister Dismissed. 

In 1855 Great Britain, France, Sardinia 
and Turkey, being engaged in a war with 
Russia, the agents of the British government 
undertook to enlist recruits for their army 
within the limits of the United States in de- 
fiance of the neutrality laws of this country. 

41 



The matter being brought to the attention 
of the United States government, it was 
found that the British minister at Washing- 
ton and the British consuls in some of the 
principal cities of the Union had encouraged, 
if they had not authorized, these enlistments. 
The government of the United States there- 
upon called the attention of Great Britain to 
the conduct of her minister, and requested 
her to recall him. The queen declined to 
comply with this request, and the minister 
and the consuls were promptly dismissed by 
the President. The matter caused consider- 
able irritation in England for a while, but 
the good sense of the English people at 
length perceived the propriety of the course 
of the American government, and cordial 
relations were re-established between the two 
countries. 

Territory of Nebraska. 

The most important measure of Mr. 
Pierce's administration was the bill to 
organize the Territories of Kansas and 
Nebraska, The region embraced in these 
Territories formed a part of the Louisiana 
purchase, and extended from the borders of 
Missouri, Iowa and Minnesota to the sum- 
mit of the Rocky mountains, and from the 
parallel of 36° 30^ north latitude to the 
border of British America. The whole 
region by the terms of the Missouri Com- 
promise had been secured to free labor by 
the exclusion of slavery. 

Until the year 1850 this vast area was 
called by the general and somewhat indefi- 
nite name of the " Platte Country," from the 
Platte river, which flows through it. Little 
was known concerning it save that it was a 
region of great fertility. It was mainly 
occupied by the reservations of the Indian 
tribes, which had been removed frorn the 
other States to make way for the whites. 
Across it swept the grand trails of the oven 



642 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



land route to Utah and the Pacific. The 
people of the New England States were very 
anxious that the Indian reservations which 
covered the eastern part should be bought 
up by the general government and the coun- 
try thrown open to emigration. Petitions to 
this effect were presented to the Thirty- 
second Congress, but no action was taken 
upon them until December, 1852, when Mr. 
Hall, of Missouri, introduced a bill into the 
House to organize the " Territory of Platte." 




STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS. 

It was referred to the Committee on Ter- 
ritories, which in February, 1853, reported a 
bill organizing the " Territory of Nebraska." 
The bill was opposed in the House of Rep- 
resentatives by the full strength of the South, 
and in the Senate the only southern sena- 
tors who voted for it were those from Mis- 
souri. The Missouri Compromise, as has 
been stated, secured the entire Nebraska 
region to free labor ; but notwithstanding 
this the southern members of Congress 
were resolved to oppose the organization of 



a new free Territory, and to endeavor to 
obtain a footing for slavery, in at least a part 
of it. 

The matter was revived in the Senate on 
the sixteenth of January, 1854, by Senator 
Dixon, of Kentucky, who gave notice that 
whenever the Nebraska bill should be called 
up he would move the following amend- 
ment : " That so much of the eighth section 
of an act approved March 6, 1820, entitled 
' An act to authorize the people of the Mis- 
souri Territory to form a constitution and 
State government, for the admission of such 
State into the Union on an equal footing with 
the original States, ~and to prohibit slavery in 
certain Territories,' as declares ' That, in all 
the territory ceded by France to the United 
States, under the name of Louisiana, which, 
lies north of 36° 3o' north latitude, slavery 
and involuntary servitude, otherwise than in- 
the punishment of crimes whereof the party 
shall have been duly convicted, shall be for 
ever prohibited,' shall not be so construed as 
to apply to the Territory contemplated by this, 
act, or to any other Territory of the United 
States ; but that the citizens of the several 
States or Territories shall be at liberty to take 
and hold their slaves within any of the Terri- 
tories or States to be formed therefrom, as 
if the said act, entitled as aforesaid, had never 
been passed." 

More Slavery Agitation. 

The announcement of this amendment 
startled the country as much as the Wilmot 
Proviso had done years before, and produced 
much angry excitement. It was a clear 
repudiation of the Missouri Compromise, 
which it did not even seek to repeal. 

Senator Douglas, of Illinois, chairman of 
the Committee on Territories, on the twenty- 
third of January, 1854, reported a bill 
which provided for the organization of the 
Platte country into two Territories. The 



ADMINISTRATION OF FRANKLIN PIERCE. 



643 



southern portion, which lay directly west of 
Missouri, stretching to the Rock Mountains 
on the west, and extending from the thirty- 
seventh to the fortieth parallel of north lati- 
tude, was to be organized into a distinct 
Territory, to be called Kansas. The remain- 
der was to be called Nebraska, having the 
line of 43° 30' for its northern boundary- 
Senator Douglas, in an evil hour for the 
country, incorporated in the bill the main 
features of Mr. Dixon's amendment. The bill 
contained the following provisions : 

" Sfxtion 21. And be it further enacted, 
That, in order to avoid misconstruction, it is 
hereby declared to be the true intent and 
meaning of this act, so far as the question of 
slavery is concerned, to carry into practical 
operation the following propositions and 
principles, established by the compromise 
measures of 1850, to wit: 

" First. — That all questions pertaining to 
slavery in the Territories, and in the new 
States to be formed therefrom, are to be left 
to the decision of the people residing therein, 
through their appropriate representatives. 

" Second. — That all cases involving title to 
slaves, and questions of personal freedom, 
are referred to the adjudication of the local 
tribunals, with the right of appeal to the 
Supreme Court of the United States. 

" Third. — That the provisions of the consti- 
tution and laws of the United States, in 
respect to fugitives from service, are to be 
carried into faithful execution in all the 
' organized Territories,' the same as in the 
States." 

A Blow at the Missouri Compromise. 

The section of the bill which prescribed 
the qualifications and mode of election of a 
delegate from each of the Territories was as 
follows : " The constitution, and all laws of 
the United States which are not locally inap- 
plicable, shall have the same force and effect 



within the said Territory as elsewhere in the 
United States, except the section of the act 
preparatory to the admission of Missouri into 
the Union, approved March 6, 1820, which 
was superseded by the priiciples of the leg- 
islation of 1850, commonly called the com- 
promise measures, and is declared inoper- 
ative." 

Mr. Dixon declared that the bill, as 
reported by Senator Douglas, met with his 
hearty approval, and that he would support 
it with all his ability. The debate on the 
bill began in the Senate on the twenty-fourth 
of January, and continued through several 
weeks. It was conducted with great ability 
on both sides, and engaged the earnest atten- 
tion of the whole country. The Free Soil 
senators unanimously opposed the bill, 
which they denounced as a violation of the 
Missouri Compromise, by which the faith of 
the nation was pledged to the settlement then 
effected. The southern senators supported 
it with equal unanimity, as they held that 
the Missouri Compromise had been super- 
seded by the compromise of 1850. 

Motion to Strike Out. 

On the sixth of February Mr. Chase, of 
Ohio, moved to strike out so much of the 
bill as declared the Missouri Compromise 
•'superseded" by the compromise of 1850, 
but the motion was defeated. Whereupon 
Mr. Douglas, on the fifteenth of February, 
moved to strike out the clause objected to 
by Mr. Chase, and insert the following : 

" Which being inconsistent with the prin- 
ciple of non-intervention by Congress with 
slavery in the States and Territories, as 
recognized by the legislation of 1850 (com- 
monly called the compromise measures), is 
hereby declared inoperative and void ; it 
being the true intent and meaning of this act 
not to legislate slavery into any Territory or 
State, nor to exclude it therefrom, but to 



'644 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



leave the people thereof perfectly free to form 
and regulate their domestic institutions in 
their own way, subject only to the constitu- 
tion of the United States." 

Mr. Douglas' amendment was at once 
adopted, and seemed fair enough on its face. 
Mr. Chase exposed the hollowness of it by 
proposing to add to it the following clause, 
which was promptly voted down : " Under 
which the people of the Territories, through 
their appropriate representatives, may, if they 




SALMON p. CHASE. 

see fit, prohibit the existence of slavery 
therein." 

The bill was adopted by the Senate by a 
vote of thirty-seven yeas to fourteen nays, 
and by the House by a vote of one hundred 
and thirteen yeas to one hundred nays, and 
on the thirty-first of May, 1854, received the 
approval of the President and became a law. 

The whole country engaged warmly in the 
discussion aroused by the re-opening of the 
question of slavery in the Territories. The 



North resented the repeal of the Missouri 
Compromise and in the South a large and 
respectable party sincerely regretted the re- 
peal of that settlement. By the passage of 
the Kansas-Nebraska bill the Thirty-third 
Congress assumed a grave responsibility, and 
opened the door to a bloody and bitter con- 
flict in the Territories between slavery and 
free labor. The events now to be related were 
the logical consequences of the repeal of the 
Missouri Compromise. 

A few months before the final vote 
upon the Kansas-Nebraska bill the gen- 
eral government succeeded in purchas- 
ing the Indian reservations in those Ter- 
ritories, and removed the Indian tribes 
to new homes farther west. This action 
at once threw Kansas and Nebraska 
open to white settlers, and measures 
were set on foot in the New England 
States to encourage emigration thither. 
Kansas 6eing a more fertile country than 
Nebraska naturally attracted the greater 
number of settlers. Before anything 
could be done by the Free Soil men, the 
people living on the border of Missouri 
passed over into Kansas, and selecting 
the best lands, put their mark upon 
them, hoping in this way to establish 
a pre-emption claim to them. Their 
object was to organize and hold the 
Territory in the interest of slavery, but 
very few of them removed to Kansas, 
or had any wish to do so. 

In the meantime societies had been formed 
in the New England States for the promo- 
tion of emigration to Kansas. As the Pro- 
slavery settlers had come into the Territory 
so slowly, and in such small numbers, it 
seemed certain that the northern people could 
secure Kansas to free labor by sending out 
settlers to occupy the Territory in good faith. 
The Pro-slavery party in Missouri determined 
to prevent this. In July, 1854, a meeting was 



ADMINISTRATION OF FRANKLIN PIERCE. 



645 



held at Westport in that State, at which it 
was resolved that the persons taking part in 
the meeting would, " whenever called upon 
by any of the citizens of Kansas Territory, 
hold ' themselves ' in readiness together to 
resist and remove any and 
all emigrants who go there 
under the auspices of the 
Northern Emigrant Aid 
Societies." 

The first party sent out 
by the New England Aid 
Societies reached a point 
on the Kaw river, in Kan- 
sas, about the middle of 
July. There they pitched 
their tents and began the 
building of a town, which 
they named Lawrence, in 
honor of Amos A. Law- 
rence, of Boston. By the 
last of the month they were 
joined by seventy more 
emigrants and the work of 
founding their town was 
pushed forward with en- 
ergy. There was not a 
drone in the little commun- 
ity. They were all honest, 
intelligent, God-fearing men 
and women, and they meant 
to succeed in the undertak- 
ing they had begun. They 
were in legal and peaceable 
possession of their settle- 
ment, and thus far had mo- 
lested or wronged no one. 
/ . They were not to live 
in peace, however. Before 
they had finished building their houses, they 
were startled by the announcement that two 
hundred and fifty armed Missourians had 
encamped within a short distance of them for 
the purpose of driving them out of the Terri- 



tory. The next morning the Missourians 
sent them a formal notice that " the Aboli- 
tionists must leave the Territory, never more 
to return to it." They declared their desire 
to avoid bloodshed ; but notified the settlers 




/'A I'/V 



^v1^^ 



SCENE ON THE ALLEGHENY RIVER. 

that they must be ready to leave the Terri- 
tory, with all their effects, at one o'clock 
that day. This the settlers refused to do, 
and prepared to defend their homes. The 
messengers of the Missourians found them 



646 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



drilling behind their tents and reported this 
fact to their leaders. 

The firm but quiet attitude of the people 
of Lawrence had a happy effect. The Mis- 
sourians made no effort to carry out their 
threat, but broke up their camp that night, 
and withdrew across the border, leaving the 
settlers in peace. Meanwhile the town of 
Lawrence grew and prospered, and the New 
England Societies continuing to send other 
emigrants into the Territory, other towns 
were founded. Settlers from the Southern 
States came into the Territory very slowly. 

The general government threw its influ- 
ence as far as possible in favor of the Pro- 
slavery party, in the organization of the 
Territory, by appointing a majority of the 
territorial officers from the slaveholding 
States. A. H. Reeder was appointed governor 
by President Pierce. He endeavored to 
execute the laws faithfully, and ordered an 
election for members of a territorial legisla- 
ture, to be held on the thirtieth of March, 
1855. On that day large numbers of armed 
Missourians crossed the border, and, taking 
possession of the polling-places in Kansas, 
succeeded in returning a Pro-slavery legisla- 
ture. 

Oppressive Laws. 

Six districts at once forwarded protests to 
the governor against the elections, showing 
beyond all reasonable doubt that they had 
been controlled by citizens of Missouri. The 
governor, who was anxious to do justice to 
all parties, ordered a new election in these 
districts, each of which, with the exception of 
Lecompton, returned a Free Soil delegate. 
The new delegates, however, were refused 
their seats upon the assembling of the legis- 
lature, and the successful candidates at the 
original election were admitted. 

The governor had summoned the legisla- 
ture to meet at Pawnee City, on the Kansas 
river, a town nearly one hundred miles dis- 



tant from the border, and supposed to be far 
enough away to be free from intimidation by 
the Missourians ; but the legislature, immedi- 
ately upon assembling, adjourned to Shawnee 
Mission, on the Missouri border. The reso- 
lution for this purpose was vetoed by the 
governor, but was passed over his veto, 
and was at once carried into effect. Upon 
reassembling at Shawnee Mission, the Legis- 
lature proceeded to adopt the laws of Mis- 
souri as the laws of Kansas, and to frame a 
series of statutes designedly cruel and oppres- 
sive. These laws were vetoed by Governor 
Reeder, who was removed by the President. 
Wilson Shannon, of Ohio, was then appoint- 
ed governor of Kansas. 

Bold Acts of Pro-Slavery Men. 

In the meantime the Free Soil settlers had 
increased so rapidly that they at length 
largely outnumbered the Pro-slavery settlers. 
They now felt themselves strong enough to 
resist the outrages of the Missourians, and 
accordingly, on the fifth of September, 1855, 
held a convention, in which they distinctly 
repudiated the government that had been 
forced upon them by men who were not 
residents of the Territory. They announced 
their intention not to take part in the election 
of a delegate to Congress, which the territo- 
rial authorities had ordered to be held on the 
first of October, and called upon the actual 
residents of the Territory to send delegates 
to a convention to meet at Topeka on the 
nineteenth of September. This convention 
organized an executive committee for the 
Territory, and ordered an election to be held 
for the purpose of choosing a delegate to 
Congress. Governor Reeder was nominated 
and elected to Congress. On the twenty- 
third of October the convention adopted a 
Free State constitution, and forwarded it to 
Congress with a petition for the admission of 
Kansas into the Union as a State. 



ADMINISTRATION OF FRANKLIN PIERCE. 



647 



The struggle for the possession of the 
Territory now passed out of the area of 
politics. As we have said, the repeal of the 
Missouri Compromise opened the way for, 
and was the direct cause of, the conflict 
between the Free and Pro-slavery settlers of 
Kansas. The outrages of the Pro-slavery 
men had forced the Free-Soilers into an atti- 
tude of direct and uncompromising resist- 
ance ; and after the action of the latter, at 
Topeka, the struggle which had hitherto 
been comparatively bloodless changed its 
character and became an open and sangui- 
nary war between the two parties. 

In this struggle the Pro-slavery men were 
the aggressors. Bands of young men, armed 
and regularly organized into companies and 
regiments, came into the Territory from 
South Carolina, Georgia and the extreme 
Southern States, with the avowed design of 
making Kansas a slaveholding State at all 
hazards. On the morning of May 21st, 
1856, under the pretext of aiding the United 
States marshal to serve certain processes 
upon citizens of Lawrence, they captured 
that town, sacked it, burned several houses 
and inflicted a loss upon it amounting to 
;^ 1 50,000. From this time the war went on 
m a series of desultory but bloody encoun- 
ters, some of which assumed the propor- 
tions of battles. 

During this month an event occurred 
which aroused universal indignation 
throughout the Northern States. Senator 
Charles Sumner, of Massachusetts, made 
an eloquent speech in the Senate at Wash- 
ington on the Kansas question, some parts 
of which excited the anger of Preston S. 
Brooks, a southern member of Congress. 
On the twenty-second of May Brooks 
assaulted Mr. Sumner while he was sitting 
in the Senate chamber, and beat him on the 
head with a cane until he became insensible. 
Mr. Sumner was disabled for the public ser- 



vice for several years, but afterward was 
re-elected almost unanimously and resumed 
his seat. This cowardly assault was uni- 
versally condemned. 

In the summer of 1856 Governor Shan- 
non, of Kansas, was removed, and John \V. 
Geary, of Pennsylvania, was appointed in 
his place. He exerted himself honestly to 
restore peace and execute the laws, and 
ordered " all bodies of men combined, armed 
and equipped with munitions of war, with- 




CHARLES SUMNER. 

out authority of the government, instantly 
to disband and quit the Territory." In 
obedience to this order the Free Soil com- 
panies nearly all disbanded, but the Pro- 
slavery party paid scarcely any attention to 
it. They concentrated a force of two thou- 
sand men and advanced upon Lawrence to 
attack it. Governor Geary at once placed 
himself at the head of the United States 
dragoons stationed in the Territory, and by 
a rapid march threw himself with these 



648 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



troops between the town of Lawrence and 
the hostile force and prevented another con- 
flict. 

Matters had reached this stage when the 
Presidential campaign opened in 1856. The 
struggle in the Territories had greatly weak- 
ened the Democratic party, and had given 
rise to a new party which called itself 
Republican, and which was based upon an 
avowed hostility to the extension of slavery. 
A third party, called the American, or Know 
Nothing, also took part in the campaign, 
and was based upon the doctrine that the 
political offices of the country should be 
held only by persons of American birth. 
The Democratic party nominated James 
Buchanan, of Pennsylvania, for the Presi- 
dency, and John C. Breckenridge, of Ken- 
tucky, for the Vice-Presidency. The Repub- 
lican nominee for the Presidency was John 
C. Fremont, of California ; for the Vice- 
Presidency William L. Dayton, of New 
Jersey. The American party supported 
Millard Fillmore, of New York, for the 
Presidency, and Andrew J. Donelson, of 
Tennessee, for the Vice-Presidency. The 



Whig party had been broken to pieces by 
its defeat in 1852, and had now entirely dis- 
appeared. 

The canvass was unusually excited. 
Slavery was the principal question in dis- 
pute. Party ties had little influence upon 
men. The sentiment of the nation at large 
had been outraged by the repeal of the Mis- 
souri Compromise, and thousands of Demo- 
crats, desiring to rebuke their party for its 
course in bringing about this repeal, united 
with the Republican party, which declared 
as its leading principle that it was " both the 
right and the duty of Congress to prohibit in 
the Territories those twin relics of barbar- 
ism — polygamy and slavery." 

The elections resulted in the triumph of 
James Buchanan, the candidate of the Dem- 
ocratic party. Mr. Buchanan received 174 
electoral votes to 1 14 cast for Fremont. 
Though a majority of the American people 
sustained the action of the Democratic party, 
the significant fict remained that 1,341,264 
of the voters of the country had recorded 
their condemnation of it by casting their 
votes for Fremont and Dayton. 




(^^1^ 



CHAPTER XL 

The Administration of James Buchanan. 

Inauguration of Mr. Buchanan — The Mormon Rebellion — The Financial Crisis of 1S57 — Laying of the Atlantic Tele- 
graphic Cable — Minnesota Admitted Into the Union — The San Juan Affair — Admission of Oregon Into the Union — 
The Kansas Question — The Lecompton Constitution — Its Defeat — The Wyandotte Constitution — Admission of Kan- 
sas Into the Union — The John Brown Raid — Prompt Action of the Government — Brown and His Companions Sur- 
rendered to the State of Virginia — Their Trial and Execution — Presidential Campaign of 1S60 — Rupture of the Demo- 
cratic Party — Abraham Lincoln Elected President of the United States — Secession of South Carolina — Reasons for 
this Act — Secession of the Other Cotton States — Major Anderson Occupies Fort Sumter— Trying Position of the Gen- 
eral Government — Course of Mr. Buchanan — The " Star of the West " Fired Upon by the South Carolina Batteries — 
Organization of the Confederate States of America — Jefferson Davis Elected President of the Southern Republic — The 
Peace Congress — Its Failure. 



JAMES BUCHANAN, the fifteenth 
President of the United States, was 
inaugurated at Washington on the 
fourth of March, 1857. He was in 
his sixty-sixth year, and was a statesman of 
great accomplishments and ripe experience. 
He was born in Pennsylvania in 1791, and 
was by profession a lawyer. He had served 
his State in Congress as a representative and 
a senator, had been minister to Russia under 
President Jackson, and had been a member 
of the cabinet of President Polk as secretary 
of state. During the four years previous to 
his election to the Presidency he had resided 
abroad as the minister of the United States 
to Great Britain, and in that capacity had 
greatly added to his reputation as a states- 
man. 

He avowed the object of his administra- 
tion to be " to destroy any sectional party, 
whether North or South, and to restore, if 
possible, that national fraternal feeling 
between the different States that had existed 
during the early days of the republic." The 
intense sectional feeling which the discussion 
of the slavery question had aroused had 
alarmed patriotic men in all parts of the 
Union, and it was earnestly hoped that Mr. 
Buchanan's administration would be able to 



effect a peaceful settlement of the quarrel. 
Mr. Buchanan selected his cabinet from the 
leading men of the Democratic party, and 
placed at its head as secretary of state Lewis 
Cass, of Michigan. 

We have in a previous portion of this work 
noticed the rise and growth of the Mormon 
sect, and their settlement in the region of the 
Great Salt lake, then a part of the Mexican] 
republic. They were not at all pleased with 
their transfer to the United States by the 
cession of the territory occupied by them by 
the treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo. Their 
object in emigrating to Utah had been to 
place themselves beyond the limits of the 
United States, where they could enjoy with- 
out molestation their religious practices, and 
especially the gross and immoral institution 
of polygamy, to which they were attached 
as the foundation of their faith. They were 
not disturbed by the Mexican government,, 
which was indeed scarcely aware of their 
existence, and thus unnoticed devoted their 
energies to building up the country they had 
occupied. 

Their missionaries were sent into the va- 
rious countries of Europe, and converts were 
made with extraordinary success and rapid- 
ity. They built up a thriving town on the 

649 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



650 

borders of the great lake, to which they gave 
the name of Salt Lake City, and founded 
other towns in various parts of the Territory. 
By the year 1850 the population of the Ter- 
ritory had increased to 11,380. Being on 
the highway to California, the greater part 




JAMES BUCHANAN. 

of the overland traffic and travel to the 
Pacific passed through Salt Lake City, and 
was a source of considerable profit to the 
Mormons. 

In 1850 the Territory of Utah was organ- 
ized, and Brigham Young, who had suc- 



ceeded Joe Smith as the prophet or leader 
of the Mormons, was appointed by President 
Fillmore governor of the Territory. His 
appointment was renewed by President. 
Pierce, and the Mormons were left during 
these two administrations to manage their 
affairs very much in 
their own way. Rely- 
ing upon the immense 
distance which sepa- 
rated them from the 
States, they paid but 
little regard to the au- 
thority of the United 
States, and finally ven- 
tured openly to resist 
the officers of the gen- 
eral government, and 
expelled ;he federal 
judge from the Ter- 
ritory. 

President Buchanan 
thereupon removed 
Brigham Young from 
his office of governor, 
and appointed a Mr. 
Cumming his succes- 
sor. The Mormons 
having declared that 
the new governor 
should not enter the 
Territory, General 
Harney was ordered 
to accompany him 
with a large body of 
troops and compel the 
submission of the peo- 
ple of Utah to the au- 
thority of the federal government. 

Under the leadership of Brigham Young 
the Mormons took up arms and prepared to 
dispute the entrance of the troops into the 
Territory. They declared that their settle- 
ment and civilization of Utah had given them 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 



651 



the sole right to the Territory, and that they 
owed no allegiance to the United States. 
Their resistance was so formidable that the 
force under General Harney was largely 
increased, and the command was conferred 
upon Brigadier- 
General Albert Sid- 
ney Johnston, who 
was considered the 
most efficient offi- 
cer in the service. 
General Johnston 
joined his troops 
at Fort Bridger, 
about one hundred 
miles from Salt 
Lake City, in Sep- ^ 
tember, 1857. The 
Mormons in heavy 
force occupied the 
passes leading to 
the valley of the 
Great Salt lake. 
The season was so 
far advanced at the 
time of his arrival 
that General Johns- 
ton concluded to 
pass the winter at 
Fort Bridger. The 
Mormons were 
very active during 
the winter in cut- - 
ting off the trains of % 
the federal troops. 
It was General 
Johnston's inten- 
tion to move upon 
Salt Lake City im- 
mediately upon the opening of the spring, but 
before that season arrived the matter was 
settled through the efforts of a Mr. Kane, of 
Philadelphia. He was sent out to Salt Lake 
City by the government, and succeeded in 



inducing the Mormons to lay down their arms 
and submit. Governor Gumming and the fed- 
eral officers then entered Salt Lake City and 
assumed the offices to which they had been 
appointed, and a force of federal troops was 




THE MORMON 



TEMPLE, SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH. 

encamped near the city to render them such 
assistance as should be found necessary. 
President Buchanan then issued a proclama- 
tion granting a free pardon "to all, for the 
seditions and treasons by them committed." 



652 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



Subsequently it transpired that a Mormon 
atrocity of the most cruel and bloody descrip- 
tion had been committed. On the eighteenth 
of September, 1857, one hundred and thirty- 
six emigrants, who were said to have offended 
the Mormons, were massacred in cold blood 
at Mountain Meadow, Utah. Many years 
later Bishops Lee and Philip K. Smith were 
accused of having ordered this wholesale 
murder. Brigham Young was exonerated 
in 1875. Bishop Lee was convicted, sen- 



New York on the thirteenth of October, and 
by those of Boston on the fourteenth. The 
failures inthe United States for the year ending 
December 6, 1857, are said to have reached 
the enormous aggregate of ;$29i, 750,000. 

The Western States suffered in a marked 
degree from the effects of this " crisis ;" but 
the South was comparatively unharmed by it. 
Various causes wereassigned for the panic, the 
principal of which were the large speculations 
in western lands and a heavy fall in the value 




MOUNTAIN MEADOW MASSACRE. 



tenced to death, and shot March 23, 1877, 
nearly twenty years after the dastardly crime 
was committed. 

In the fall of 1857 the general business of 
the country was thrown into confusion by 
a sudden financial panic, whigh seriously 
embarrassed all commercial and industrial 
enterprises and caused general distress. On 
the twenty-sixth of September the banks of 
Philadelphia suspended specie payments ; and 
their example was followed by the banks of 



of railway stocks. The New York banks re- 
sumed specie payments on the twelith of 
December, 1857; the Boston banks on the 
fourteenth of December of that year; and 
those of Philadelphia in April, 1858. Specie 
payments were gradually resumed in other 
parts of the country, but the depression of 
business continued until during the course 
of the year 1859. 

In 1858 occurred an event second only 
in importance to the invention of the 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 



653 



•electric telegraph. For some years it had 
been believed possible to connect the 
shores of Europe with those of America 
by means of a submarine telegraphic cable 
across the Atlantic. In 1857 an unsuc- 
cessful effort was made by a company of 
American and English capitalists to accom- 
plish this object. The attempt was renewed 
in 1858. Two war steamers were furnished 
for the work of laying the cable — the 
" Niagara " by the United States, and the 
"Agamemnon " by Great Britain. The two 
vessels met in mid ocean, and sailed each to its 
own country, paying out the cable as they pro- 
ceeded on their way. On the fifth of August, 
1858, the " Niagara " entered Trinity bay, in 
Newfoundland, and made fast her end of the 
cable to the shore, and on the same day the 
^'Agamemnon" reached Valentia bay, in 
Ireland, having successfully accomplished 
her part of the work. 

The First Ocean Cable. 

The great work was thus ended, and on the 
sixteenth of August a message was received 
through the wires from the Queen of Great 
Britain and Ireland, addressed to the Presi- 
dent of the United States, who at once 
returned a suitable reply. Other messages 
were exchanged between the two continents, 
and the practicability of the scheme was fully 
demonstrated. On the first of September the 
laying of the cable was celebrated with impos- 
ing ceremonies in New York, and rejoicings 
were held in other cities. 

The hopes aroused by the successful 
accomplishment of the great enterprise w^ere 
soon disappointed, for after a short time 
the wires ceased to work, and no effort 
could re-establish the communication be- 
tween the two ends of the line. The feasi- 
bility of the undertaking had been practi- 
cally demonstrated, however, and the deter- 
mined men who had carried it through to 



success were convinced that a new effort would 
be attended with more satisfactory results. 

On the eleventh of May, 1 85 8, the Territory 
of Minnesota was admitted into the Union as 
a State. 

In the autumn of 1859 a dispute arose 
between the United States and Great Britain 
as to the ownership of the large island of San 
Juan, lying in the strait which separates 
Vancouver's island from the territory of the 
United States. General Harney, commanding 
the American troops in the northwest, took 
possession of the island. Governor Douglas, 
of British Columbia, protested against this 
occupation, and for a while there was danger 
that the two parties would come to blows. 
The general government despatched General 
Scott to the scene of the controversy, and he 
succeeded in bringing about an adjustment of 
the quarrel. 

On the fourteenth of February, 1859, 
Oregon was admitted into the Union as a 
State, the Territory of Washington being 
separated from it. 

A New Governor for Kansas. 

During the whole of Mr. Buchanan's ad- 
ministration the question of slavery in the 
Territories continued to engross the atten- 
tion of the people. The struggle in Kansas 
went on with increased bitterness. In the 
summer of 1857 an election was ordered by 
the legislature of Kansas for delegates to a 
convention for the purpose of framing a con- 
stitution, and care was taken to arrange the 
matter so that a majority of Pro-slavery dele- 
gates should be chosen. For this reason, 
and others of equal force, the Free Soil men 
refused to take any part in the election, which 
consequently resulted in the choice of a Pro- 
slavery convention. The Free Soil party 
thereupon issued an address to the people of 
the United States, relating the wrongs they 
had suffered and were still enduring. 



654 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



Governor Geary now resigned his position 
and President Buchanan appointed, as gov- 
ernor of Kansas, Robert J. Walker, a man of 
great eminence and ability, who was in sen- 
timent opposed to slavery. Mr. Walker sin- 
cerely desired to effect a settlement of the 
quarrel, and succeeded in inducing the Free 
Soil party to vote at the coming election for 
members of the territorial legislature and a 
delegate to Congress. They did so, and a 
fair election was held, which resulted in the 
choice of the Free Soil candidates by over- 
whelming majorities. 

Intense Feeling in Congress. 

In the autumn of 1857 the convention 
elected, as we have seen, assembled at Le- 
compton, and framed a State constitution. 
This instrument contained a clause adopting 
slavery, and the convention submitted this 
clause only to the people of the Territory for 
ratification or rejection at the polls. The 
remainder of the constitution was withheld 
from the popular vote. The convention also 
ordered that all whose votes were challenged 
at the polls should be required " to take an 
oath to support the constitution if adopted," 
before being allowed to deposit their ballot. 
The Free State men refused to take part in 
the vote on the ratification of this constitu- 
tion, and consequently all the votes cast were 
in favor of it. It was declared adopted, and 
was sent to Congress for the approval of that 
body. 

The discussion of the Lecompton consti- 
tution in Congress was marked by great bit- 
terness. It was supported by the Democratic 
party and the administration, and was opposed 
with determination by the Republicans. The 
latter took the strong ground that the Le- 
compton constitution was not the work of 
the people of Kansas, but of a mere faction, 
and was distasteful to the majority of the 
citizens of that Territory, who were opposed 
to slavery. 



Finally, on the thirtieth of April, 1858, a 
bill was passed to submit the Lecompton 
constitution to the people of Kansas. This 
bill declared that if they ratified the consti- 
tution, they should be given certain public 
lands for State purposes; but that if they 
failed to ratify it, Kansas should not be per- 
mitted to enter the Union until it had a 
population of ninety-three thousand. With 
these strange conditions, the constitution 
was submitted to the people of Kansas on 
the second of August, 1858, and was rejected 
by them by a vote of eleven thousand three 
hundred against it, to seventeen hundred and 
eighty-eight votes in its favor. 

In January, 1859, the civil strife having 
subsided in the Territory, and the Free Soil 
men having a majority in the legislature, a 
convention was summoned at Wyandotte. 
It met in July, and adopted a free State con- 
stitution, which was submitted to the people 
and ratified by a large majority. The 
"Wyandotte Constitution" was then laid 
before Congress, and a bill admitting 
Kansas into the Union as a State was passed 
by the lower House early in i860. 

Kansas Admitted Into the Union. 

The Senate, however, failed to act upon the 
bill. At the next session the measure was 
revived, and on the thirtieth of January^ 
1 86 1, the opposition of the South having 
ceased by reason of the withdrawal of a 
large number of the southern representatives 
and senators from Congress, Kansas was 
admitted into the Union as a free State. 

Two notable events of this year should not 
escape special mention. They are, however, 
of a very different character. One was the 
death of the great American writer and 
author, Washington Irving, who may be 
considered as the father of American liter- 
ature. He was bred a lawyer, but his tastes 
and aptitudes led him into other fields for the 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 



655 



acquisition of both fame and wealth. He 
commenced writing for the press at the 
early age of nineteen. His first sketches 
were under the noui dc phniie of Jonathan 
Oldstyle ; then came his "Knickerbocker's 
History of New York ;" but it was the 
"Sketch Book " which " laid the foundation 
of the fortune, and the permanent fame of 
Irving ; the legends of ' Sleepy Hollow ' and 
' Rip Van Winkle ' at once took rank as 
modern classics, while the pictures of Eng- 
lish life and customs were so genial, artistic, 
and withal so faithful, that they fairly took 
the reading world by storm." This work 
was brought out in England in good style 
by the publisher, Murray, in 1820, upon the 
recommendation of Sir Walter Scott. 

A writer in " Johnson's Cyclopaedia " 
says, that after this publication, " a new phe- 
nomenon had appeared in the world of let- 
ters — the first American author had gained 
an honorable name in Albemarle street and 
Paternoster Row. Henceforth the path of 
Irving was smooth, and his subsequent writ- 
ings appeared with rapidity." This great 
author was born in New York City, on the 
third of April, 1783, and died at his resi- 
dence, Sunnyside, Tarrytown, on the Hud- 
son, on the twenty-eighth of November, 
1859, in the seventy-seventh year of his 
age. The house in which he lived is a 
quaint old edifice. It has become one of 
the shrines of American pilgrimage. 

The other notable event of this year which 
made a deep impression on the popular 
mind, North and South, and which was 
attended with political results of the great- 
est importance, was the raid of John Brown 
upon Harper's Ferry. 

On the night of the sixteenth of October, 
1859, John Brown, who had acquired a con- 
siderable notoriety as the leader of a Free 
Soil company during the war in Kansas, 
entered the State of Virginia, at Harper's 



Ferry, with a party of twenty-one compan- 
ions, and seized the United States arsenal 
at that place. He then sent out parties to 
arrest the leading citizens of the vicinity, as 
hostages, and to induce the negro slaves to 
join him, his avowed object being to put an 
end to slavery in Virginia by exciting an 
insurrection of the slaves. Several citizens 
were kidnapped by these parties, but the 
slaves refused to join Brown, or to take any 
part in the insurrection. At daylight on the 




WASHINGTON IRVING. 

seventeenth of October the alarm was given, 
and during the morning the militia of the 
surrounding country was ordered under 
arms to put down the outbreak. Brown's 
force was unknown, and was greatly exag- 
gerated. 

The news of the seizure of the arsenal was 
telegraphed to Washington, and the govern- 
ment decided to recover it at once and con- 
fine the trouble to the spot on which it had 
originated. General Scott was absent from 
the capital at the time, and the President and 



656 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



•secretary of war summoned Colonel Robert 
E. Lee, a distinguished officer of the army, 
to consult with them as to the best course 
to pursue. The interview resulted in the 
despatching of a battalion of marines to 
Harper's Ferry, under the command of 
Colonel Lee. Orders were telegraphed to 
that poiut to suspend all operations there 
until Colonel Lee's arrival. He reached 
Harper's Ferry on the night of the seven- 
teenth. 

In the meantime, upon the appearance of 
the militia, Brown and his companions re- 
treated to the fire-engine house in the arsenal 
yard. This was a strong stone building, and 
they barricaded the doors, and during the 
■day maintained a desultory fire upon the 
town. They had taken Colonel Washington, 
Mr. Dangerfield, and the other citizens kid- 
napped by them, into the engine-house with 
them, where they held them, in the hope tha- 
the presence of these gentlemen would pret 
vent the troops from firing upon them. 

Capture of the Insurrectionists. 

As soon as Colonel Lee arrived at Har- 
per's Ferry, he proceeded to surround the 
engine-house with the marines to prevent the 
escape of Brown and his men, and deferred 
his attack upon them until the next morning, 
lest in a night assault some of the captive 
citizens might be injured. At daylight on 
, the eighteenth, wishing, if possible, to accom- 
plish the object in view without bloodshed, 
Colonel Lee sent his aid, Lieutenant J. E. B. 
Stuart, to demand the surrender of the insur- 
gents, promising to protect them from vio- 
lence at the hands of the citizens, and to hold 
them subject to the orders of the President- 
Brown refused the terms offered, and 
demanded to be permitted to march out with 
his men and prisoners, with the arms of the 
former, to be allowed to proceed, without 
being followed, to a point at a certain distance 



from Harper's Ferry, where he would free 
his prisoners. He was then willing that the 
troops should pursue him, and to fight if he 
could not escape. This proposition was 
inadmissible, but as a last resort, Colonel Lee 
directed Lieutenant Stuart to remonstrate 
with the insurgents upon the folly of their 
course. This duty Stuart performed, re- 
maining before the engine-house until his 
personal danger compelled him to withdraw. 
Finding that nothing but force would avail, 
Colonel Lee gave the order for the assault, 
and the marines made a dash at the engine- 
house, broke in the doors, and captured its 
inmates. Several of the insurgents were 
killed and wounded. Brown himself being 
desperately hurt. The marines lost one man 
killed and one wounded. Fortunately none 
of the citizens captured by Brown were 
injured. 

Execution of John Brown. 

Colonel Lee took care to protect his 
prisoners, and there is little doubt that but 
for his precautions in their behalf they would 
have been shot down by the excited civil- 
ians. He telegraphed to Washington for in- 
structions, and was directed to deliver the 
prisoners to Mr. Ould, the attorney for the 
District of Columbia, who was ordered by 
the government to take charge of them and 
bring them to trial. As soon as Mr. Ould 
arrived Colonel Lee turned over the prisoners 
to him, and being satisfied that the danger 
was over, went back to W^ashington. 

As Brown and his companions had com- 
mitted their chief crime against the United 
States, by seizing the federal arsenal and re- 
sisting the troops sent to reduce them to 
submission, it seemed proper that they should 
be tried for their offences by the general gov- 
ernment. The attempt to incite an insurrec- 
tion of the slaves, however, was a crime 
against the laws of the State of Virginia, and 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 



657 



the governor of that State demanded of the 
federal authorities the surrender of Brown 
and his fellow prisoners for trial by the State 
courts. 

The demand was complied with, and the 
prisoners were arraigned in the court of the 
county of Jefferson, the county in which 
their offence was committed. They were 
given a fair trial, and were defended by able 
counsel from the free States, who came to 
Charlestown for that purpose. Brown frankly 
confessed that his object was to produce an 
insurrection among the slaves, and then carry 
them off to the free States. The prisoners 
were found guilty of treason, murder, and an 
attempt to incite insurrection, and were sen- 
tenced to be hanged. Brown was executed 
at Charlestown on the second of December, 
1859, and six of his companions met the same 
fate a few weeks later. 

Proofs of a Conspiracy. 

During his trial Brown steadily denied 
that he had been aided or encouraged by any 
persons in the North. His denial was gen- 
erally doubted at the time, and it is now 
known that he was assisted with money and 
advice by some of the most respectable 
leaders of the extreme Anti-slavery party, 
and that several persons high in position 
knew of the designs of Brown, but failed to 
warn either the general government or the 
State of Virginia of the intended attack.* 

The execution of Brown and his compan- 
ions drew upon the South a storm of furious 
denunciation from the Anti-slavery men. 
Brown was regarded as a martyr to the cause 
of freedom, and the day of his execution was 
observed in many of the towns of the 
Northern States by the tolling of bells. 



prayer in the churches, the firing of minute- 
guns, and other public demonstrations of sor- 
row and respect. The conservative class in 
the North, however, and in this number were 
included some of the firmest opponents of 
slavery, sincerely deplored Brown's course, 
and acknowledged his punishment as merited. 

" The Irrepressible Conflict." 

Brown was a man of many good qualities, 
but the undertaking in which he met his fate 
was criminal in the extreme. Not even the 
intention of rescuing the slaves of Virginia 
from their bondage can excuse him for seek- 
ing to excite a servile war, in which murder 
and violence would have been inevitable, and 
in which the aged and the helpless, the 
defenceless women and children, would have 
been the chief sufferers. 

The effect of Brown's attempt upon the 
southern people was most unfortunate. 
They regarded it as unanswerable evidence 
of the intention of the people of the North to 
make war upon them under the cover of the 
Union. Regarding this view of the case as 
true, they came to listen with more favor to 
the arguments of the extreme class which 
openly favored a dissolution of the Union, 
and which asserted that the only safety of 
the South lay in pursuing such a course. 

The John Brown raid was the most power- 
ful argument that had ever been placed in 
the hands of the disunionists, and in the 
alarm and excitement produced by that 
event the southern people lost sight of the 
fact that the great mass of the northern 
people sincerely deplored and condemned 
the action of Brown and his supporters. 
The voice of reason was drowned in the 
storm of passionate excitement which swept 



* Mr. F. B. Sanborn, one of Brown's confederates, in a series of papers published in The Atlantic Monthly 
(vol. XXXV.) gives the details of this conspiracy, together with many interesting incidents connected with it, which sus- 
tain the view of the case presented above. 
42 



658 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



over the land, and the extremists on both 
sides were able to prosecute theirunpatriotic 
work to great advantage. 

While the excitement was at its height the 
Presidential campaign opened in the Spring 
of i860. The slavery question was the chief 
issue in this struggle. The convention of 
the Democratic party met at Charleston, in 
April, but being unable to effect an organi- 




EDWARD EVERETT. 

zation adjourned to Baltimore, and reassem- 
bled in that city in June. The extreme south- 
ern delegates were resolved that the conven- 
tion should be committed to the protection 
of slavery in the Territories by Congress, and 
failing to control it withdrew from it in a 
body, and organized a separate convention, 
which they declared represented the Demo- 
cratic party, but which, in reality, as the vote 
subsequently proved, represented but a 



minority of that party. The new conven- 
tion was joined by a number of delegates 
from the Northern and Western States. 

The convention, after the withdrawal of 
these delegates, nominated for the Presi- 
dency Stephen A. Douglas, of Illinois, and 
for the Vice-Presidency Herschell V. John- 
son, of Georgia. It then proceeded to adopt 
the platform put forward by the entire party 
four years before at Cincinnati, upon 
the nomination of Mr. Buchanan, 
with this additional declaration : 
" That as differences of opinion 
exist in the Democratic party as to 
the nature and extent of the powers 
of a territorial legislature, and as to 
the powers and duties of Congress 
under the constitution of the United 
States over the institution of slavery 
within the Territories . . . the 
party will abide by the decisions of 
the Supreme Court of the United 
States on the questions of constitu- 
tional law." 

The "Seceders' Convention," as it 
was commonly called, also adopted 
the Cincinnati platform, and pledged 
themselves to non-interference by 
Congress with slavery in the Terri- 
tories or the District of Columbia. 
This party held to the doctrine that 
the constitution recognized slavery 
as existing in the Territories, and 
sanctioned and protected it there, 
and that neither Congress nor the peo- 
ple of the Territories could frame any law 
against slavery until the admission of such 
Territories into the Union as States. The 
regular convention held that Congress had 
no right to interfere with slavery in the Ter- 
ritories, to legislate either for or against it; 
that the regulation of that question belonged 
entirely to the people of the respective Ter- 
ritories acting through their Legislatures^ 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 

Tennessee, and for the 



659 



This doctrine was popularly known as "Squat- 
ter Sovereignty," and was credited to Mr. 
Douglas. The " Seceders' Convention " put 
forward as its candidate for the Presidency 
John C. Breckenridge, of Kentucky, and for 
the Vice-Presidency Joseph Lane, of Oregon. 

Republican Nominations. 

The Republican party took issue with both 
wings of the Democratic party. Its conven- 
tion was held at Chicago, Illinois, and its can- 
didates were, for President Abraham Lincoln, 
of Illinois, and for Vice-President Hannibal 
Hamlin, of Maine. The platform of principles 
adopted by the Chicago Convention declared 
that " the maintenance of the principles pro- 
mulgated in the Declaration of Independence 
and embodied in the Federal Constitution is 
essential to the preservation of our republican 
institutions. . . . That all men are created 
equal; that they are endowed by their Crea- 
tor with certain inalienable rights. . . . That 
the Federal Constitution, the rights of the 
States and the union of the States must and 
shall be preserved." 

The platform also declared that the rights 
of the States should be maintained inviolate, 
" especially the right of each State to order 
and control its own domestic institutions 
according to its own judgment exclusively." 
It asserted " that the normal condition of all 
the territory of the United States is that of 
freedom," and denied the right or " authority 
of Congress, of a Territorial Legislature, or 
of individuals, to give legal existence to 
slavery in any Territory of the United 
States." 

A fourth party, known as the " Constitu- 
tional Union Party," proclaimed as its plat- 
form the following vague sentence: "The con- 
stitution of the country, the union of the 
States and the enforcement of the laws." The 
convention of this party met at Baltimore, and 
nominated for the Presidency John Bell, of 



Vice-Presidency 
Edward Everett, of Massachusetts. 

The contest between these parties was bit- 
ter beyond all precedent. When the elec- 
tion took place in November, the result was 
as follows : 

Popular vote for Lincoln, 1,866,452 

" " Douglas, 1,375,157 

" Breckenridge, 847,953 

" Bell, 590,631 

The electoral vote stood as follows : For 
Lincoln, 180; for Breckenridge, 72; for 
Bell, 39; lor Douglas, 12. 

Election of Abraham Lincoln. 

Mr. Lincoln was thus elected by a plurality 
of the popular vote, which secured for him 
the electoral votes of eighteen States. These 
States were entirely north of the sectional 
line, and he received not a single electoral 
vote from a Southern State. The States, 
which cast their electoral votes for Brecken- 
ridge, Bell and Douglas, were entirely slave- 
holding. The division thus made was alarm- 
ing. It was the first time in the history of the 
Republic that a President had been elected 
by the votes of a single section of the 
Union. 

The state in which the Presidential election 
left the country, was alarming. The excite- 
ment was higher than it had been before the 
struggle at the polls. The Gulf States had 
declared at an early period of the political 
campaign that they would withdraw from the 
Union in the event of the election of a Re- 
publican President. The people of the South 
generally regarded the result of the election 
as an evidence of the determination of the 
Northern States to use the power of the fed- 
eral government to destroy the institution of 
slavery. The disunion leaders exerted them- 
selves to deepen this conviction, and to 
arouse the fears of the South. 



66o 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



On the other hand, the Republican leaders 
took little pains to allay the excitement by 
declaring their intentions to execute faith- 
fully the constitution and laws of the Union. 
Their declarations of fidelity to the Union 
were abundant, and were generally accom- 
panied by equally plain assertions of their 



country's history as he had never been 
needed before ; but, alas ! statesmanship of 
any kind was painfully wanting. 

As soon as the election of Mr. Lincoln 
was definitely ascertained, the legislature of 
South Carolina summoned a sovereicfn con- 
vention of the people of that State, which 




BRIDGE CROSSING THE SUSQUEHANNA RIVER AT HARRISBURG. 



determination to oppose by force the with- 
drawal of the Southern States — declarations 
which were ill-suited to calm the fears of the 
South, or to encourage the party in that sec- 
tion, which desired a perpetuation of the 
Union. A statesman of the Henry Clay 
school was needed at this crisis of our 



met on the seventeenth of December, i860 
This convention adopted an ordinance of 
secession on the twentieth of December, 
and declared the State no longer a mem- 
ber of the Union. The reasons assigned for 
this action were thus stated by the conven- 
tion : 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 



66 1 



"An increasing hostility on the part of the 
non-slaveholding States to the institution of 
slavery has led to a disregard of their obli- 
gations, and the laws of the general govern- 
ment have ceased to effect the objects of the 
constitution. The States of Maine, New 
Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Con- 
necticut, Rhode Island, New York, Penn- 
sylvania, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wis- 
consin, and Iowa, have enacted laws which 
cither nullify the acts of Congress or render 
useless any attempt to execute them. 

Strong Affirmations. 

" In many of these States the fugitive is 
discharged from the service or labor claimed, 
and in none of them has the State govern- 
ment complied with the stipulations made 
in the constitution. . . . Thus the consti- 
tutional compact has been deliberately broken 
and disregarded by these non-slaveholding 
States, and the consequence follows that 
South Carolina is released from her obli- 
gation. 

" We affirm that these ends for which this 
government was instituted have been defeated, 
and the government itself has been made 
destructive of them by the action of non- 
slaveholding States. Those States have 
assumed the right of deciding upon the pro- 
priety of our domestic institutions ; and have 
denied the rights of property established in 
fifteen of the States and recognized by the 
constitution ; they have denounced as sinful 
the institution of slavery ; they have per- 
mitted the open establishment among them 
of societies whose avowed object is to disturb 
the peace and to eloigne the property of 
citizens of other States. They have encour- 
aged and assisted thousands of our slaves to 
leave their homes ; and those who remain 
have been incited by emissaries, books, and 
pictures to servile insurrection. 



" For twenty-five years this agitation has 
been steadily increasing, until it has now 
secured to its aid the power of the common 
government. Observing the forms of the 
constitution, a sectional party has found 
within that article establishing the executive 
department the means of subverting the con- 
stitution itself. A geographical line has 
been drawn across the Union, and all the 
States north of that line have united in the 
election of a man to the high office of Presi- 
dent of the United States whose opinions 
and purposes are hostile to slavery. 

Charges Against Certain States. 

" He is to be intrusted with the admin- 
istration of the common government because 
he has declared that that ' government cannot 
endure permanently half slave, half free,' and 
that the public mind must rest in the belief 
that slavery is in the course of ultimate 
extinction. 

" This sectional combination for the sub- 
version of the constitution has been aided 
in some of the States by elevating to citizen- 
ship persons who, by the supreme law of the 
land, are incapable of becoming citizens ; and 
their votes have been used to inaugurate a 
new policy, hostile to the South, and destruc- 
tive of its peace and safety. 

" On the fourth of March next this party 
will take possession of the government. It has 
announced that the South shall be excluded 
from the common territory ; that the judicial 
tribunals shall be made sectional, and that 
a war must be waged against slavery 
until it shall cease throughout the United 
States. 

" The guarantees of the constitution will 
then no longer exist ; the equal rights of the 
States will be lost. The slaveholding States 
will no longer have the power of self-govern- 
ment or self-protection, and the federal 
government will become their enemy." 



662 



FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE CIVIL WAR. 



These reasons were substantially the same 
as those avowed by the other Southern States 
in support of their action, and therefore we 
have quoted them at length. 

The example of South Carolina was fol- 
lowed by the other States of the far South, 
which summoned conventions and adopted 
ordinances of secession. Mississippi with- 
drew from the Union on the ninth of January, 
1861 ; Florida on the tenth of January; 
Alabama on the eleventh of January ; Geor- 
gia on the nineteenth of January ; Louisiana 
on the twenty-sixth of January, and Texas 
on the first of February. The forts, arsenals 
and other public property of the United States 
within the limits of these States were seized 
by the authorities of the States in which they 
were situated, and were held by their troops, 
with the exception of Forts Moultrie and 
Sumter, in Charleston harbor, and Fort Pick- 
ens, at Pensacola. 

Critical State of Affairs. 

Fort Moultrie was occupied by Major 
Robert Anderson, of the United States army, 
with a garrison of eighty men. Becoming 
alarmed at the rapid concentration of troops 
in Charleston, Major Anderson evacuated 
the fort on the night of December 25, i860, 
and threw himself with his command into 
Fort Sumter, which was built in the bay at 
some distance from either shore. The State 
troops at once occupied Fort Moultrie, and 
began to erect batteries of heavy guns at 
^different points along the harbor for the 
reduction of Fort Sumter. 

Fort Pickens was held by a garrison under 
Lieutenant Slemmer. The State of Florida 
occupied the navy yard at Pensacola and 
the other forts in that harbor with her 
troops. 

The property of the general government 
seized by the seceded States amounted to 
over twenty millions of dollars in value. 



The position of the general government 
was one of great difficulty. The President 
was called upon either to recognize the law- 
fulness of the acts of the seceded States, and 
thus to join in the work of dissolving the 
Union, or to maintain the authority of the 
federal government, and compel the submis- 
sion of the Southern States to the constitu- 
tion and laws of the land. The govern- 
ment was almost powerless to enforce its 
authority. The army, but sixteen thou- 
sand strong, was stationed upon the re- 
mote frontier, and the available vessels of 
the navy were nearly all absent on foreign 
service. Many of the most prominent federal 
officials, including several of the cabinet 
ministers, were in open sympathy with the 
seceded States. The President's position was 
unquestionably embarrassing, but he made 
no use of the means at his command. General 
Scott, the veteran commander of the army, 
believed that prompt action on the part of the 
general government would confine the evil to 
the six cotton States, and urged the Presi- 
dent to act with vigor. 

Mr. Buchanan was sorely perplexed, and 
seemed chiefly anxious to postpone all defi- 
nite action until the inauguration of,his suc- 
cessor. He was in favor of conceding every- 
thing but separate independence to the 
South, failing to perceive that the leaders of 
the secession movement would accept nothing 
but separation ; and by his timidity lost the 
advantages which the government would 
have gained by a bold, firm course. 

Attempt to Aid Major Anderson. 

As Major Anderson was short of supplies 
and needed reinforcements, the steamship 
"Star of the West " was despatched by the 
government to Charleston with provisions 
and a detachment of two hundred and fifty 
men to his assistance. She reached Charles- 
ton on the ninth of January, 1861, and 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 



663 



attempted to enter the harbor, but was fired 
upon by the South Carolina batteries, and 
turned back. 

The President was urged by the friends of 
the South to order Major Anderson to evac- 
uate Fort Sumter and return to Fort Moul- 
trie, but refused to do so. South CaroHna 
then offered to purchase Fort Sumter from 
the general government, for its full value, but 
the President refused to make the sale. 

Immediately upon their withdrawal from 
the Union the six seceded States began to 
concert measures for their common protec- 
tion. Delegates were elected to a convention 
which met at Montgomery, Alabama, on the 
fourth of February, 1 861, to devise a plan for 
this purpose. The convention at once pro- 
ceeded to organize a new republic, for which 
they adopted the name of Tlie Confederate 
States of America. On the eighth of Febru- 
ary, a provisional constitution having been 
adopted, the convention elected Jefferson 
Davis, of Mississippi, President, and Alexan- 
der H. Stephens, of Georgia, Vice-president 
of the Confederate States. The action of the 
convention was sustained by all the States 
comprising the new confederacy, and the 
provisional government at once entered upon 
its duties. Mr. Davis was inaugurated Presi- 
dent of the Confederate States at Montgom- 
ery, Alabama, February 18, 1861. 

Sketch of Jefferson Davis. 

Jefferson Davis was a native of Kentucky, 
and was born on the third of June, 1808. 
His father had removed to Mississippi during 
his early childhood, and he had grown up to 
manhood in that State. He was educated at 
the West Point Military Academy, from 
which he was graduated in 1828, and passed 
the next seven years of his life in the army. 
He served with distinction during the Black 
Hawk war and against the Indian tribes on 
the frontier. Entering into politics after his 



withdrawal from the army, he was soon sent 
to represent his State in Congress, in which 
body he served until the commencement of 
the Mexican war. During that struggle he 
commanded the Mississippi Rifles, and dis- 
tinguished himself greatly in the battles of 
General Taylor's army, and especially at 
Buena Vista. 

Upon his return home he was chosen to 
represent Mississippi in the Senate of the 
United States. Upon the inauguration of 




JEFFERSON DAVIS. 

President Pierce, he accepted a seat in the 
cabinet as secretary of war. Returning to 
the Senate after the close of Mr. Pierce's 
administration, he remained in that body 
until the secession of Mississippi, when he 
resigned his seat and returned home. He 
was now in his fifty-third year, and was 
regarded as one of the most brilliant public 
men in America. His election was generally 
looked upon in the South as a concession to 
the more conservative portion of the south- 
ern people, for he had not been considered 







664 



INAUGURATION OF JEFFERSON DAVIS 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES BUCHANAN. 



66^ 



as one of the original or most ultra secession 
leaders. 

The conservative elements of both sections 
made great efforts to bring about a recon- 
ciliation. The State of Virginia called upon 
all the States to send delegates to an informal 
peace congress to meet in Washington. This 
body assembled in February. Twenty States 
were represented in it — thirteen northern 
and seven southern — and the venerable ex- 
President Tyler was chosen to preside over 
its deliberations. Various plans of settle- 
ment were proposed, and a committee, con- 
sisting of one member from each State, was 
appointed to prepare a plan upon which the 
congress could unite. In due time it made 
its report to the congress, and after a careful 
and elaborate discussion the resolutions were 



adopted, and were ordered to be laid before 
the rival governments. 

The congress then adjourned. The plan 
proposed by this body pleased neither side. 
The Southern States were not satisfied with 
the guarantees it offered for the protection of 
their rights in the matter of slavery ; and the 
Northern States were unwilling to sanction 
a more rigid enforcement of the constitu- 
tional provision for the rendition of fugitive 
slaves. The effort to close the breach be- 
tween the States only served to widen it. 

Matters were in this unhappy and excited 
condition when the administration of Mr. 
Buchanan came to a close. After the inau- 
guration of his successor, he retired to his 
home at Wheatland, near Lancaster, Penn- 
sylvania, where he died in June, 1868. 




BOOK VI 

The Civil War 



CHAPTER XLI 

The Administration of Abraham Lincoln 

Inauguration of President Lincoln — His History — The Confederate Commissioners at Washington — Attack upon Fort 
Sumter by the Confederates— The President Calls for Troops — Response of the North and West — Secession of the 
Border States — Opening Events of the War in Virginia — Withdrawal of West Virginia — Admitted into the Union as 
a Separate State — Meeting of Congress— The West Virginia Campaign — Battle of Bull Run — The War in Missouri — 
Kentucky Occupied — The Blockade — Capture of Port Royal — The "Trent" Affair — Insurrection in East Tennessee — 
State of Affairs at the Opening of the Year 1862 — Edwin M. Stanton made Secretary of War— Capture of Forts Henry 
and Donelson — The Confederates Fall Back from Kentucky — Battle ot Shiloh — Capture of Island No. 10 — Evacuation 
of Corinth — Capture of Memphis — Bragg's Kentucky Campaign — His Retreat into Tennessee — Battles of luka and 
Corinth — Battle of Murfreesboro', or Stone River — Grant's Campaign against Vicksburg — Its Failure — The War Beyond 
the Mississippi — Battle of Pea Ridge — Capture of Roanoke Island — Capture of New Orleans— Surrender of Fort 

Pulaski The War in Virginia — Johnston's Retreat from Centreville — Battle between the " Monitor " and "Virginia" 

The Move to the Peninsula — Johnston Retreats to the Chickahominy — Battle of Seven Pines — Jackson's Successes 

in the Valley of Virginia — The Seven Days' Battles Before Richmond — Battle of Cedar Mountain — Defeat of General 
Pope's Army— Lee Invades Maryland— Capture of Harper's Ferry— Battles of South Mountain and Antietam — 
Retreat of Lee into Virginia— McClellan Removed— Battle of Fredericksburg. 

ABRAHAM LINCOLN, the six- 
teenth President of the United 
States, was inaugurated at Wash- 
ington on the fourth of March, 1861. 
As it was feared that an attempt would be 
made to prevent the inauguration, the city- 
was held by a strong body of regular troops 
under General Scott, and the President-elect 
was escorted from his hotel to the Capitol by 
a military force. No effort was made to inter- 
fere with the ceremonies, and the inaugura- 
tion passed off quietly. 

The new President was in his fifty-third 
year, and was a native of Kentucky. When 
he was but eight years old his father removed 
to Indiana, and the boyhood of the future 
President was spent in hard labor upon the 
farm. Until he reached manhood he con- 
tinued to lead this life, and during this entire 
period attended school for only a year. At 
the age of twenty-one he removed to Illinois, 
666 




ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



667 



where he began hfe as a storekeeper. Being 
anxious to rise above his humble position, he 
determined to study law. He was too poor 
to buy the-necessary books, and so borrowed 
them from a neighboring lawyer, read them 
at night and returned them in the morning. 
His genial character, great good nature and 
love of humor won him the friendship of the 
people among whom he resided, and they 
elected him to the lower house of the Legis- 
lature of Illinois. 

He now abandoned his mercantile pursuits, 
and began the practice of the law, and was 
subsequently elected a representative to Con- 
gress from the Springfield District. He 
took an active part in the politics of his 
State, and in 1858 was the candidate of the 
Republican Party for United States Senator. 
In this capacity he engaged in a series of de- 
bates in various parts of the State with Sena- 
tor Douglas, the Democratic candidate for 
re-election to the same position. This de- 
bate was remarkable for its brilliancy and in- 
tellectual vigor, and brought him promi- 
nently before the whole country, and opened 
the way to his nomination for the Presi- 
dency. 

The Inaugural Address. 

In person he was tall and ungainly, and in 
manner he was rough and awkward, little 
versed in the refinements of society. He 
was a man, however, of great natural vigor 
of intellect, and was possessed of a fund of 
strong common sense, which enabled him to 
see at a glance through the shams by which 
he was surrounded, and to pursue his own 
aims with singleness of heart and directness 
of purpose. He had sprung from the ranks 
of the people, and he was never false to them. 
He was a simple, unaffected, kind-hearted 
man ; anxious to do his duty to the whole 
country ; domestic in his tastes and habits ; 
and incorruptible in every relation of life. 



He was fond of humor, and overflowed with 
it ; finding in his " little stories " the only 
relaxation he ever sought from the heavy 
cares of the trying position upon which he 
was now entering. He selected his cabinet 
from the leading men of the Republican 
party, and placed William H. Seward, of 
New York, at its head as Secretary of 
State. 

Mr. Lincoln was sincerely anxious to 
avoid everything which might precipitate the 
civil strife ; but at the same time was deter- 




WILLIAM 



mined to maintain the authority of the gen- 
eral government over the seceded States. In 
his inaugural address he declared his pur- 
pose to collect the public revenues at the 
ports of the seceded States, and to " hold, 
occupy and possess " the forts, arsenals and 
other public property seized by those States. 
At the time of his entrance upon the duties 
of his office Fort Sumter and Fort Pickens 
were still held by the Federal forces. 



668 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



The Confederate government was con- 
vinced that war was inevitable ; and since its 
inauguration, had been preparing for the 
coming struggle. Nearly all the officers of 
the army and navy of the United States, who 
were natives of the seceded States, resigned 
their commissions in the old service, and 
were given similar positions in the army of the 




ARRIVAL OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN AT THE CAPITOL. 

Confederate States. The forces collected at 
Charleston and Pensacola were reinforced by 
troops from other States, and the command 
at the former place was conferred upon Gen- 
eral Pierre G. T. Beauregard, and at the latter 
upon General Braxton Bragg, both of whom 
had been distinguished officers of the old army. 



Just before the close of Mr. Buchanan's 
term of office, the Confederate government 
despatched John Forsyth, of Alabama, Mar- 
tin J, Crawford, of Georgia, and A. B. Roman, 
of Louisiana, to Washington as commission- 
ers to endeavor to effect a peaceable adjust- 
ment of the matters at issue between the two 
governments, and to treat for an equitable 
division of the public property of 
the United States. Mr. Buchanan 
refused to receive the commis- 
sioners in their official capacity, 
and after the inauguration of 
the new administration they ad- 
dressed a note to Mr. Seward, 
the new Secretary of State, set- 
ting forth the objects of their 
mission, and soliciting an official 
interview with the President. 

Mr. Seward declined to receive 
them in their official capacity, but 
answered them verbally through 
Mr. Justice John A. Campbell, of 
the Supreme Court of the United 
States, that he was in favor of a 
peaceful settlement of the diffi- 
culty, and that the troops would 
be withdrawn from Fort Sumter 
in less than ten days. Mr. Sew- 
ard's object appears to have been 
to deceive the commissioners, 
and lull their suspicions, in order 
to gain time for the preparations 
which had been determined upon 
for the relief of Fort Sumter. 

In the meantime, the govern- 
ment having resolved to rein- 
force and provision Fort Sumter at all 
hazards, every nerve was strained to carry 
out this design before it should become 
known to the Confederates. An expedition 
consisting of seven ships, carrying two hun- 
dred and eighty-five guns and twenty-four 
hundred men, was prepared at New York 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



669 



and Norfolk. The southern commissioners, 
whose suspicions had been allayed by Mr. 
Seward's message, were alarmed by the ru- 
mors of these preparations, which they sus- 
pected were for the relief of Fort Sumter. 
They waited upon Judge Campbell to ask an 
explanation, and that gentleman, on the sev- 
enth of April, addressed a note to Mr. Sew- 
ard asking if the assurances he had given 
were well or ill founded. Mr. Seward replied 
as follows: " Faith as to Sumter fully kept; 
wait and see." 

In the meantime the expedition had sailed 
f r o m N e w Y o r k 
and Norfolk, and 
was on its way to 
Charleston harbor. 
On the 'eighth of 
April, 1 861, Gov- 
ernor Pickens, of 
South Carolina, 
was notified by the 
general govern- 
ment of its inten- 
tion to relieve Fort 
Sumter at all haz- 
ards, and of the 
sailing of the fleet 
for that purpose. 
Governor Pickens ^ 

at once informed 

•General Beauregard of this notification, and 
the news was telegraphed by him to the 
•Confederate government at Montgomery. 

The Confederate Secretary of War there- 
upon ordered General Beauregard to demand 
the immediate surrender of Fort Sumter; 
" and if this should be refused to proceed 
to reduce it." On the eleventh of April 
General Beauregard demanded of Major 
Anderson the surrender of the fort. The 
demand was refused in writing ; but Major 
Anderson added verbally to the mes- 
senger, " I will await the first shot, and if 



you do not batter us to pieces, we will be 
starved out in a few days." 

Beauregard telegraphed this remark with 
Anderson's reply to his government, and was 
answered, " Do not desire needlessly to bom- 
bard Fort Sumter. If Major Anderson will 
state the time at which, as indicated by him- 
self, he will evacuate, and agree that, in the 
meantime, he will not use his guns against 
us unless ours should be employed against 
P'ort Sumter, you are authorized thus to 
avoid the eff"usion of blood. If this or its 
equivalent be refused, reduce the fort, as 




^^s^ 



rORP PICKENS. 

your judgment decides most practicable." 
The Federal fleet was on its way to Charles- 
ton, and if the attack of the Confederates 
was to be made at all, no time was to be lost. 
General Beauregard, therefore, gave Major 
Anderson warning that he should open fire 
upon P'ort Sumter at half-past four o'clock 
the next morning.. 

At the designated hour on the morning of 
April 1 2th, the Confederate batteries opened 
fire upon Fort Sumter, which replied to them 
with spirit. The bombardment lasted over 
thirty-two hours, and the fort was greatly 



670 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



damaged, and many of the guns were dis- 
mounted. The fleet arrived off the harbor 
during the bombardment, but remained in 
the offing, and took no part in the engage- 
ment. Not a single hTe was lost in this 
memorable battle. Late in the afternoon 
of the thirteenth, Major Anderson agreed 
to capitulate, and the firing ceased. The 




MAJOR ANDERSON. 

victors granted liberal terms to Anderson 
and his men, whose heroism had aroused 
their warmest admiration ; and on the morn- 
ing of Sunday, April 14th, the fort was sur- 
rendered to the Confederate forces, and 
Major Anderson and the garrison embarked 
in one of the vessels of the fleet, which at 
once sailed for New York. 

The attack upon Fort Sumter put an end 



to the last hope of peace, and aroused the 
most intense excitement in both sections of 
the country. On the fifteenth of April, Presi- 
dent Lincoln issued a proclamation calling 
upon the States to furnish seventy-five 
thousand troops for the suppression of the 
rebellion, and convening Congress in extra 
session on the Fourth of July. The Northern 
and Western States re- 
sponded with enthu- 
siasm to the President's 
call for troops, and at 
once began to forward 
their quotas to the points 
designated by the war 
department. 

The enthusiasm in the 
South was fully equal to 
that of the North. The 
Confederate government 
issued a call for volun- 
teers to repel the threat- 
ened invasion of the fed- 
eral forces, and it was 
responded to with ala- 
crity. 

Until now the States 
of Maryland, Virginia, 
North Carolina, Tennes- 
see, Kentucky, Arkansas 
and Missouri, generally 
known as the Border 
States, had remained in 
the Union, hoping to be' 
able to effect a peaceable 
settlement of the quarrel. Their sympathies 
were with the Southern States, and it was gen- 
erally believed that in the event of war they 
would cast their lots with those States. Each 
of these States was included in the call of 
President Lincoln for troops. The governors 
of most of them replied by refusing to furnish 
the quotas required of them, and by 
denouncing the President's demand as illesral- 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



671 



Conventions of the people were held, and 
all but Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri 
withdrew from the Union. The secession of 
Virginia took place on the seventeenth of 
April ; that of Arkansas on the sixth of May ; 
that of North Carolina on the twentieth of 
May ; and that of Tennessee on the eighth 
of June. These States subsequently ratified 
the constitution of the Confederate States, 
and became members of the new republic. 
Kentucky and Missouri remained neutral. 

The passage of the 
act of secession by the 
Virsfinia convention 
was kept secret for a 
day or two in order to 
give the authorities of 
that State an oppor- 
tunity to seize the 
United States arsenal 
at Harper's Ferry, and 
the navy yard at Ports- 
mouth. The officer 
in command of the 
arsenal, upon hearing 
of the approach of a 
force of Virginia 
troops, destroyed a 
number of the mus- 
kets stored tlicre, set 
fire to the buildings, 
and retreated into 

Pennsylvania. The Virginians extinguished 
the flames and secured a large quantity of 
arms and equipments and the valuable ma- 
chinery for the manufacture of arms. The 
commandant of the navy yard at Portsmouth, 
upon the approach of the Virginians, made 
no attempt to defend his post, but spiked the 
cannon, burned or sunk the war vessels lying 
in the harbor, set fire to the buildings, and 
retreated with two war steamers. 

The navy yard was at once occupied by the 
Virginians, who secured nearly two thousand 



pieces of cannon, and an immense quantity 
of stores and munitions of all kinds. The 
governors of the seceded Border States issued 
calls for volunteers immediately upon the 
withdrawal of their States. Men came for- 
ward in such large numbers that arms could 
not be provided for all of them. The 
prominent points of danger in Virginia 
were occupied and fortified by the State 
troops ; but the control of the military af- 
fairs in all the Border States soon passed 




FORT SUMTER IN 1 86 1. 

into the hands of the Confederate govern- 
ment. 

As it was certain that the first operations 
of the war would take place upon the bor- 
ders of Virginia, the city of Richmond was 
made the capital of the Confederate States,, 
and on the twenty-first of May the Confed- 
erate government was removed to that city. 

The western part of the State of Virginia 
refused to join the remainder of the State in 
its withdrawal from the Union. On the 
eleventh of June, 1861, the people of the 



6^2 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



western counties met in convention at Wheel- 
ing, declared their independence of the old 
State, organized a State government, and 
proclaimed their intention to remain faithful 
to the Union. The action of this convention 
was sustained by the Federal government, and 
on the twenty-sixth of November, i86i, 
another convention met at Wheeling, and 




FORTS SUMTER AND MOULTRIE. 



In the meantime the Federal government 
set to work with energy to prepare for the 
struggle before it. The call of President 
Lincoln for troops had been answered by 
three hundred thousand volunteers. On the 
seventeenth of April, two days after the Pres- 
ident's proclamation, the Sixth Massachu- 
setts regiment left Boston for Washington. 
In passing through 
Baltimore it was at- 
tacked by a crowd of 
citizens who sympa- 
thized with the South, 
and three soldiers 
were killed and eight 
wounded. Several 
citizens were killed 
and wounded. The reg- 
iment reached Wash- 
ington the same day. 

In a short time the 
force at the capital 
was sufficient to put 
an end to all fears for 
its safety. Alexandria 
and the Virginia shore 
opposite Washington 
were seized and for- 
tified. Baltimore was 
occupied by a force 
under General Butler, 
and the communica- 
tions of Washington 
with the North and 
West were made sure. 
On the nineteenth of 



A^RCGARD 

Hum I - ^^^^ 



adopted a constitution for the new State of 
West Virginia. This constitution was rati- 
fied by the people at the polls on the third 
of May, 1862, and application was made for 
the admission of West Virginia into the 
Union as a State, which was accomplished 
by act of Congress on the twentieth of June, 
1863. 



April the President issued a proclamation 
declaring all the southern ports in a state of 
blockade ; and on the third of May he put 
forth another proclamation ordering the regu- 
lar army of the United States to be increased 
to sixty-four thousand seven hundred and 
forty-eight men, and the navy to eighteen 
thousand seamen. On the tenth of May he 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



673 



issued a fourth proclamation, suspending the 
writ oi Jiabeas corpus in certain localities, and 
authority to suspend this privilege was con- 
ferred upon the commanders of military de- 
partments soon afterward. 

Under the instructions of the government 
these commanders now proceeded to arrest 
great numbers of persons in various parts of 
.the country who were suspected of sympa- 



governmcnt paid no attention to this deci- 
sion, and held the prisoner in confinement. 
A little later the Legislature of Maryland, 
which was strongly Southern in its sympa- 
thies, was prevented from meeting by the 
sudden arrest and imprisonment of a large 
number of its members by order of the 
secretary of war. 

On the fourth of July, 1861, Congress 




FORT MOULTRIE, CHARLESTON HARBOR. 



thizing with the South. They were impris- 
oned at the military posts, and were denied 
trial by the civil courts. John Merryman, a 
citizen of Maryland, was one of the persons 
so arrested. His friends applied for redress 
to the Chief Justice of the United States, who 
held the suspension of the habeas corpus act 
by the President to be unconstitutional, and 
ordered the discharge of the prisoner. The 
43 



convened in extra session at Washington, in 
accordance with the President's proclama- 
tion. This body proceeded to give to the 
government a prompt and effectual support. 
Resolutions were introduced to legalize the 
extraordinary acts of the President in setting 
aside the writ of habeas corpus, in ordering 
the arbitrary arrest and confinement of citi- 
zens, and in assuming certain other powers 



074 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



which belonged to Congress. Congress 
refused to throw over these acts, however 
necessary, the sanction of the law ; but in 
view of the necessity of prompt and vigorous 
action on the part of the President, excused his 
acts on the distinct ground of the " necessities 
of war." Measures were adopted without 
delay for putting in the field an army of five 
hundred and twenty-five thousand men, and 
for equipping a powerful navy ; and the sum 
of five hundred millions of dollars was appro- 
priated for the prosecution of the war. 

During this session Congress also adopted 
a solemn resolution declaring " that this war 
is not prosecuted on our part in any spirit of 




THE CONFEDERATE FLAG. 

oppression, nor for any purpose of conquest 
or subjugation, nor for the purpose of over- 
throwing or interfering with the rights or 
established institutions of those [the seceded] 
States ; but to defend and maintain the 
supremacy of the constitution and all laws 
made in pursuance thereof, and to preserve 
the Union with all the dignity, equality and 
rights of the several States unimpaired ; that 
as soon as these objects are accomplished the 
war ought to cease." 

In the meantime the Confederates had 
collected troops at important points to resist 
the advance of the Federal troops into Virginia. 
A force under Brigadier-General Garnett 



was stationed in West Virginia to cover the 
approaches from that direction ; Harper's 
Ferry, which commanded the entrance into 
the valley of Virginia, was held by an army 
of seven thousand or eight thousand men, 
under General Joseph E. Johnston ; a much 
larger force, under General Beauregard, took 
position near Manassas Junction, about thirty 
miles from Washington, and a column of 
several thousand men, under General John 
B. Magruder, was stationed at Yorktown, on 
the peninsula between the York and James 
rivers, to cover Richmond from the direction 
of Fortress Monroe at the mouth of Hamp- 
ton Roads, which was still held by the Federal 
troops. Norfolk was also held by a strong 
force. With the exception of that occupied 
by General Garnett's command, all these 
positions were carefully fortified. 

Bethel Church and Rich Mountain. 

The Union army at Fortress Monroe num- 
bered about twelve thousand men, and was 
commanded by General B. F. Butler. Early 
in June, Magruder moved a force of eighteen 
hundred men and several pieces of artillery 
from Yorktown, and took position at Bethel 
Church, about half way between Yorktown 
and Hampton. On the tenth of June he was 
attacked by a force of four thousand troops 
under General Pierce, of Massachusetts, but 
succeeded in repulsing the attack and main- 
taining his position. 

In the opposite quarter of the State, the 
Union forces were more successful. In order 
to prevent the Confederates from overrun- 
ning West Virginia, a strong body of Ohio 
and Indiana troops, under General George 
B. McClellan, was sent into that region. 
McClellan set to work at once to drive the 
Confederates out of West Virginia, and on 
the third of June a portion of his command, 
under General Kelly, defeated General 
Garnett at Philippi. McClellan now advanced 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



675 



against the main body of Garnett's forces. 
On the eleventh of July, he attacked the com- 
mand of Colonel Pegram at Rich Mountain, 
and defeated it. This defeat compelled Gen- 
eral Garnett to fall back towards the valley 
of Virginia, He was pursued by McClellan 
and overtaken at Carrick's ford, on the Cheat 
river. In the battle which ensued here, Gar- 



mander, Colonel Ellsworth, was killed by a 
citizen. Strong defences were erected on 
the Virginia shore between Washington and 
Alexandria, and the army was encamped 
within these lines. Two months were passed 
in organizing and disciplining this force, and 
in the meantime the people of the Northern 
and Western States became impatient of the 




THE SIXTH MASSACHUSETTS REGIMENT PASSING THROUGH BALTIMORE. 



nett was killed, and the remnant of his com- 
mand was driven beyond the mountains. 

The United States had assembled a con- 
siderable army of volunteers and regulars at 
Washington under Major-General Irwin Mc- 
Dowell. On the twenty-fourth of May, Alex- 
andria, on the Virginia side of the Potomac, 
nine miles below Washington, was seized by 
a detachment from this army. Its com- 



delay, and demanded an immediate advance 
upon the southern army and Richmond. 

Preparatory to his own advance. General 
McDowell sent General Patterson with twenty 
thousand men to cross the Potomac at Wil- 
liamsport, and prevent General Johnston from 
leavmg the valley and joining Beauregard at 
Manassas. Upon the arrival of Patterson 
on the upper Potomac, General Johnston 



6/6 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



evacuated Harper's Ferry and took position at 
Winchester. Patterson made a considerable 
show of force in the valley, but refrained 
from attacking Johnston, although the latter 
sought to induce him to do so. He took 
position about nine miles from Winchester, 
and remained inactive there. 

In the meantime the preparations for the 




FORTIFICATIONS IN AND AROUND WASHINGTON. 

advance of McDowell's army were completed, 
and on the seventeenth of July he began his 
march from the Potomac towards Bull Run, 
on the banks of which the Confederates were 
posted. His army numbered over fifty thou- 
sand men, and forty-nine pieces of artilleiy. 
As soon as the advance of this army was 
known to him, General Beauregard informed 
.General Johnston of it, and begged him to 



come to his assistance. Johnston skilfully 
eluded Patterson's army, and hastened to 
Bull Run, arriving there with a part of his 
command in time to take part in the battle. 
The Confederate army had taken position 
behind Bull Run, and in advance of Manassas 
Junction. Including the force brought by 
General Johnston, who assumed the chief 

command by virtue 
of his rank, it con- 
sisted of thirty-one 
thousand four hun- 
dred and thirty-one 
men and fifty-five 
guns. 

On the eighteenth 
of July General Mc- 
Dowell attempted 
to force a passage 
of Bull Run at 
Blackburn's ford, 
but was repulsed. 
On the morning ot 

,, ^^^j_ ■= Ir-rr. WAGNER " 

ps.v;^5°p : — ■- / the twenty-first, the 

^^ "" / Union army advanced in force, and 
y endeavored to turn the leit oi the 
Southern line. An obstinately- 
contested battle ensued, which lasted 
from sunrise until nearly sunset. It 
resulted in the total defeat of the Federal 
army, which was driven back in utter 
rout upon Alexandria and Washington, 
with a loss of between four and five thou- 
sand men in killed, wounded and prison- 
ers, and twenty-eight pieces of artillery. 
For a while the effects of this disaster 
upon the Federal army were so great that 
Washington was almost defenceless ; but the 
Confederates made no effort to follow up their 
victory. They were almost as badly de- 
moralized by their success as the Union 
army by its defeat. 

Recovering from the dismay of its first 
great reverse, the government went to work 




PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. 



6/8 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



with vigor to repair the disaster. The levy 
of five hundred thousand men ordered by 




MAP SHOWING THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY. 



Congress was raised promptly and without 
difficulty, so eager was the desire of the 



people to wipe out the disgrace of Bull Run. 

At his own request General Scott, whose 
bodily infirmities were 
so great as to render 
him unable to dis- 
charge the duties of 
his position, was re- 
lieved of the com- 
mand of the army. 
Major-General Geo. 
B. McClellan was 
given the chief com- 
mand of the armies 
of the Union, and or- 
dered to take charge 
of the force assem- 
bling before Wash- 
ington, which was 
named the Army of 
the Potomac. He 
devoted himself with 
success to the task of 
organizing and dis- 
ciplining the recruits, 
which came pouring 
in during the fall and 
winter. 

The remainder of 
the year 1861 passed 
away quietly on the 
Potomac, with the 
single exception of 
the battle of Lees- 
burg. Colonel Baker, 
with a force of two 
thousand men, was 
sent by General Stone 
to cross the Potomac 
at Edward's ferry, and 
drive back the Con- 
federate force under 
General Evans from 

its position near Leesburg. He made his 

attack on the twenty-first of October, but was 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



679 



repulsed with the loss of eight hundred killed 
and wounded, being himself among the slain. 
The Confederate army held its position at 
Centreville through the fall and winter, and 
at one time its outposts were pushed forward 
within view of the city of Washington. 

In the fall of 1861 an army of ten thou- 
sand men was sent by the Confederate gov- 
ernment into the valley of Virginia to pre- 
vent its occupation by the federal forces. The 
command of these troops was conferred upon 
General T. J. Jackson, whose conspicuous 
gallantry at Bull Run had won him the so- 
briquet of " Stonewall Jackson," by which he 
was afterwards known by both armies. He 
established his headquarters at Winchester. 

Prompt Action in Missouri. 

In the meantime the war had been going 
on in Western Virginia. After the transfer of 
General McClellan to Washington, the com- 
mand of the Union forces passed to Briga- 
dier-General Rosecranz, an able officer. He 



liad several indecisive encounters with the 



commands of Generals Floyd and Wise, in 
the region of the Gauley and New rivers. 
General Robert E. Lee was sent by the Con- 
federate government to assume the chief 
command in the west. He attacked the 
brigade of General Reynolds at Cheat moun- 
tain on the fourteenth of September, but was 
repulsed and obliged to retreat. On the 
fourth of October, General Reynolds attacked 
a Confederate force under General Henry R. 
Jackson on the Greenbrier river, but was re- 
pulsed. 

The State of Missouri took no part in the 
secession movements of the spring of 1861. 
Her people were divided; a large party 
sympathized with the South ; but still a larger 
party was determined that the State should 
remain in the Union. These parties soon 
came in conflict. The governor and leading 
officials of the State were in favor of seces- 



sion, and used all their influence to bring 
about the withdrawal of Missouri from the 
Union. A camp of the State militia was 
formed near St. Louis, and was called Camp 
Jackson in honor of the governor. It was 
known that the force assembled at this camp 
was intended to serve as a nucleus around 
which an army hostile to the federal govern- 
ment might assemble. By extraordinary 
exertions Colonel Frances P. Blair. Jr., a 
member of Congress from St. Louis, and 
Captain Nathaniel Lyon, commanding the 
troops at the Jefferson barracks, near St. 
Louis, succeeded in collecting a force of five 
regiments of Union volunteers. 

On the tenth of May, 1861, Lyon with 
these five regiments suddenly surrounded 
Camp Jackson, and compelled General Frost, 
the commanding officer, to surrender his 
whole force, camp and equipments. By this 
prompt action the State forces were prevented 
from carrying out their plan for seizing the 
United States arsenal at St. Louis, which 
contained sixty thousand stand of arms of 
the latest patterns, and a number of cannon, 
and a large quantity of ammunition. For this 
decisive action Captain Lyon was commis- 
sioned a brigadier-general by the President. 

Movements of General Lyon's Army. 

Satisfied that the desire of the southern 
party is Missouri to remain neutral was but 
a pretext to gain time to arm the State for a 
union with the Confederates, President Lin- 
coln determined to compel all the State forces 
not in the federal service to disband. An in- 
terview was held at St. Louis on the eleventh 
of June between Governor Jackson and Gen- 
eral Lyon, now commanding the federal 
troops in Missouri. Governor Jackson de- 
manded that no United States forces should 
be quartered in or marched through Mis- 
souri. General Lyon refused to comply with 
this demand, and insisted that the State forces 




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680 



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ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



68 1 



should be disbanded, pledging himself to 
respect the rights and privileges of the State. 

At the close of the interview the Governor 
returned to Jefferson City, the capital of the 
State, and the next day, the twelfth, issued 
his proclamation calling 50,000 of the State 
militia into active service for the purpose of 
driving the Federal troops from the State, and 
protecting the " lives, liberty and property of 
the citizens." General Lyon at once marched 
upon Jefferson City, and occupied it on the 
fifteenth, the Governor and his supporters 
having retired to the interior of the State. 
On the seventeenth Lyon proceeded to 
Booneville and defeated the State troops 
stationed there under General Price. 

The southwestern part of Missouri is rich 
in deposits of lead, and valuable mines of 
this mineral are worked there. The State 
authorities were anxious to hold this region, 
as it was of the highest importance to them 
to obtain the use of these mines to supply 
their army with lead. A column of Federal 
troops under General Sigel was sent by Gen- 
eral Lyon to intercept the retreat of the State 
troops. On the fifth of July, Sigel attacked 
the State troops under Governor Jackson at 
Carthage, but was repulsed. 

Battle of Wilson's Creek. 

The next day, July 6th, Governor Jackson 
was joined at Carthage by General Sterling 
Price, of the Missouri State Guard, and Gen- 
eral Ben McCulloch, of the Confederate army, 
with several thousand men. The command 
of the whole force was conferred upon Gen- 
eral McCulloch, who had been ordered by 
his government to advance into Missouri. 
The Southern army, according to General 
McCulloch's statement, numbered 5,300 
infantry, 6,000 mounted men and fifteen pieces 
of artillery. It advanced rapidly into the in- 
terior of the State, and on the ninth of August 
reached Wilson's Creek, near Springfield. 



General Lyon had taken position there 
with a force somewhat smaller than that of 
the Confederates. On the morning of the 
tenth he attacked the Southern army. The 
battle lasted six hours, and was hotly con- 
tested. General Lyon was killed at the head 
of his troops while endeavoring to turn the 
left flank of the Confederates, and his army was 
forced back. His body was left in the haryds 
of the Confederates, who treated it with 
becoming respect. 

Springfield was occupied by the Confeder- 
ates the day after the battle ; but McCulloch 
and Price being unable to agree upon the 
plan of the campaign, they soon withdrew 




CAPITOL AT RICHMOND, VIRGINIA. 

to the Arkansas border. The Union army 
after the battle withdrew to Rolla, near the 
centre of the State. 

A few weeks later General Price with a 
force of over five thousand Confederates laid 
siege to Lexington, on the Missouri river, 
which was held by about three thousand 
men under Colonel Mulligan. After a gallant 
defence Mulligan was forced to surrender on 
the twentieth of September. 

Major-General John C. Fremont was now 
appointed by President Lincoln to take com.- 
mand of the western army. He forced 
Price's command back into the southwestern 
part of the State. Arriving near Springfield^ 




682 



PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



683 



Fremont prepared to bring the Confederates 
to a decisive engagement, but on the second 
of November was removed from his com- 
mand. He was succeeded by General Hunter, 
who abandoned the pursuit, and fell back to 
St. Louis. On the eighteenth of November 
Hunter was superseded by Major- General 
Halleck, who by a rapid advance drove Price 
once more towards the Arkansas border. 
This movement closed the campaign of 1861 
in Missouri. The Union army had not only 
saved the State to the Union, but had con- 
fined the Confederates to the Arkansas 
border. 

Southern Party in Kentucky. 

In the meantime Governor Jackson had 
summoned the legislature of Missouri to 
meet at Neosho. It assembled at that place 
in October, passed an ordinance of secession, 
and elected delegates and senators to the Con- 
federate Congress. Though this action was 
merely formal, and received the support of 
but a small part of the people of Missouri, it 
was recognized as valid by the Confederate 
government, and Missouri was proclaimed 
one of the Confederate States. 

The governor and State authorities of 
Kentucky attempted at the outset of the 
war to hold the position of armed neutrality 
between the parties to the contest ; but as in 
the case of Missouri, this effort failed. Neither 
the Federal government nor that of the 
Southern Confederacy could, in the nature 
of things, respect this neutrality. 

The Federal troops were poured into Ken- 
tucky, and the Confederates seized Columbus, 
on the Mississippi, Bowling Green, in the 
centre of the State, and other positions in 
the western part. The Southern party in 
Kentucky, within the protection of the Con- 
federate lines, organized a provisional govern- 
ment for the State, sent senators and repre- 
sentatives to the Congress at Richmond, 



which formally recognized Kentucky as one 
of the Confederate States. 

The force at Columbus was commanded 
by General Polk of the Confederate army. 
At Belmont, on the Missouri shore of the 
river, immediately opposite Columbus, a 
body of Confederate troops v»^as stationed. 
On the seventh of November, General U. S. 
Grant having descended the Mississippi from 
Cairo, attacked the force at Belmont with his 
command of three thousand men. After a 
sharp struggle he was repulsed, and forced 
to retreat to Cairo. 

On October iith, the privateer "Nash- 
ville," which had been fitted out by the Con- 
federates to capture Federal vessels, escaped 
from Charleston harbor and began to com- 
mit depredations upon the commerce of the 
North. The bold operations of the " Nash- 
ville" and other privateers produced a reign 
of terror on the high seas. 

Naval and Military Expedition. 

At the outset of the war the Confederates 
occupied the principal ports of the South, 
and a number of prominent points on the 
Atlantic coast. These were fortified by them 
as well as the means at hand would permit. 
The general government resolved to capture 
these as rapidly as possible, as their reduction 
was necessary in order to render the blockade 
of the southern coast effectual. The first expe- 
dition was despatched from Fortress Monroe 
in August, 1 861, under Commodore String- 
ham aud General Butler, and was directed 
against the Confederate works at Hatteras 
Inlet, which commanded the entrance to 
Albemarle and Pamlico sounds. These 
works were captured on the twenty-ninth of 
August. 

The great extent of the coast to be block- 
aded by the navy made it necessary that a 
good harbor at some central point should be 
secured, where supplies could be stored for 




684 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



685 



the fleet, and where vessels could refill with- 
out returning to the northern ports. Port 
Royal harbor, in South Carolina, was selected 
as the best place for this purpose. It was 
defended by Fort Walker on Hilton Head 
and Fort Beauregard on the opposite side of 
the harbor. A powerful naval and military 
expedition under Commodore Dupont and 
General Thomas W. Sherman attacked these 
works on the seventh of November, and 
reduced them after terrible bombardment by 
the fleet. Port Royal was at once occupied 
by the expedition, and during the war was 
the principal depot on the southern coast 
for the fleets and armies of the Union. 

It was not possible, however, to render the 
blockade effective. Great efforts were made 
to increase the number of vessels employed 
in this duty, but the Confederates succeeded 
in eluding the Union cruisers almost at plea- 
sure, and a steady communication was main- 
tained between the southern ports and Eng- 
land by way of the West Indies. A number 
of armed vessels in the service of the Con- 
federacy succeeded in getting to sea. By the 
close of the year they had inflicted severe 
damage upon the commerce of the Northern 
States, and had almost driven the foreign 
trade of the United States from the ocean. 

Affair of the "Trent." 

During the early part of the war the South- 
ern government was encouraged to hope 
that the governments of England and 
France would recognize the independence of 
the Confederate States, and in the fall of 
1 86 1, James M. Mason, of Virginia, and 
John Slidell, of Louisiana, were ordered to 
proceed to Europe, as commissioners from 
the Confederate States, to secure this recog- 
nition. They sailed from Charleston on the 
twelfth of October, and reached Cuba in 
safety. There they took passage for England 
on board the British mail-steamer " Trent." 



Hearing of this, Captain Wilkes, of the 
United States war-steamer " San Jacinto," 
overhauled the " Trent " upon the high seas 
boarded her, and seized the two commission- 
ers and their secretaries and sailed with them 
to Boston harbor, where they were im- 
prisoned in one of the forts. 

The "Trent" in the meantime proceeded 
on her voyage, and upon reaching England 
hercommander informed the British govern- 
ment of the outrage that had been commit- 
ted upon its flag. The English government 
at once demanded of President Lincoln the 
immediate and unconditional release of the 




LIEUTENANT-GENERAL POLK. 

Confederate commissioners and satisfac- 
tion for the insult to its flag. It was under- 
stood that France was prepared to sustain 
England in her demands. The Federal gov- 
ernment disavowed the action of Captain 
Wilkes in seizing the commissioners, and 
those gentlemen were released and allowed 
to continue their voyage. They reached 
England in due time. Mr. Mason proceeded 
to London and Mr. Slidell to France. 
Neither the English nor the French govern- 
ments would receive the commissioners offic- 
ially. It was understood that the United 
States would regard the interference of either 
in the American quarrel as a cause of war, and 
neither power cared to join in the struggle. 

Tennessee seceded from the Union, as we 
have related, in the spring of 1861. The 



6S6 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



western and central portions of the State 
were unanimously in favor of joining the 
Southern States and gave a hearty support 
to the Confederacy during the war, but East 
Tennessee, inhabited by a race of hardy 
mountaineers, was devoted to the Union, and 
was unwilling to leave it. In the autumn of 
1 86 1, the East Tennesseans took up arms 
against the Confederate Government, and 
began to destroy the railway bridges in that 
part of the State. 

This movement was full of danger to the 
Confederacy, as the principal line of commu- 
nication between Virginia and the Mississippi 
passed through East Tennessee. A consid- 
erable force of Confederate troops was sent 




JAMES M. MASON. 

into East Tennessee to hold the people in 
subjection and protect the railroads, but 
throughout the war, the hostility of the peo- 
ple of this region was a constant source of 
danger and weakness to the Confederates. 

When the year 1862 opened, the war had 
assumed colossal proportions. The military 
operations extended almost across the conti- 
nent, and engaged a number of powerful 
armies, and a formidable navy. The call of 
President Lincoln for troops had been cheer- 
fully responded to, and the opening of the 
year found the United States provided with a 
force of over half a million of men, splendidly 
armed and equipped, and supplied with every- 
thing necessary for the successful prosecution 



of the war. The North had profited by its 
first reverses, and was resolved that its next 
effort, which was to be made at the opening 
of the season for active operations, should 
find it thoroughly prepared for the task it had 
undertaken. 

A cordial support was given to the meas- 
ures of the government by the people. Its 
wants were supplied by means of a heavy 
loan which was readily negotiated with the 
capitalists of the Eastern States. From the 
moment that the despondency caused by the 
reverse at Bull Run had subsided sufficiently 
to enable the people of the loyal States to 
face the situation calmly, everyone saw that 
the work of preparation must all be done over 




JOHN SLIDELL. 

from the beginning, and it was done bravely 
and thoroughly. During the fall and winter 
the army was rapidly increased ; vessels were 
purchased and built for the navy. 

The Southern armies, on the other hand,, 
had grown steadily weaker. The first suc- 
cesses of the Confederate troops had greatly 
demoralized the Southern people. Volun- 
teering soon -ceased almost entirely. Even 
the heaviest bounties failed to bring recruits. 
There was a widespread delusion throughout 
the South that the war was practically ended. 
The measures of the Confederate Congress 
steadily thinned, instead of filling up the 
ranks of the Southern armies, and when the 
new year dawned there was grave reason to- 




THE ARREST OF MASON AND SEIDELL ON THE BRITISH STEAMER "TRENT." 



68r 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



fear that the spring- campaign would find the 
South without an adequate army unless more 
vigorous measures were resorted to. It was 
exceedingly doubtful whether the troops 
already in the service would renew their en- 
listments, which expired in the spring of 1 862. 
During the winter the Southern Congress 
adopted a law granting a furlough and a heavy 
bounty to every soldier who would re-enlist 
for the war. The furlough was to be granted 
during the winter ; the bounty to be paid at 
a later period. Many of those who went 
home on these furloughs did so with the 
intention of remaining there; and the practi- 




GRANT S HEAD-QUARTERS NEAR FORT 

cal effect of the measure was to diminish the 
strength of the Confederate armies. At length 
the Confederate Congress was driven by the 
necessities of the situation to adopt a most 
stringent and sweeping measure. On the 
sixteenth of April, 1862, a conscription act 
was passed, giving to the President of the 
Confederacy the power to call into the mili- 
tary service the entire male population of the 
various States between the ages of eighteen 
and thirty- five years. In September, 1862, 
a second act was passed extending the con- 
script age to forty-five years. 

The measure was acquiesced in by the 
Southern people, but was never popular with 



them. It served the purpose for which it was 
intended, however, and enabled the Confed- 
erate Government to collect a force of several 
hundred thousand men in the spring of 1862, 
and thus to fill up the ranks of its armies in 
the field, and to retain the regiments already 
in the service. 

When the spring opened, General Halleck, 
whose headquarters were at St. Louis, held 
Missouri against the Confederates with a 
powerful army. General Buell, with a con- 
siderable force, was stationed in Central Ken- 
tucky. In his front an inferior force of Con- 
federates, under General Albert Sidney John- 
^ ston, held Bowling Green 
and covered Nashville 
and the Tennessee and 
the Cumberland Rivers. 
They also held Colum- 
bus and other prominent 
points on the Mississippi. 
The Army of the Poto- 
mac, under General Mc- 
Clellan, lay along the 
Potomac, confronting 
the Confederate army of 
Northern Virginia, which 
held Centreville. A con- 
DONELSON. siderable force was col- 

lected at Fortress Monroe, and an army of 
about 10,000 Confederates, under Magruder, 
held a strongly fortified line, extending from 
Yorktown across the Peninsula to the James 
River. 

In addition to these forces, the Federal 
Government had collected a powerful flotilla 
of steamers and gunboats at Cairo, the junc- 
tion of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, to 
assist in the operations of the Western 
armies. The capture of New Orleans had 
been resolved upon, and a combined naval 
and military expedition under Commodore 
Farragut and General Butler was assembled 
for that purpose; and another expedition 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



689 



was organized in the Chesapeake for the 
reduction of Roanoke Island and the forts on 
the North Carohna coast. 

Soon after the opening of the new year, 
Mr. Cameron, whose administration of the 
war department had failed to give satisfac- 
tion to the country, was removed by Presi- 
dent Lincoln, and sent to Russia as minister 
from the United States. The President on 
the thirteenth of January appointed Edwin 
M. Stanton, of Ohio, Secretary of War. The 
new secretary was _ 

confessedly one of 
the ablest men in 
America, and his 
accession to the 
control of the war 
department infused 
newlife into the mil- 
itary preparations 
of the government. 
During the remain- 
der of the war he 
occupied this posi- 
tion, and it is nottoo 
much to say that his 
vigorous adminis- 
tration of his de- 
partment was one 
of the chief causes 
of the final success 
of the Union arms. 

Active operations were resumed earlier in 
the west than in the east. On the nineteenth 
of January, General George H. Thomas 
drove the Confederates under General Zol- 
licoffer from Mill Spring in Kentucky. The 
defeated force had held the right of the Con- 
federate line in Kentucky, the centre of 
which was at Bowling Green, and the left 
at Columbus, and its reverse was a serious 
disaster to the Confederates. 

The department of General Halleck em- 
braced Kentucky in addition to the country I 
44 



west of the Mississippi. In order to hold 
the Cumberland and Tennessee rivers, which 
afforded water communication far back into 
the country in the rear of their line, the Con- 
federates had built a work, known as Fort 
Henry, on the Tennessee, a little south of 
the Kentucky border, and another and a 
stronger work, known as Fort Donelson, on 
the Cumberland and a little below Nashville. 
At the solicitation of Brigadier-General 
U. S. Grant, commanding at Cairo, General 




'i WSjt,^,[,tA" 






A VIEW OF THE COUNTRY, SHOWING FORT DONELSON IN THE DISTANCE. 



Halleck determined to capture these forts, 
and so break the Confederate line, and com- 
pel their army to fall back from Kentucky. 
Fort Henry was to be first attacked. The 
fleet of gunboats under Commodore Foote 
and Grant's troops from Cairo were sent 
against Fort Henry, which was captured on 
the sixth of February after a severe bombard- 
ment by the gunboats which had ascended 
the Tennessee. The garrison escaped to 
Fort Donelson, twelve miles distant across 
the country. 



690 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



The loss of Fort Henry compelled the 
Confederates to evacuate all their positions 




MAP SHOWING PITTSBURG LANDING AND CORINTH. 

in Kentucky. General Beauregard fell back 



General Sidney Johnston slowly retired from 
Bowling Green upon Nashville, followed by 
General Buell. 



After 

the capture of Fort 
Henry the gunboats 
returned to Cairo, and, 
taking on board sup- 
plies and reinforce- 
ments for the army, 
ascended the Ohio and 
entered the Cumber- 
land, up which they 
passed to Fort Donel- 
son. Grant, in the 
meantime, marched 
across the country 
from Fort Henry to 
Fort Donelson.and in- 
vested the latter work. 
The roads were so dif- 
ficult that although 
the distance between 
the two forts was but 
twelve miles, Grant 
spent six days in 
marching it. This 
delay gave General 
Johnston an oppor- 
tunity to reinforce 
Fort Donelson. He 
halted at Nashville 
with his main army 
to await the result of 
Grant's attack on the 
fort. The gunboats did 
not joinGrant until the 
fourteenth of Febru- 
ary, and the invest- 
ment was not begun 
until their arrival. 

The f o 1 1 o w i n g 
graphic description of 



from Columbus to Corinth, Mississippi, and 



the capture of Fort Henry is from the pen of 
the historian, John Laird Wilson : 



692 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



"Immediately on receiving permission from 
Halleck to proceed with his proposed plan, 
Grant made arrangements for the attack on 
Fort Henry. He had at his disposal some 
seventeen thousand men. It was arranged 
that Commodore Foote, with a flotilla of 
seven gunboats, should move along the 
Ohio, steer up the Tennessee, and open the 
attack, while Grant, on the land side, should 



to move slowly and shell the woods, in order 
to discover whether there were any concealed 
batteries. 

"On the morning of the sixth it was under- 
stood that everything was in readiness for the 
attack, which was to be made simultaneously 
on land and water. A heavy thunder-storm 
had raged the previous night ; and, as a con- 
sequence, the roads were heavy and the 




IRON-CLAD GUNBOAT. 



render what assistance was necessary and cut 
off all retreat. On Monday, the second of 
February, Foote left Cairo, and on the 
.morning of Tuesday he was a few miles 
below Fort Henry. Grant, in the meantime, 
with the divisions of McClernand and C. F. 
Smith, had embarked in transports which 
were convoyed by the flotilla. These landed 
a few miles below the fort ; and Foote pro- 
ceeded up the river, having orders from Grant 



streams so swollen that bridges had to be 
built for the passage of artillery. The land 
forces, thus encountering unlooked-for obsta- 
cles, were considerably delayed. Shortly 
after twelve o'clock Foote opened fire upon 
the fort. Beginning at a thousand yards 
distance, he gradually ran his vessels to 
within six hundred yards of the enemy. The 
firing for a time was vigorously returned; 
but Foote pressed forth with irresistible 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



693 



bravery, and his men worked with a will and 
as if they meant to win. It was evident to 
Tilghman from the first that it was next to 
impossible for him to hold the fort. He 
nevertheless exerted himself to the utmost, 
encouraging his men alike by word and 
example, going so far as to work one of 
the guns himself. 

Serious Accidents. 

"A series of accidents meanwhile occurred 
inside the fort. A rifled twenty-four pounder 
burst, killing and wounding a number of the 
men. A forty-two pounder burst prematurely 
and killed three of the gunners. In a short 
time the well-directed fire from the gunboats 
had dismounted seven of the guns and made 
them useless ; the flagstaff also was shot away. 
The garrison became completely demoralized. 
It was in vain that Tilghman attempted to re- 
place the exhausted gunners. The troops in 
the camp outside the fort made good their 
escape, some by the Dover road, leading to 
Fort Donelson, others on board a steamer 
which was lying a little above Fort Henry. 

"Foote had promised to reduce the fort 
within an hour. When he made that promise 
he counted on assistance from the forces on 
the land side. Without any such aid — for 
the land forces had not yet arrived on the 
scene — he made good his word ; for the hour 
had scarcely expired when the white flag 
was raised. There was no unnecessary 
delay. The main body of his troops having 
made good their escape, Tilghman, with his 
staff and some sixty artillerists, surrendered 
to the victorious Foote, In killed and 
wounded the Confederate loss was twenty- 
one men. The only serious damage sus- 
tained by the fleet in the river was on board 
the ironclad Essex. A shot from the enemy 
had penetrated her boiler ; and some twenty- 
nine officers and men, including Commander 
Porter, were seriously scalded." 



The capture of Fort Henry was felt by the 
South to be a damaging blow ; and it led to 
bitter murmuring and even loud complaints 
against the authorities at Richmond. It was 
justly regarded by the North as a victory of 
great importance. It was full of instruction,, 
inasmnch as it proved the value of gunboats 
on the narrow rivers of the West, especially ' 
when acting in conjunction with land forces. 
It inspired hope, inasmuch as it reclaimed 
lost territory, and restored the old flag. 
"Fort Henry is ours !" said Halleck in his 
despatch to McClellan. " The flag of the 
Union is re-established on the soil of Ten- 
nessee. It will never be removed." Foote 
was formally thanked by the Secretary of the 
Navy. " The country," he was told, " appre- 
ciates your gallant deeds, and this Depart- 
ment desires to convey to you and your 
brave associates its profound thanks for the 
service you have rendered." 

Important Union Success. 

Fort Donelson was a stronger work than 
Fort Henry, and was held by a force of about 
thirteen thousand men, commanded by Gen- 
eral John B. Floyd. On the fourteenth of 
February the gunboats opened fire upon the 
fort, and at the same time the army of Gen- 
eral Grant, reinforced to about thirty thou- 
sand men, began to occupy the positions as- 
signed it in the investment. The operations 
of the fourteenth ended with the repulse of 
the fleet, Commodore Foote being severely 
wounded in the engagement. Satisfied of 
his inability to hold the fort against the over- 
whelming force of the Federal army,General 
Floyd resolved to cut his way through, and 
retreat upon Nashville. 

On the fifteenth he made a gallant attempt 
to break Grant's lines, but was driven back, 
and a portion of the Southern intrenchments 
remained in the hands of the Union army. 
On the night of the fifteenth a council of 



■694 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



war was held by the Confederate comman- 
ders. It was evident that escape was impos- 
sible and a surrender inevitable. General 
Floyd refused to surrender, and retreated 
from the fort with a considerable force of 
infantry and cavalry, with which he suc- 
ceeded in reaching Nashville. General Pil- 
low, who was left by Floyd in command, 
turned over the command to General Buck- 
ner, the next in rank, and joined Floyd in 
his flight. Being unable to offer further re- 
sistance, General Buckner, on the morning 
of the sixteenth, surrendered the fort and 
his troops unconditionally to the Federal 
army. 




ISLAND NO. lo. 

The capture at Fort Donelson was by far 
the most important success that had yet been 
won by the Union armies, and was hailed 
with rejoicings throughout the north and 
west. By this capture over five thousand 
prisoners, besides the Confederate wounded, 
fell into the hands of the Union forces. The 
Federals also lost heavily in killed and 
wounded. 

General Johnston, upon learning of the fall 
of Fort Donelson, fell back from Nashville to 
Murfreesboro', from which place he subse- 
quently continued his retreat across the 
State, and eventually joined General Beaure- 
gard, who had taken position at Corinth, at 
the junction of two important railway lines 



on the northern border of Mississippi. Beau- 
regard, in falling back from Columbus, had 
left a force at Island No. lo, which had been 
strongly fortified, to hold the Mississippi 
against the efforts of the Federal fleet and 
army to obtain the control of the river. 

Nashville was occupied by the army of 
General Buell, and Grant's army was moved 
up the Tennessee as far as Pittsburgh Land- 
ing. General Buell was ordered to march 
across the country from Nashville to the 
Tennessee, to unite his forces with Grant's 
and attack the Confederates at Corinth. 

General Johnston, the Confederate com- 
mander, had feared this concentration, which 

would make the 
~==" _ _ Federal power in 

this quarter irresis- 
tible, and had de- 
termined to attack 
Grant's army and 
crush it before 
Buell could arrive, 
after which he 
would be free to 
engage Buell. His 
plan was ably con- 
ceived but his 
march was delayed by the fearful state of the 
roads, and he did not arrive opposite the 
Federal position until two days after the time 
fixed for his attack. Grant was encamped at 
Shiloh Church, near Pittsburgh Landing, 
with the Tennessee river in his rear. On the 
morning of Sunday, April sixth, his army 
was suddenly attacked by Johnston, and was 
driven steadily from its original position to 
the banks of the Tennessee, where it was 
sheltered by the fire of the gunboats. The 
battle was stubbornly contested, and the 
losses on both sides were very heavy. 

Late in the afternoon General Johnston 
was mortally wounded, and died soon after- 
wards. The command passed to General 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



695 



Beauregard, who failed to follow up his 
advantage. During the night the army of 
General Buell arrived, and reinforced Grant. 
On the morning of the seventh Grant attacked 
the Confederates, and after a sharp fight 
drove them back. They retreated slowly 
and returned to Corinth. 

While these operations were in progress, 
the gunboats under Commodore Foote and 
a strong force of Western troops under 
Pope laid siege to Island No. 10, on the Mis- 
sissippi. After a bombardment of twenty- 
three days, the Confederate works were cap- 
tured, together with five thousand prisoners, 
on the seventh of April, the day on which 
Beauregard was driven back from Shiloh. 

The Confederates still held Fort Pillow, 
a strong work a short distance above Mem- 
phis. If this could be captured, the Federal 
forces would obtain the control of the river 
as far south as Vicksburg. General Pope 
was anxious to move against it at once, but 
his army was ordered to join General Hal- 
leck. Commodore Foot being disabled by 
bis wound received at Fort Donelson, was 
succeeded by Captain Davis, who descended 
the river and took position above Fort Pil- 
low. 

General Halleck now repaired to the Ten- 
nessee, and took command of the Union 
armies there, amounting to more than one 
hundred thousand men. He moved forward 
leisurely towards Corinth, and laid siege to 
that place. Beauregard, seeing that it was 
impossible to hold Corinth against this 
greatly superior force, evacuated it on the 
night of the twenty-ninth of May, and 
retreated to Tupelo, Mississippi. The next 
day General Halleck occupied Corinth. The 
loss of Corinth compelled the evacuation of 
Fort Pillow, which was abandoned by the 
Confederates on the fourth ot June. On the 
sixth the Union gunboats descended the river 
to Memphis, and defeated the Confederate 



flotilla above that city. Memphis at once 
surrendered, and was occupied by the Union 
forces. All West Kentucky and West Ten- 
nessee were now under the control of the 
Union armies, which now occupied a line 
extending from Memphis, through Corinth, 
almost to Chattanooga. 

Early in July news came to the East of 
another massacre in the Mormon territory. 
A fanatic by the name of Morris, who 
claimed to be the true successor of Joseph 
Smith, and had gathered several hundred 
followers, was accused of having committed 
various depredations, and a small force was 
sent by order of the chief Mormons to arresf 




BURNING HORSES AT SHILOH. 

him. The force was under command of one 
Burton, sheriff of Salt Lake county. Morris 
refused to surrender, a conflict ensued, the 
camp of the Morrisites was riddled with 
cannon balls, and Morris was shot by Burton. 
Two Brighamites and ten Morrisites were 
killed, and a large number were wounded. 
The attacking party appears to have prac- 
ticed unnecessary cruelty. 

Returning to the story of the war, the 
Confederates still held East Tennessee in 
heavy force. Shortly after the evacuation of 
Corinth General Beauregard was removed 
from his command, and was succeeded by 
General Braxton Bragg. Bragg was strongly 



696 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



reinforced, and it was determined to make a 
bold effort to drive back the Federal advance 
and regain West Tennessee and, if possible, 
Kentucky. Bragg's army was concentrated 
at Chattanooga, and Geneneral Kirby Smith 
at Knoxville was strongly reinforced. Smith 
was to move from Knoxville, while Bragg 
was to advance from Chattanooga, and the 
two armies were to unite in the centre of the 
State of Kentucky. Their combined forces 
amounted to over fifty thousand men, and it 



Smith then occupied Lexington and Frank- 
fort, and advanced towards Cincinnati ; but 
ascertaining that a strong force was assem- 
bling at that city, under General Lewis Wal- 
lace, he fell back to Frankfort, where he joined 
General Bragg on the fourth of October. 

Bragg had begun his march as soon as 
Kirby Smith had gotten fairly started. His 
objective point was Louisville, and he hoped 
to be able to elude the army of General Buell, 
which was at Nashville, and by a rapid ad- 




MASSACRE OF THE MORRISITES. 



was hoped that this movement would compel 
the Federal army to abandon its advance, 
and fall back into Kentucky to protect that 
State and Ohio from the Confederates. Then, 
by a decisive victory, Bragg expected to be 
able to overrun and hold Kentucky and 
even to invade Ohio. 

The division of General Smith moved for- 
ward about the middle of August, and on the 
thirtieth of August defeated a Union force 
under General Manson at Richmond, Ken- 
tucky, inflicting upon it a loss of 6,000 men. 



vance seize Louisville before Buell's arrival. 
By the seventeenth of September he was at 
Munfordsville, Kentucky, which he captured 
after several slight encounters, taking forty- 
five hundred prisoners. Buell in the mean- 
time had divined Bragg's purpose, and had 
set out from Nashville for the Ohio by forced 
marches. He reached Louisville before the 
arrival of the Confederates, and being heavily 
reinforced advanced to attack Bragg, who 
had turned aside and occupied Frankfort on 
the fourth of October. 










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PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT CONFEDERATE GENERALS. 



697 



698 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



Bragg fell back slowly, ravaging the coun- 
try along his route, and was followed by Buell 
with equal deliberation. On the eighth of 
October an indecisive battle was fought be- 
tween the two armies at Perryville. After 
this conflict, in which both sides lost heavily, 
Buell refrained from attacking Bragg again, 
and the latter continued his retreat leisurely 
into Tennessee, taking with him a wagon train 
forty miles in length, loaded with plunder 
captured in Kentucky. 

Grant Strikes Decisive Blows. 

During this campaign the Federal army 
under General Grant had held its line in West 
Tennessee, extending from Corinth to Mem- 
phis. A Confederate army under Generals 
Price and Van Dorn was assembled in Mis- 
sissippi in front of the Union position. Grant, 
who was now in command of the Federal 
forces in West Tennessee (Halleck having 
been summond to Washington as Com- 
manding General), ordered General Rosecrans 
to his assistance. Upon the arrival of this 
commander with his troops, Grant advanced 
upon Price at luka, and defeated him on the 
nineteenth of September. He then repaired to 
Jackson, Tennessee, leaving Rosecrans with 
nineteen thousand men to hold Corinth 
against the Confederates. 

After his defeat at luka Price was joined 
by Van Dorn, whose troops brought the 
strength of the Confederate army to eighteen 
thousand men. They at once advanced upon 
Corinth, and on the fourth of October attacked 
that place. The battle which ensued was 
noted for the obstinacy with which it was 
contested by both sides. The Confederates 
were defeated with a loss of about three thou- 
sand killed and wounded, and were pursued 
for about thirty miles southward. The Union 
loss was about five hundred and eighteen 
killed, wounded and missing. 

The Federal Government was greatly dis- 



satisfied with Buell's failure to intercept 
Bragg, and upon his arrival at Nashville he 
was removed from the command of his army, 
which was conferred upon General Rose- 
crans, as a reward for his victory at Corinth. 
Bragg had taken position near Murfreesboro', 
about thirty miles distant from Nashville, and 
Rosecrans, towards the last of December, 
moved upon that place to attack him. Bragg 
had at the same time completed his prepara- 
tions to resume the offensive, and had begun 
his advance upon Nashville, and the two 
armies encountered each other at Stone 
River, near Murfreesboro', on the thirty-first 
of December. They were about equal in 
strength, each numbering about forty thou- 
sand men. 

Bragg Repulsed by Rosecrans. 

The battle was fiercely disputed, but at 
nightfall Rosecrans was driven back with 
heavy loss, and Bragg telegraphed to Rich- 
mond news of a great victory. Rosecrans, 
however, had merely fallen back to a new 
and stronger position. On the second o) 
January, 1863, Bragg renewed his attack, 
but was repulsed with terrible slaughter. On 
the third a heavy rain fell and prevented all 
military operations, and that night Bragg 
retreated from the field. He retired in good 
order to Tullahoma, about thirty miles from 
Murfreesboro'. The losses on both sides in 
this battle were heavy, ranging from ten 
thousand to twelve thousand men in each 
army. 

The Confederates, having lost the uppei 
and lower Mississippi, had fortified Vicksburg 
and Port Hudson, in order to maintain their 
hold upon that stream, and to keep open theii 
communications with the country west of the 
Mississippi. Vicksburg had been made a 
post of extraordinary strength, and was gan 
risoned by a considerable force of Confed^ 
erate troops. Towards the last of the yeai 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



699 



General Grant determined to undertake an 
expedition against it. He sent General Sher- 
man with forty thousand men, and a fleet of 
gunboats, under Commodore Porter, to de- 
scend the Mississippi and attack the southern 
works above the city ; 
and advanced south- 
ward from Corinth 
with the main army 
by land. Grant had 
accomplished fully 
half the distance when 
a strong body of Con- 
federate cavalry, under 
General Van Dorn, 
made a dash into his 
rear, and on the twen- 
tieth of December cap- 
tured Holly Springs, 
Grant's principal de- 
pot of supplies. 

This movement 
compelled Grant to 
abandon his advance 
upon Vicksburg, and 
to fall back and re- 
establish his com- 
munications with his 
base. Sherman, ignor- 
ant of this disaster, 
left Memphis on the 
twentieth of Decem- 
ber, and a few days 
later landed his troops 
on the banks of the 
Yazoo, from which he 
advanced upon the 
Confederate works at 
Chickasaw bayou, on the north of Vicksburg. 
On the twenty-hinth of December he made 
a spirited attack upon them, but was repulsed. 
He withdrew his troops to the boats, and 
retired to Young's Point, on the Louisiana 
shore, a short distance above Vicksburg. 



The Confederates were driven out of Mis- 
souri at the close of 1861, and retired into 
Arkansas. General Van Dorn was now sent 
by the Confederate government to take 
command of the forces of Price and McCul- 




GENERAL SHERMAN AT THE OUTBREAK OF THE WAR. 



loch, which numbered about sixteen thousand 
men. He reached the head-quarters of this 
force on the third of March, 1862. The 
Federal army, under General Curtis, with 
General Sigel as his second in command, 
had taken position on the heights of Pea 



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700 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



701 



Ridge, around Sugar creek, in the north- 
western part of Arkansas. It numbered 
about eleven thousand rnen. On the seventh 
of March Van Dorn attacked the Union 
army in this position, and after a bloody 
fight, which lasted for about seven or eight 
hours, drove it back. Curtis took up a new 
position during the night, and the next 
morning the Confederates renewed the attack, 
and were repulsed. 

After the battle of Shiloh, the troops of 
Price and Van Dorn were withdrawn across 
the Mississippi to reinforce General Beau- 
regard at Corinth. We have seen them 
bearing the brunt of the campaign in northern 
Mississippi against Grant's army. Towards 
the close of the summer, it being necessary 
to make a vigorous effort to hold the trans- 
Mississippi region against the efforts of the 
Union forces, the Confederate government 
sent Lieutenant-General Holmes to take 
command of it. The operations in this 
region during the remainder of the year were 
of an unimportant character. 

General Burnside's Expedition. 

The plan of the Federal government for 
seizing the prominent points on the coast 
was carried forward with great energy during 
the year 1862. Between Albemarle and 
Pamlico Sounds, on the coast of North Caro- 
lina, lies Roanoke Island, famous as the 
scene of Sir Walter Raleigh's unfortunate 
attempts to colonize America, and com- 
manding the entrance to Albemarle Sound. 
The possession of this island by the Federal 
forces would give them the command of the 
rivers entering into the sounds, place the 
rear defences of Norfolk at their mercy, and 
afford them a safe base from which to attack 
the towns on the North Carolina coast. The 
Federal government having determined to 
obtain possession of Roanoke Island, a 
powerful expedition against it was fitted out 



early in the year, under the command of 
Major-General Ambrose E. Burnside. 

The expedition sailed from Hampton 
Koads on the eleventh of January, 1862, and 
after narrowly escaping being scattered by a 
severe storm, passed through Hatteras inlet, 
and anchored in Pamlico Sound on the 
twenty-eighth. On the sixth of February 
the fleet took position off Roanoke Island, 
and on the seventh opened fire upon the 
Confederate works. Under the cover of this 
fire a force of over ten thousand troops was 
landed upon the island. On the eighth, Gen- 
eral Burnside attacked the Confederate in- 
trenchments and carried them after a sharp 
contest. The entire Confederate force, num- 
bering about twenty-five hundred men, fell 
into his hands as prisoners of war. On the 
tenth, the Confederate squadron in Albemarle 
Sound was attacked and destroyed, or cap- 
tured. 

Having established himself firmly on Ro- 
anoke Island, General Burnside prepared to 
reduce the towns along the coast of North 
Carolina. On the fourteenth of March, New- 
berne surrendered to him, and on the twenty- 
fifth of April, Fort Macon, at the entrance of 
Beaufort Harbor, one of the strongest works 
on the coast, capitulated. 

Successes on the Florida Coast. 

Some important successes were won on 
the Coast of Florida during the spring of this 
year. An expedition from Port Royal cap- 
tured Fernandina and Fort Clinch, on the 
twenty-eightb. of February, and a little later 
Jacksonville, on the St. John's River, and St. 
Augustine passed into the hands of the Fed- 
eral troops. Brunswick and Darien, import- 
ant places on the coast of Georgia, were cap- 
tured about the same time. 

The most important naval expedition of 
the year was that which resulted in the 
capture of New Orleans. The Federal 




707 PORTRAITS OF THE PRINCIPAL NAVAL COMMANDERS DURING THE WAR. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



703 



Government had recognized from the first 
the importance of regaining possession of the 
Mississippi, and, as we have seen, a large fleet 
of gunboats had been prepared on the upper 
waters of that stream to co-operate with the 
army in its efforts to capture the fortified 
posts along the river. All these efforts, how- 
ever, were useless as long as the Confederates 
retained possession of the lower river or of 
the important city of New Orleans, the com- 
mercial metropolis of the South. It was 
resolved at an early period of the struggle to 
wrest New Orleans from the Confederates, 
and a fleet of forty-five vessels of war and 
mortar-boats was assembled for this purpose, 
and placed under command of Commodore 
Farragut, an able and experienced officer. 
To the fleet was added a force of fifteen 
thousand troops, under General B. F. Butler. 
The expedition rendezvoused at Ship Island, 
near the mouth of the Mississippi, in the 
«arly part of March. 

Tactics of Admiral Farragut. 

About twenty miles above the head of the 
passes of the Mississippi, and about seventy 
miles below New Orleans, the entrance to 
the river is defended by two strong works — 
Fort Jackson on the right bank of the 
stream, and Fort St. Philip on the left — both 
built before the war. The Confederates 
had further strengthened their position by 
stretching six heavy chains, supported on a 
series of dismasted schooners, across the 
river, from shore to shore, to prevent the 
passage of ships. Early in April the fleet 
sailed from Ship Island, leaving the troops 
there to await the result of its operations, 
and entering the Mississippi took position 
below the forts. 

On the eighteenth the bombardment of 
the forts was begun by the ships and the 
mortar-boats, and was continued with great 
vigor until the twenty-fourth. The results of 



this bombardment was most discouraging, 
and Farragut became convinced that the 
forts could not be reduced by the fire of the 
fleet. He therefore determined to pass them 
with his vessels and so neutralize them. 

The chain and raft barricade across the 
river had been broken by a severe storm, and 
Farragut sent a party to enlarge the gap 
made in it, so as to admit the passage of the 
fleet. This task was accomplished with great 
gallantry. At three o'clock, on the morning 
of the twenty-fourth of April, the fleet got 
under headway and began to ascend the 
river, the commodore in his flag-ship, the 
" Hartford," leading the way. The fleet 
consisted of seventeen vessels, carrying two 
hundred and ninety-four guns. 

Desperate Naval Battle. 

As the vessels came abreast of the forts 
the Confederates opened a heavy fire upon 
them, to which they responded with vigor. 
The forts were passed in safety at length 
and a short distance above them Farragut 
encountered the Confederate fleet, consisting 
of sixteen vessels, but eight of which were 
armed. Two of these were iron-clads, how- 
ever. A desperate battle ensued, which 
resulted in the total destruction of the south- 
ern fleet. When the sun rose on the morn- 
ing of the twenty-fourth the forts had been 
passed, and the resistance of the Confederate 
vessels had been overcome. 

There was nothing now between the 
Federal fleet and New Orleans, and Farragut, 
ascending the river slowly and cautiously, 
anchored in the stream, in front of the city, 
on the morning of the twenty-fifth. He at 
once demanded the capitulation of New 
Orleans, which had been evacuated by the 
Confederate troops on the previous day, and 
the city was surrendered to him by the 
municipal authorities. On the twenty-eighth 
Forts Jackson and St. Philip surrendered to 




704 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



705 



Captain Porter, the commander of the mor- 
tar fleet. New Orleans being taken, word 
was sent to General Butler, at Ship Island, to 
hasten forward with his troops to occupy it. 
He arrived on the first of May, and at once 
took possession of the city. Baton Rouge, 
the capital of Louisiana, was occupied by the 
Federal forces, and Farragut pushed on up 
the river, and, passing the Confederate bat- 
teries at Grand Gulf and Vicksburg, joined 
the fleet of Commodore Davis at Memphis. 
The capture of New Orleans was a terrible 
blow to the South. It deprived the Con- 
federacy of the largest and wealthiest city 
within its limits, and wrested from it the 
whole of the lower Mississippi. 

Fort Pulaski Surrenders. 

Another success was gained by the Union 
arms on the Southern coast. An expedition 
from Port Royal, under General Hunter, laid 
siege to Fort Pulaski, near the mouth of the 
Savannah River. This fort was constructed 
by the Federal government previous to the 
war, and constituted one of the principal 
defences of the city of Savannah. On the 
eleventh of April, after a bombardment of 
fifteen days, it surrendered to General Hunter. 
Its capture closed the Savannah River to the 
entrance of the class of vessels known as 
blockade runners, and deprived the South of 
the use of one of its principal ports. 

The events of this year in Virginia were 
of the highest importance. The Army of 
the Potomac, nearly two hundred thousand 
strong, was ready for active operations with 
the early spring. General McClellan was 
anxious to avail himself of the superior naval 
strength of the United States to transport 
his army to a point on the Chesapeake Bay, 
from which it could easily interpose between 
the Confederate army, under General John- 
ston, and Richmond. 

Suspecting such a design on the part of 
45 



McClellan, Johnston abandoned his position 
at Centreville, on the eighth of March, and 
fell back to the Rappahannock, and a little 
later moved back still farther to the line of 
the Rapidan. McClellan advanced to Cen- 
treville as soon as informed of Johnston's 
withdrawal, but was too late to interfere with 
the movements of the Confederate army. 

Exploits of the *' Merrimac." 

Simultaneous with Johnston's withdrawal 
from Centreville occurred an incident which 
forms one of the most striking episodes of 
the war, and led to results of world-wide 
importance. Upon the evacuation of the 
Norfolk navy yard by the Federal forces, at 
the outset of the war, the splendid steam 
frigate " Merrimac " was scuttled and sunk 
This vessel was subsequently raised by the 
Confederates, and rebuilt by them. Her 
upper deck was removed, and she was covered 
with a slanting roof. Both the roof and her 
sides were heavily plated with iron, and a 
long, stout bow was fitted to her to enable 
her to act as a ram. She was then armed 
with ten heavy guns, and named the " Vir- 
ginia." Thus prepared, she was the most 
powerful vessel afloat. 

As soon as the " Virginia " was ready for 
service the Confederate authorities deter- 
mined to test her efficiency by attempting to 
destroy the Federal fleet to Hampton Roads. 
On the eighth of March the " Virginia," ac- 
companied by two small vessels, left Norfolk 
and steamed down the Elizabeth River into 
Hampton Roads. Her appearance took the 
Federal fleet by surprise, and a heavy fire 
was concentrated upon her from the fleet and 
the batteries on shore at Newport News, at 
the mouth of the James River. Shot and 
shell flew harmlessly from her iron sides, and, 
firing slowly as she advanced, she aimed 
straight for the sloop of war "Cumberland" 
— the most formidable vessel of her class in 



7o6 THE CIVIL WAR. 

the navy — and sunk her with a blow of her 
iron prow. 

The frigate " Congress," lying near by, 
was chased into shoal water and compelled 
to surrender, after which she was set on fire. 




GENERAL GEORGE B. M CLELLAN 

The ram then endeavored to inflict a similar 
fate upon the frigate " Minnesota," but that 
vessel escaped into water too shallow for the 
iron-clad to venture into. At sunset the 
"Virginia" drew oft, and returned to the 
EHzabeth River. She had destroyed two of 



the finest vessels in the Federal navy, and 
inflicted upon her adversaries a loss of two 
hundred and fifty officers and men. She was 
herself uninjured, and had but two men 
killed and eight wounded. 

The success of the 
"Virginia" struck 
terror to the fleet in 
Hampton Roads, and 
it was by no means 
certain that the vic- 
torious vessel would 
not the next day either 
attack Fort Monroe, 
or pass by it and as- 
cend the Chesapeake, 
in which case both 
Washington and Bal- 
timore would be at her 
mercy. During the 
night, however, a most 
unlooked-for assist- 
ance arrived. The 
" Monitor," an iron- 
clad vessel of a new 
plan, invented by Cap- 
tain John Ericsson, 
entered Hampton 
Roads on her trial 
trip from New York. 
Upon learning the 
state of affairs her 
commander, Lieuten- 
ant Worden, deter- 
mined to engage the 
" Virginia " the next 
day. On the morning 
ofthe ninth the "Vir- 
p-inia " ag-ain steamed out of the EHzabeth 
River into Hampton Roads. The "Monitor," 
though her inferior in size, and carrying but a 
single gun, at once moved forward to meet her. 
An engagement of several hours' duration 
ensued, in which both vessels were fought 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



707 



with great gallantry ; and at the end of this 
time the " Virginia " drew off, and returned 
to Norfolk severely injured. The arrival of 
the " Monitor" was most fortunate. It saved 
the Federal fleet in Hampton Roads from 
total destruction, and prevented the " Vir- 
ginia " from extending her ravages to the 
ports of the Union. The battle between the 
" Monitor" and the " Virginia " will ever be 
famous as the first engagement between iron- 
clad vessels. It inaugurated a new era in 
naval warfare. In spite of the result of the 
battle, however, the presence of the " Vir- 
ginia" at Norfolk deterred the Federal 
forces from risking an attack on that 
place, and prevented them from mak- 
ing any effort to ascend the James 
River with their fleet. 

In the meantime the army of Gen- 
eral McClellan had returned to its 
position near Alexandria, after the 
retreat of the Confederates to the 
Rapidan. General McClellan now 
proposed to move the bulk of his 
army to Fortress Monroe, and to 
advance from that point upon Rich- 
mond by way of the peninsula between 
the York and James Rivers. About 
seventy-five thousand men were left 
on the Potomac to cover Washington, 
and the remainder, about one hundred 
and twenty thousand in number, were trans- 
ported by water to Fortress Monroe. This 
movement was accomplished by the second 
of April. 

Johnston's Successful Retreat. 

On the fourth the Army of the Potomac 
began its march' towards the lines of York- 
town, which were held by about eleven 
thousand five hundred men, under General 
Magruder. The Confederate commander 
had passed the first year of the war in forti- 
fying his position, and had constructed a 



series of powerful works which enabled him, 
with his small force, to hold McClellan's 
whole army in check. On he fifth and sixth 
of April McClellan made repeated attempts 
to force the southern lines, and failing in 
these decided to lay siege to them. The 
time thus gained by Magruder enabled 
General Johnston to move his army from the 
Rapidan to the peninsula. It was in position 
on the lines of Yorktown by the seventeenth 
of April, making the force opposed to 
McClellan about fifty-eight thousand strong. 
The Confederates did not expect to hold 




VIEW OF THE CHICKAHOMINY NEAR MECHANICSVILLE. 

their position on the peninsula, but from the 
first intended to move back nearer to 
Richmond, and occupy the line of the Chick- 
ahominy. When their preparations were 
completed they fell back from the lines of 
Yorktown, on the night of the third of May, 
just as McClellan was about to begin his 
bombardment of their position. 

The Federal army discovered the retreat 
on the morning of the fourth of May, and 
moved forward promptly in the hope of inter- 
cepting the Southern army. On the morning 
of the fifth the advanced forces attacked the 



7o8 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



rear-guard of Johnston's army at Williams- 
burg. The Confederate commander held his 




MAP OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA. 



reached the Chickahominy about the tenth 
of May without further molestation from the 
Union forces. General 
McClellan, following 
leisurely, took posi- 
tion on the left bank 
of the Chickahominy, 
with the river between 
the two armies. 

In accordance with 
General McClellan's 
urgent request, Presi- 
dent Lincoln decided 
to order the force left 
to cover Washington 
to join the Army of 
the Potomac, before 
Richmond, by the 
way of Fredericks- 
burg. With his force 
thus augmented the 
Union commander 
had no doubt of his 
ability to capture 
Richmond. Alive to 
this danger General 
Johnston directed 
General Jackson, who 
had been left to hold 
the valley of Vir- 
ginia,to manoeuvre his 
army so as to threaten 
Washington, and com- 
pel the Federal gov- 
ernment to retain the 
force intended for Mc- 
Clellan for the defence 
of Washington. While 
awaiting the arrival of 
this force McClellan 
threw his left wing 
across the Chicka- 



ground until his trains had gotten off in 
safety, and then resumed his retreat, and 



hominy, and lodged it in a position nearer to 
Richmond. The Federal lines now extended 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



709 



from Bottom's Bridge, on the Chickahominy, 
to Mechanicsville, north of that stream. 

The evacuation of the peninsula compelled 
the Confederates to abandon Norfolk also. 
They withdrew their troops from that city 
on the ninth of May, 
and sent them to rein- 
force General Johns- 
ton. On the tenth Nor- 
folk and Portsmouth 
were occupied by the 
Federal forces under 
General Wool. Before 
leaving the Confeder- 
ates had set fire to the 
navy yard, which was 
destroyed. The iron- 
clad steamer " Vir- 
ginia" was taken into 
the James River, and 
on the eleventh was 
abandoned and blown 
up. The loss of this 1 
steamer, which could 
have held the James 
against the whole 
Union fleet, left the 
river open to within 
eight miles of Rich- 
mond. 

The gunboats, in- 
cluding the " Moni- 
tor," were sent up to 
try to force their way 
to Richmond, but on 
the fifteenth of May 
were driven back by a 
battery of heavy guns 

located on the heights at Drewry's bluff, 
eight miles below Richmond. They were 
badly injured by the plunging fire of the 
Confederates. The river was securely 
obstructed at this point to prevent a pas- 
sage of the batteries bv the Federal fleet. 



Having been heavily reinforced, General 
Johnston determined to attack McClellan's 
exposed left wing, and on the thirty-first of 
May fell upon it at Seven Pines, and drove 
it back with heavy loss. General Johnston 




LIEUTENANT-GENERAL T. J. JACKSON. 

was severely wounded towards the close 
of the day, and was unable to carry out 
the plan upon which he had begun the 
battle. The next day there was heavy skir- 
mishing until about ten o'clock in the morn- 
ing, but nothing of a more serious nature was 



lo 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



attempted by either side. General McClel- 
lan, warned by the narrow escape of his left 
wing, now proceeded to fortify his position 
on the south bank of the Chickahominy. 

While these events were in progress on 
the Chickahominy, General Jackson carried 
out with brilliant success the movements 
assigned him in the valley of Virginia, His 
task required the exercise of the greatest 
skill and determination. He was to neu- 
tralize the forces of Fremont, Banks and 
McDowell, and prevent them from render- 
ing any assistance to McClellan. Jackson's 
army fell back from Winchester on the elev- 
enth of March, and retired as far as Mount 
Jackson. Then rapidly retracing its steps it 
attacked Banks' forces at Kernstown, near 
Winchester. Though repulsed in this 
engagement, it succeeded in alarming the 
Federal government for the safety of Wash- 
ington. Banks' command was therefore 
retained in the valley to watch Jackson, 
and the force under McDowell was not 
allowed to go to McClellan's assistance on 
the peninsula, lest by so doing it should 
uncover Washington. After the battle of 
Kernstown Jackson retired up the valley, 
and a season of comparative quietude 
ensued. The Federal government even 
believed that his troops had been sent to 
Richmond. 

Jackson's Brilliant Achievements. 

Fremont's army was ordered to move from 
western Virginia into the valley ; Banks was 
directed to march to Manassas and cover 
Washington ; while McDowell, with forty 
thousand men, was ordered to move from 
Fredericksburg, from which he was to march 
across the country and unite with McClel- 
lan's left wing, which was thrown out far to 
the north of Richmond to meet him. These 
orders were in process of execution when 
Jackson, who had been reinforced by a divis- 



ion under General Ewell, destroyed the 
whole Federal plan of campaign. 

Knowing that he could not possibly resist 
the combined forces of Fremont and Banks, 
Jackson determined to beat them in detail. 
Marching rapidly westward, he crossed the 
mountains, fell upon the advance guard of 
Fremont's army at McDowell, on the eighth 
of May, defeated it, and drove it back into 
western Virginia. Then retracing his steps 
with remarkable speed, he returned to the 
valley, and on the twenty-third of May 
attacked Banks' outlying force at Front 
Royal, and drove it in upon the main body 
at Strasburg. 

Banks at once broke up his camp and fell 
back down the valley, pursued by Jackson, 
who dealt him a terrible blow at Winchester 
on the twenty-fifth. By extraordinary exer- 
tions Banks succeeded in escaping across 
the Potomac, but left about three thousand 
prisoners, several pieces of artillery, nine 
thousand stand of arms, and the greater part 
of his stores in the hands of the Confederates. 

Richmond Saved from Capture. 

This bold advance greatly alarmed the 
government at Washington, and the Presi- 
dent ordered Fremont to move with speed 
into the valley, and directed General Mc- 
Dowell to suspend his movement to the 
assistance of McClellan, and send a force of 
twenty thousand men to gain Jackson's rear 
and prevent his return up the valley. Mc- 
Dowell sent the required force under General 
Shields, and Fremont hurried on to gain the 
upper valley in advance of Jackson. These 
movements entirely prevented McClellan 
from receiving the assistance of McDowell's 
corps, and saved Richmond from capture. 

Jackson was too good a general to be 
caught in a trap so skillfully laid for him. 
He retired up the valley with the greatest 
speed, and having interposed his army 




PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT CONFEDERATE GENERALS. 



711 



712 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



between Fremont and Shields, turned upon 
the former, and with a part of his force 
attacked him at Cross Keys on the eighth of 
June, and checked his advance. Then re- 
uniting his forces he fell upon Shields at 
Port Republic on the ninth of June, and 
drove him back with heavy loss after one of 
the hardest fought battles of the war. Hav- 
ing thus put an end to the pursuit of his 
antagonists, Jackson withdrew to a safe posi- 
tion, from which he could hold them in 
check or go to the aid of the army defend- 
ing Richmond. 

The latter move being decided upon, he 
eluded the Federal forces in the valley, and 
marched rapidly to the Chickahominy. Be- 
fore his absence from the valley was sus- 
pected, he had joined General Lee. His 
campaign in the valley is justly regarded as 
one of the most brilliant of the war. With 
less than twenty thousand men he had neu- 
tralized a force of sixty thousand Union 
troops, and prevented the execution of Mc- 
Clellan's carefully laid plans for the capture 
of Richmond. 

General Lee Takes Command. 

Upon the fall of General Johnston the 
command of the Confederate army before 
Richmond was conferred upon General 
Robert E. Lee, whom subsequent events 
proved to be the ablest of the Southern 
leaders. Troops were drawn from every pos- 
sible point to reinforce General Lee's army, 
and by the middle of June his forces, includ- 
ing Jackson's army, amounted to ninety 
thousand men. The Federal army was one 
hundred and fifteen thousand strong. Both 
armies were in fine condition. General Mc- 
Clellan, finding it impossible to obtain the 
assistance of McDowell's corps, and fearing 
for the safety of his communications with his 
base of supplies, Avhich was at West Point, 
at the head of the York River, prepared to 



move his army to the south side of the 
Chickahominy, and establish a new and more 
secure base upon the James River. 

Before he could put this design in opera- 
tion he was attacked by General Lee, who,, 
on the twenty-fifth of June, fell upon the 
right of the Union line at Mechanicsville, 
and forced it back upon the centre at Cold 
Harbor. On the twenty-sixth the position 
at Cold Harbor was attacked and carried by 
the Confederates after a desperate struggle. 
With great difficulty McClellan secured his 
retreat to the south side of the Chickahom- 
iny, and destroyed the bridges in his rear. 

Having decided to retreat to the James- 
River rather than attempt to retain his com- 
munication with West Point, McClellan 
destroyed his stores, and on the twenty-* 
eighth began his retreat from the Chicka- 
hominy by way of White Oak Swamp. As 
soon as his movement was discovered pur- 
suit was made by the Confederates, who 
attacked his rear guard under General Sum- 
ner at Savage Station late in the afternoon 
of the twenty-ninth. Sumner held his ground 
until the darkness put an end to the action,, 
and during the night of the twenty-ninth 
withdrew across White Oak Swamp, destroy- 
ing all the bridges after him. 

End of the " Seven Days' Battles." 

On the thirtieth General Lee made a last 
effort to prevent McClellan from reaching 
the James, and towards the close of the 
afternoon the bloody battle of Frazier's Farni 
was fought. It was continued until nine 
o'clock. The Federal force at Frazier's Farm 
held its ground until the remainder of 
McClellan's army had safely traversed White 
Oak Swamp. The object of the battle hav- 
ing been accomplished, McClellan resumed 
his retreat to the James River, and took posi- 
tion upon Malvern Hill, within a short dis- 
tance of that stream. Here he massed his 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



713 



artillery, and the gunboats in the James 
River moved up to a point from which they 
could throw their shells into the Confederate 
lines. 

On the afternoon of the first of July the 
Confederates made a gallant attempt to carry 
Malvern Hill, but were repulsed with severe 
loss. The next morning the Federal army 
withdrew to Harrison's Landing on the 
James River. Thus ended the " Seven Days' 
Battles," during which the Federal army 
lost about twenty thousand men in killed, 
wounded and prisoners, fifty-two pieces of 
artillery, thirty-five thousand stand of arms, 
and an enormous quantity of stores of all 
kinds. The Confederate loss was nineteen 
thousand five hundred and thirty-three killed, 
wounded and missing. 

The retreat of McClellan'sarm.y threw the 
North into the deepest despondency. On 
the second of July President Lincoln issued a 
call for three hundred thousand fresh troops. 
The necessities of the struggle, however, 
made this force insufficient, and on the fourth 
of August the President ordered that a draft 
of three hundred thousand militia should be 
made and placed in the service of the United 
States for a period of nine months unless 
sooner discharged. The States complied 
with the requisitions upon them, and in the 
brief period of three months the enormous 
mass of six hundred thousand fresh troops 
was raised, armed and placed in the field. 

Battle of Cedar Mountain. 

For the protection of Washington the 
Federal government now collected the com- 
mands of Banks, Fremont and McDowell in 
one army, and placed it under command of 
Major-General John Pope, whose capture of 
Island No. 10 and other points in the west 
had given him a fair reputation. He assumed 
his new command with a profiision of boasts, 
and promised to succeed where McClellan 



had failed. According to General Pope the 
capture of Richmond was the easiest under- 
taking in the world. His army towards the 
latter part of July advanced to the Rapidan. 
To watch this force General. Lee, late in 
July, sent General Jackson's corps to the 
Rapidan. On the ninth of August Jackson 
attacked the advanced corps of Pope's army 
at Cedar Mountain, and defeated it. This 
defeat suspended General Pope's forward 
movement. General McClellan now received 
orders from Washington to evacuate Harri- 
son's Landing and to reinforce General Pope 
with his army. He at once put this order in 
execution. The withdrawal of his troops 
was detected by General Lee, who rapidly 
reinforced Jackson, and finally moved with 
his whole army to the Rapidan. 

Daring Flank Movement. 

About the same time Burnside's corps, 
which had been withdrawn from the southern 
coast, and was awaiting orders in Hampton 
Roads, was directed to move into the 
Potomac and reinforce Pope. General Pope 
had now under his command a force of over 
one hundred thousand men. The Confed- 
erate army, which was concentrated upon the 
Rapidan by the eighteenth of August, num- 
bered about seventy thousand men. Its 
strength was greatly overestimated by Gen- 
eral Pope, who deemed it most prudent to 
retire behind the Rappahannock, which he 
did on the eighteenth and nineteenth of 
August. His new position was well chosen. 
His right was at Rappahannock Station, and 
his left at Kelley's ford, some distance lower 
down the river. 

General Lee now resolved to attack Pope 
before he could be joined by McClellan's 
troops. He divided his army into two 
columns, and sent Jackson's corps by a cir- 
cuitous route, by way of Thoroughfare Gap, 
to gain the rear of the Federal army This 



714 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



daring flank march was accomplished by 
Jackson, and on the twenty-sixth of August 



trains loaded with supplies. Upon learning 
of this movement Pope at once fell back 



H QCKlR 




~>KL\;'cMVi^s_0 (^ 



'CD -ORD 
PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. 



he captured Manassas Junction, Pope's main 
depotof supplies, with an enormous quantity 
of stores of all kinds, and several railroad 



from the Rappahannock, intending to crush 
the isolated corps of Jackson, and at the 
same time Lee set off rapidly by way o( 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



715 



Thoroughfare Gap to join his endangered 
lieutenant. 

Pope's army had been reinforced by the 
corps of Porter and Heintzelman, and Rey- 
nolds' division of McClellan's army, and was 
at least one hundred and twenty thousand 
strong. He moved back rapidly to attack 
Jackson, and encountered Evvell's division 
near Manassas Junction on the twenty- 
seventh. Ewell held his ground, and at 
night rejoined Jackson, who moved swiftly 
from Manassas to a new position near the 
old Bull Run battle-field. This brought him 
nearer to Lee, and secured his retreat in case 
of a defeat. Ewell's resistance deceived 
General Pope, who had posted McDowell's 
and Porter's corps to hold the road from 
Thoroughfare Gap, by which Lee must 
advance to Jackson's assistance. 

Supposing that Jackson meant to make a 
stand at Manassas, Pope ordered these troops 
to mo\e from the positions they had taken 
and to adv^ance upon Manassas Junction. 
Manassas was reached at noon on the twenty- 
eighth, and then General Pope saw for the 
first time how he had been deceived by 
Jackson, and how he had blundered in leaving 
the road from Thoroughfare Gap open to 
Lee. 

His command was in a critical position, 
and he was so situated that he could not 
make the best use of the forces which were 
at his disposal. 

Repulse of the Union Forces. 

He endeavored to repair his error by at- 
tacking Jackson at once. He did attack 
that general in his new position late in the 
afternoon of the twenty-eighth, but was re- 
pulsed with severe loss. On the same after- 
noon General Lee with Longstreet's corps 
forced the passage of Thoroughfare Gap, and 
bivouacked that night in the open country 
beyond it. On the morning of the twenty- 



ninth he pushed forward with speed, and by 
noon his advanced division reached Jack- 
son's position. By four o'clock in the after- 
noon the Confederate army was reunited 
under the command of General Lee. About 
three o'clock in the afternoon General Pope 
determined to attack upon Lee's 'position, 
but was repulsed. 

On the thirtieth, having reunited all the 
corps of his army, General Pope determined 
to risk the fate of the campaign upon a de- 
cisive engagement. The Confederates held 
a large part of the old battlefield of Bull 
Run, and the conflict which ensued is usually 




MAJOR-GENERAL PHILIP KEARNEY. 

known as the second battle of Bull Run. It 
resulted in the defeat of General Pope, who 
was driven back to the heights of Centre- 
ville with heavy loss. On the thirty-first 
Jackson attacked the Federal rear-guard at 
Chantilly. A spirited encounter took place, 
and the Federal troops were slowly forced 
back, losing General Phil Kearney, one of 
the most accomplished officers in the service. 
General Pope now withdrew his army within 
the lines of Washington. 

He had lost since the opening of the 
campaign over thirty thousand men, includ- 
ing eight generals killed, thirty pieces of 
artillery, over twenty thousand stand of 



7i6 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



arms, and an enormous quantity of stores. 
The Confederate loss was nine thousand one 
hundred and twelve, including five generals. 
The defeat of the Union army and the 
presence of the Confederates on the Poto- 
mac placed the city of Washington in great 
danger. The government acted with vigor 
and decision in this emergency. The losses 
of Pope's army were made up by reinforce- 
ments. General Pope was relieved of com- 
mand, and General McClellan was restored 
to the command of the army of the Potomac. 
He set to work with energy to reorganize 
the broken masses of Pope's army into an 
effective force. 

McClellan at South Mountain. 

General Lee now crossed the Potomac and 
invaded Maryland, hoping to be able not 
only to remove the war from the soil of Vir- 
ginia, but also to obtain large reinforcements 
from the southern sympathizers in Maryland. 
In this he was disappointed, as scarcely any 
one joined him. On the fifth of September 
he crossed the Potomac, and on the sixth 
occupied Frederick City. Harper's Ferry 
was held by a force of eleven thousand men 
under Colonel Miles, and it was necessary to 
reduce this post in order to preserve the com- 
munications of the Confederate army with 
its own country. General Jackson was 
despatched with his corps to capture Harp- 
er's Ferry. He promptly carried the heights 
overlooking the town, and on the fifteenth of 
September the town and garrison surren- 
dered to him after a feeble resistance. 

General Lee in the meantime had taken 
position at South Mountain to await the 
issue of Jackson's attack upon Harper's 
Ferry. McClellan, advancing slowly from 
Washington, reached Frederick on the 
twelfth of September. There he found a 
copy of General Lee's confidential order to 
his corps commanders, which had been lost 



by some one. This document gave the Con- 
federate plan of operations, and enabled 
McClellan to act with certainty in directing 
his own movements. Hastening forward he 
attacked General Lee at South Mountain on 
the fourteenth of September, and after a 
stubborn fight Lee fell back behind Antietam 
Creek, and on the morning of the seven- 
teenth was joined there by the troops of 
Jackson, who had made a forced march from 
Harper's Ferry. 

The Confederate army numbered about 
forty thousand men, having been terribly 
reduced by the straggling of the men on the 
march through Virginia. The Federal army 
numbered over eighty thousand men, and 
was eager for a contest. The prolonged 
resistance of Harper's Ferry, and the losses 
of his army by straggling, had defeated Lee's 
plan of campaign. He was now compelled 
to retire across the Potomac, and he halted 
on the Antietam only to secure the reunion 
of Jackson's corps with his army and a safe 
passage of the Potomac. 

Battle of Antietam. 

On the morningof the seventeenth of Sep- 
tember General McClellan attacked the Con- 
federate army in force, but it held its ground 
during the day, both armies at nightfall occu- 
pying about the same positions they had held 
in the morning. The Federal loss was twelve' 
thousand four hundred and sixty-nine, includ- 
ing thirteen generals wounded, one mortally ; 
that of the Confederates eight thousand seven 
hundred and ninety, including three generals 
killed, five wounded. The eighteenth passed' 
quietly away, and that night Lee silently 
withdrew from his position and retreated 
across the Potomac. He retired up the 
valley to Winchester. The Federal army 
moved to the vicinity of Harper's Ferry, and 
did not cross the Potomac until the second 
of November. 



7i8 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



Upon entering Virginia General McClel!an 
moved towards the Rappahannock, with the 
design of interposing his army between Lee 
and Richmond. General Lee at once left 
the valley where he had been detained by the 
necessity of watching McClellan, and by a 
rapid march to Warrenton, placed his army 
between Richmond and McClellan. The 
Federal army continuing to advance, he fell 
back to Culpepper Court-house, and McClel- 
lan moved forward to the vicinity of Warren- 




VIEW OF ANTIETAM BATTLE GROUND. 



ton. On the seventh of November, when 
about to resume his advance, McClellan, 
whose conduct of the campaign had not 
pleased either President Lincoln or the people 
of the North, was removed from the com- 
mand of the Army of the Potomac, which 
was conferred upon General Ambrose E. 
Burnside. 

Burnside at once advanced to the banks of 
the Rappahannock opposite Fredericksburg, 
intending to pass the river at that place and 
move upon Richmond. Upon his arrival at 



Falmouth, opposite Fredericksburg, he found 
the Confederate army strongly posted on the 
heights in the rear of the latter place, pre- 
pared to dispute his advance. 

He crossed the Rappahannock on the 
eleventh and twelfth of December, and on 
the thirteenth attacked the Confederate posi- 
tion, which had been strongly entrenched. 
He was repulsed with a loss of eleven thou- 
sand men, and compelled to retreat across 
the Rappahannock. This terrible reverse 
_ _ greatly disheart- 

ened the Army of 
the Potomac, and 
destroyed its faith 
in its commander; 
and so the year 
closed gloomily for 
the Union cause in 
the east. 

In the fall of 
1862 President 
Lincoln took the 
bold step of issu- 
ing a proclamation 
announcing that if 
the .seceded States 
did not return to 
their allegiance to 
the Union, he 
would declare all 
the negro slaves 
within their limits free from the first of 
January next. This proclamation was issued 
on the twenty-second of September, imme- 
diately after the battle of Antietam. The 
army and navy of the United States were 
to enforce the terms of this proclamation, 
and from the new year there was to be no 
more slavery within the limits of the Union. 
The proclamation was avowedly a war meas- 
ure, buc it was sustained by Congress by 
appropriate legislation during the ensuing 
winter. 



CHAPTER XLII 

The Administration of Abraham Lincoln — The Civil 

War — Concluded. 



The Emancipation Proclamation — Battle of Chancellorsville — Death of Stonewall Jackson — Invasion of the North by- 
Lee's Army — Battle of Gettysburg — Retreat of Lee into Virginia — Grant's Army Crosses the Mississippi — Battle of 
Champion Hills — Investment of Vicksburg — Surrender of Vicksburg and Port Hudson — Battle of Chickamauga — 
Rosecrans Shut Up in Chattanooga — Grant in Command of the Western Armies — Battles of Lookout Mountain and 
Missionary Ridge — Defeat of Bragg's Army — The Campaign in East Tennessee — Retreat of Longstreet — Capture of 
Galveston — Attack on Charleston — Capture of Fort Wagner — Charleston Bombarded — State of Affairs in the Spring 
of 1864 — The Red River Expedition — Grant Made Lieutenant-General — Advance of the Army of the Potomac — 
Battle of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania and Cold Harbor — Sheridan's Raid — Death of General J. E. B. Stuart — Battle 
of New Market — Early Sent into the Valley of Virginia — Butler's Army at Bermuda Hundreds — Grant Crosses the 
James River — The Siege of Petersburg Begun — Early's Raid upon Washington — Sheridan Defeats Early at Winchester 
and Fisher'sIIill — Battle of Cedar Creek — The Final Defeat of Early's Army — Sherman's Advance to Atlanta — Johns- 
ton Removed — Defeat of Hood Before Atlanta — Evacuation of Atlanta — Hood's Invasion of Tennessee — Battle of 
Franklin — Siege of Nashville — Hood Defeated at Nashville — His Retreat — Sherman's " March to Sea " — Capture of 
Savannah — Battle of Mobile Bay — Attack on Fort Fisher — The Confederate Cruisers — Sinking of the " Alabama " 
by the" Kearsarge " — Re-election of President Lincoln — Admission of Nevada into the Union — The Hampton Roads 
Peace Conference — Capture of Fort Fisher — Occupation of Wilmington — Sherman Advances through South Carolina 
— Evacuation of Charleston — Battles of Averasboro' and Bentonville — Sherman at Goldsboro' — Critical Situation of 
Lee's Army — Attack on Fort Steadman — Sheridan Joins Grant — Advance of Grant's Army — Battle of Five Forks — 
Attack on Petersburg — Evacuation of Richmond and Petersburg — Retreat of Lee's Army — Richmond Occupied — 
Surrender of General Lee's Army — Rejoicings in the North — Assassination of President Lincoln — Death of Booth — 
Execution of the Conspirators — Johnston Surrenders — Surrender of the Other Confederate Forces — Capture of Jeffer- 
son Davis — Close of the War. 



IN accordance with his proclamation of 
September 22, 1862, President Lincohi, 
on the first of January, 1863, issued his 
proclamation of emancipation, in which 
he declared all the slaves within the limits 
of the Confederate States free from that day. 
The plan of campaign adopted by the 
Federal government for 1863 was very much 
like that of the previous year. In the east 
the Army of the Potomac was to push for- 
ward towards Richmond ; and in the west 
the army of General Grant was to capture 
Vicksburg, and thus open the Mississippi, 
after which it was to march eastward, unite 
with the forces of General Rosecrans and 
occupy East Tennessee, thus cutting the 
communication between the Border and the 



Gulf States. In addition to these operations 
an expedition against Charleston, South Ca- 
rolina, was to be attempted. 

The Army of the Potomac was greatly 
disheartened by its defeat at Fredericksburg, 
and had lost confidence in General Burnside. 
That commander, at his own request, was 
removed from the command, and was suc- 
ceeded by General Joseph Hooker on the 
twenty-fifth of January. Hooker at once 
began the reorganization of his army, and 
soon brought it to a splendid state of effi- 
ciency. By the opening of the spring it 
numbered one hundred and twenty thousand 
men and four hundred pieces of artillery. 
General Lee had remained in his position 
back of Fredericksburg all winter, and his 

719 




mi'iiiiicE/v-iJUfff^ 



720 PORTRAITS OF SOME OF THE GENERALS OF THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



721 



army had been weakened by the withdrawal 
of General Longstreet's corps, twenty-four 
thousand strong, by the Confederate govern- 
ment, leaving him about fifty thousand men. 

General Hooker, upon learning of Lee's 
weakened condition, determined to attack 
him. He divided his army into two columns, 
One of these, consisting of the Second, Fifth, 
Eleventh, and Twelfth army corps, under 
his own command, was to cross the Rap- 
pahannock above Fredericksburg and 
turn the Confederate position. The other 
column, consisting of the First, Third, 
and Sixth corps, under General Sedg- 
wick, was to cross the river at Fred- 
ericksburg and attack the heights. Be- 
tween these forces it was believed that 
Lee's army would be crushed. 

On the twenty-seventh of April Hooker 
moved off with the first column, crossed 
the river on the twenty-eighth and twenty- 
ninth at Kelley's Ford, and on the thir- 
tieth took position at Chancellorsville, 
on the left and in the rear of Lee's forti- 
fied line. On the twenty-ninth General 
Sedgwick crossed his column about three 
miles below Fredericksburg, and during 
that day and the thirtieth made demon- 
strations as though he intended to assault 
the southern position in the rear of the 
town. 

General Lee's situation was now cri- 
tical, and demanded the most extra- 
ordinary exertions of him. Leaving a 
small force to hold the heights in the 
rear of Fredericksburg, he moved with his 
main body towards Chancellorsville, where 
Hooker had intrenched himself with about 
eighty thousand men. His only hope of 
safety lay in defeating this force before 
Sedgwick's column could arrive to its assist- 
ance. On the second of May he sent Jack- 
son's corps to turn the Federal right, and 
with the remainder of his force, deceived 
46 



Hooker into the belief that he meant to 
storm the intrenched position of the Federal 
army. Jackson performed his flank march 
with success, and on the afternoon of the 
second of May made a fierce attack upon 
the Federal right, and drove it in upon its 
centre. In this attack he received a mortal 
wound, of which he died on the tenth of 
May. 




GENERAL JOHN SEDGWICK. 

The next day, the third, having reunited 
Jackson's corps with his main force, Lee 
attacked Hooker at Chancellorsville, and 
drove him back to the junction of the Rap- 
pahannock and Rapidan rivers. He was 
preparing to storm this new position when 
he learned that Sedgwick had defeated the 
force left to hold the heights of Fredericks- 
burg on the third of May, and was marching 
against him. His danger was now greater 



722 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



than ever. Leaving a part of his army to 
hold Hooker in check, he marched rapidly 
to meet Sedgwick. He encountered him at 
Salem Heights on the fourth of May, and 
compelled him to recross the Rappahannock 




GENERAL GEORGE G. MEADE 

at Banks' Ford. Then moving back towards 
Hooker's position Lee prapared to storm it. 
General Hooker, however, disheartened by 
Sedgwick's defeat, withdrew his army across 
the Rappahannock on the night of the fifth, 
and returned to his old position on the north 



side of that stream, having lost twelve thou- 
sand men and fourteen pieces of artillery in 
the battle of Chancellorsville. 

The Confederate loss was also heavy. Out of 
an army of about fifty thousand men, ten thou- 
sand two hundred and 
eighty-one were killed, 
wounded and captured. 
The victory was dearly 
bought by the Confed- 
erates by the death of 
Stonewall Jackson, who 
was worth fully fifty 
thousand men to their 
cause. At the moment 
of his success against 
the Federal right, he was 
shot down by his own 
men, who mistook his 
escort for a party of 
Federal cavalry. 

The success of the 
Confederates in Virginia 
was more than counter- 
balanced by their re- 
verses in the West and 
Southwest. The South- 
ern government, anxious 
to change the course 
of the war by a bold 
stroke, decided to fol- 
low up the victory at 
Chancellorsville by an 
invasion of the North by 
Lee's army. This army 
was reinforced heavily 
and by the last of May 
numbered seventy thou- 
sand infantry and artillery, and ten thou- 
sand cavalry. General Hooker's army, on 
the other hand, had been reduced by deser- 
tions and expirations of enlistments, to about 
eighty thousand men, making the two forces 
about equal. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



7^1 



On the third of June, 1863, Lee began his 
forward movement, and marching through 
the valley of Virginia, captured Winchester, 
which was held by General Milroy's com- 
mand, on the fourteenth, taking four thou- 
sand prisoners and twenty-nine pieces of 
cannon. On the twenty-second of June the 
Potomac was crossed at Williamsport, and 
the Confederate army moved towards Hagers- 
town, Maryland. General Hooker had fol- 
lowed Lee from the Rappahannock, and had 
manoeuvred his army so as to interpose it 
between the Confederates and Washington. 

Invasion of the North. 

On the twenty-third the advanced corps 
of Lee's army, under General Ewell, occupied 
Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and on the 
twenty-fifth and twenty-sixth. General Hooker 
crossed the Potomac at Edward's Ferry, 
and marched to Frederick, Maryland. He 
was anxious to withdraw the garrison of 
Harper's Ferry, which had retired from that 
place to the Maryland heights, opposite the 
town, but the war department refused to allow 
him to do so. Hooker thereupon relin- 
quished the command of the army, and was 
succeeded by Major-General George G. 
Meade, the senior corps commander, and a 
soldier of genuine ability. General Lee now 
moved his army east of the mountains, and 
directed his advance towards Gettysburg. 
In ignorance of his adversary's design. Gen- 
eral Meade hastened forward to occupy the 
same point. 

The invasion of Pennsylvania by the Con- 
federate army aroused the most intense ex- 
citement in the North. President Lincoln 
called out one hundred thousand militia to 
serve for six months, unless sooner dis- 
charged, and as far north as New York, 
preparations were made to receive the Con- 
federate army with a stubborn resistance 
should it succeed in penetrating so far. 



Every effort was made to raise troops and 
forward them to General Meade in time to 
be of service to him. 

On the morning of the first of July, the 
left wing of the army of the Potomac, under 
General Reynolds, and the advanced corps of 
Lee's army, under Generals A. P. Hill and 
Ewell, encountered each other at Gettysburg. 
General Reynolds was forced back and killed. 
General Hancock was at once sent by Gen- 
eral Meade to assume the command of the 
left wing, and upon his arrival he at once 
recognized the importance of the position 
at Gettysburg, and occupied it. He was 
promptly reinforced by General Meade, and 
by the afternoon of the second of July, the 
army of the Potomac was securely posted on 
the heights known as Cemetery Ridge. 
The Confederate army took position on the 
opposite hills known as Seminary Ridge. 
Between the two armies lay the battle-field 
on which the engagement of the first of July 
was fought. Heavy skirmishing prevailed 
throughout the day on the second, the advan- 
tage being with the Confederates. 

Great Battle at Gettysburg. 

On the third of July General Lee made a 
general attack upon the Federal position on 
Cemetery Ridge, which, very strong by 
nature, had been rendered impregnable by 
entrenchments. His attack was made with 
determination, and was a splendid exhi- 
bition of American courage, which won for 
his troops the generous admiration of their 
adversaries ; but it was unsuccessful. The 
grand charge of the Confederates was made 
in the afternoon, and was repulsed with ter- 
rible slaughter. Still Lee's position was so 
strong, and the morale of his army so unim- 
paired, that General Meade deemed it best 
to remain satisfied with his victory, and not 
to risk its fruits by an attack upon the Con- 
federate lines. 



724 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



The stirring events on the third and last 
day of the battle are vividly described by 
John Laird Wilson, the eminent war corres- 
pondent and historian, Mr. Wilson's account 
is as follows : 

" As early as three o'clock on the morn- 
ing of the third, there were signs of activity 



attack by discharging his pistol. The battle 
at once became general. A fearful struggle 
ensued. A heavy artillery fire was opened 
at once on the enemy's position. But, as 
the ground was rugged and broken and also 
covered with trees, and as every advantage 
was taken of places of shelter and conceal- 








BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



in the enemy's front. It was evident that an 
attack was intended ; and Geary, having been 
informed by General Kane, who commanded 
his first brigade, of what was going on, 
resolved to seize whatever advantage might 
be gained by opening the battle himself His 
men were aroused ; and at twenty minutes 
before four o'clock, he gave the signal for 



ment, the fight partook very much of the 
character of sharpshooting on a grand scale. 
" As the battle progressed the contestants 
got intermingled, and it became more and 
more difficult to use the artillery. The Con- 
federates not only held their position, but 
charged again and again, in heavy masses, 
on the National lines, only, however, to be 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



725 



repulsed with tremendous loss. The slaugh- 
ter was terrible. The sun arose ; the day 
advanced ; the air became clouded with dust 
and smoke ; the heat became almost intoler- 
able ; but still the battle raged. At last 
there is a lull in the long-continued tempest. 
Then, suddenly, there is a fierce yell from 
thousands of throats ; and Ewell'smen, hav- 
ing gathered up their strength for a final 
effort, are seen rushing forward with tremen- 
dous fury. They are allowed to come within 
easy musket range, when the men in blue, 
springing to their feet, pour in upon them a 
deliberate volley. It was the last charge on 
this part of the line. Discomfited and dis- 
couraged, torn and bleeding, their dead and 
wounded companions piled in heaps on the 
ground "where they fell, the survivors drew 
back through the woods towards Rock 
Creek, fighting as they retired, with a courage 
which commanded the admiration of their 
foes. 

The Victors Exultant. 

" Shouts of victory now filled the air. 
* Men,' says one who was present and shared 
in the triumph, ' cheered themselves hoarse, 
laughed, rolled themselves on the ground, 
and threw their caps high in the air, while 
others shook hands with comrades, and 
thanked God that the Star Corps had again 
triumphed.' Geary, not disposed to allow 
the Confederates to re-fonu, as soon as this 
charge was repelled, made a vigorous coun- 
ter-charge ; and the enemy, yielding easily, 
the breastworks were reoccupied, and the 
right flank secured. Thus ended the fighting 
on the right. 

" Ewell had been completely baffled in his 
plan. He had flung away his opportunity 
the night before; and to reclaim it he had 
now done his best, and failed. He could not 
find fault with his men , for never, even under 
Jackson, had they fought more bravely. ' It 



cannot be denied,' says General Kane, who, 
with his glorious first brigade, of Geary's 
division, bore the burden of that morning's 
fight, ' that they fought most courageously.' 
But they were pitted against men of equal 
bravery, of equal determination with them- 
selves — men who were now on their own soil, 
and fighting for the sanctity of their own 
homes. 

" Never, perhaps, before, since the war com- 
menced, had the fighting been more deter- 
mined and severe than it was during those 
long, dreary morning hours. The ground, 
after the battle, red with gore, and thickly 
covered with the bodies of the slain, gave 
evidence of the terrible character of the 
struggle. The grey and the blue uniforms 
were sometimes found in one common heap. 
Some poor fellows, after hours of suflTering^ 
and having almost bled to death, were found 
writhing in mortal agony. The wood in 
which the battle raged was ' torn and rent 
with shells and solid shot, and pierced with 
innumerable minie balls.' In the following 
summer, the trees were leafless, as if the 
mute but stalwart giants of the forest had 
yielded up their lives with those who fell 
beneath their shade. 

An Ominous Silence. 

*' It was now shortly after ten o'clock. The 
last sounds of battle had died away. There 
was silence over the whole battle field. It was 
evident, however, that preparations were 
being made inside the Confederate lines for 
another gigantic and possibly crowning 
effort. The morning sky had been obscured 
by broken clouds. As the forenoon advan- 
ced, the clouds dispersed ; and a hot July 
sun poured down his rays with a tropical 
intensity. Pickett's division, of Longstreet's , 
corps, which had not come up on the pre- 
vious day, had now arrived on the field. 
Stuart, also, after his long detour, had joined 



726 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



Lee with his cavalry. It soon began to be 
manifest that the point of attack was to be 
the National left centre — the depressed part 
of the ridge immediately north of Little 
Round Top. B}' noon, the guns were got 
into position on the ridge occupied by Long- 
street and Hill. Meade had an abundant 
supply of the same instruments of war; but 
owing to the peculiarity of the ground, he 
could only, out of the three hundred guns, 
make use of eighty, against those of the 
enemy. 

Loud Thunder of Guns. 

" About one o'clock, the report of a Whit- 
worth gun was heard. It was the signal for 
attack. Seminary Hill seemed as if swept 
with a tongue of flame. Then came the 
loud, thundering roar of artillery; and one 
hundred and forty five guns, from their angry 
mouths, poured death and destruction on the 
National lines. The National commanders 
ordered their men to lie flat on the earth, and 
to take every advantage of objects of pro- 
tection. All this was done ; but, notwith- 
standing every precaution, the destruction of 
life and property was terrible. Solid shot, 
chain-shot, shrapnel, shells, fell with deadly 
effect inside the National lines. Men and 
horses were dreadfully cut up; caissons filled 
with ammunition were exploded ; and gun- 
carriages and other pieces of war material 
were shattered to pieces. The shot and shell 
and canister fell thick and fast in and around 
General Meade's headquarters, killing men 
and horses, ripping up the roof and knocking 
away the pillars of the cottage. 

"General Hunt, Meade's chief of artillery, 
v/as in no haste to reply. Waiting until the 
first hostile outbreak spent itself, he then 
ordered the batteries to open fire. Instantly, 
the whole ridge, from Cemetery Hill to the 
Round Tops, seemed ablaze. The din was 
terrific, the thunder of artillery rivalling, in 



fierce grandeur, the most magnificent displays 
of nature. For two hours this artillery duel 
lasted ; and, during that time, war was ex- 
hibited in its sublimer and more imposing 
aspects. 

" At the expiration of two hours, there 
v/as a lull in the cannonade. Hunt, dreading 
the possible exhaustion of his ammunitions 
and not willing to bring up loads of it from 
the rear, lest it should be exploded, had 
ordered a gradual slackening of the fire. The 
Confederates were deceived. It was Lee's 
belief that he had silenced all the enemy's 
guns, except a few which still kept firing 
from a clump of woods. Now came the 
more serious business of war. The fire of 
the Confederate guns also slackened ; and 
the columns of attack were seen forming on 
the edge of the woods which crown the 
summit of Seminary Ridge. It was just 
three o'clock. When formed, the front was 
about a mile in extent ; and, as it emerged 
from the woods, and began to move steadily 
and firmly down the slope of Seminary 
Ridge, a thrill of admiration passed through 
the National ranks. It was a splendid sight, 
and well fitted to call forth admiration, even 
in the breast of an enemy. The fresh division 
of Pickett, composed mostly of veteran Vir- 
ginians, was singled out and appointed to 
lead the van. Pickett's men were formed 
and arranged in double line of battle. The 
attacking force numbered about eighteen 
thousand men. 

Ammunition Exhausted. 

" The distance between the two lines of 
battle was about a mile. For the attacking 
party there was a hill to descend and a hill 
to climb, and a valley between. It was matter 
of observation that, as the columns advanced, 
the Confederate guns were silent. 'Why?' 
was the question put by the men who were 
rushing into the jaws of death. 'Why?' 




POSITIONS DURING THE FIRST DAY S FIGHT AT GETTYSBURG. 




POSITIONS DURING THE SECOND AND THIRD DAYS AT GETTYSBURG. 



728 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



said the men on the heights behind. ' Why ?' 
said the Nationals on the heights in front. 
The reason was not known till afterwards. 
It was not then known to Lee himself His 
ammunition was already exhausted. The 
silence of the guns in their rear did not affect 
the firm and steady step of the advancing 
columns. It did not encourage the Nationals 
to slacken their artillery fire. On came 
Longstreet's men, in face of the withering 
tempest of bullet and canister and shell 
which, at each successive step, decimated 
their front. On, on they came; and it was 
already a question in the National ranks 
whether their own thin line of defense could 
resist the fierce onset of those firm and com- 
pact battalions who seemed to fear no fire, to 
dread no foe. 

The Green Mountain Troops. 

" The Nationals, however, were not ill pre- 
pared for the attack. Doubleday was on the 
left, with Stannard's brigade of Vermont 
troops well advanced in a little grove on his 
own right, and at an angle with the main line. 
Hancock was more to the right with his two 
divisions of Gibbon and Hays in front. From 
the direction in which the assaulting columns 
were moving, it seemed for a time as if the 
first heavy blow would fall upon Doubleday. 
Such, however, was the severity of the artil- 
lery fire from Little Round Top that they 
were forced to bend more to their own left. 
Still they moved on, their line of march now 
bringing them more directly in front of Han- 
cock's position. 

" Now came the opportunity for Stannard's 
brave Vermonters. They were in no haste 
to waste their ammunition. The Confederate 
columns were allowed to come so well for- 
ward that their right flank was fully exposed. 
Then, at the signal given, the Vermont men 
pour forth a well-directed and most destruc- 
tive fire. Volley succeeds volley in rapid 



succession ; and the now trembling lines-,, 
already torn and tattered, are under the 
oblique fire of eight batteries in charge of 
Major McGilvray, Not a few of Pickett's 
men, unable to endure this terrific fire, were 
compelled to surrender. The main body, how- 
ever, presses on, and, inclining still more to his 
own left, Pickett is moving straight on the 
divisions of Gibbon and Hays. ' Hold your 
fire, boys ! they are not near enough yet,' 
was Gibbon's injunction as he moved calmly 
and composedly along the ranks. The rifled 
guns of the National artillery, having fired 
away all their canister, were now withdrawn 
to await the issue of the struggle between 
the opposing infantry. The hostile lines are 
now within two and three hundred yards of 
the National front. Gibbon and Hays simul- 
taneously open upon the advancing columns; 
a most destructive fire. The response is 
swift and well directed, the Confederates 
using their muskets for the first time since 
they began to face this terrific storm of artil- 
lery and musketry. All at once the battle 
becomes general. 

Terror and Confusion. 

" The swing made by the advancing col- 
umns to their own left, after the terrific blow 
received by them from Stannard, had the 
effect of flinging Pettigrew, who commanded 
Heth's division, of Hill's corps, well towards 
Hays' right. Pettigrew's men were, for the 
most part. North Carolina troops, and were 
comparatively raw and unused to battle. 
They had been deceived into the belief that 
they would meet only the Pennsylvania mili- 
tia. They were quickly undeceived. Hays' 
men were admirably posted. His right was 
well advanced ; and the nature of the ground 
was such as to enable him to open a simul- 
taneous fire on Pettigrew's troops, not only 
with his right and front, but also with sev- 
eral lines in his rear. Woodruff's battery 




c5 

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CO 

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Eh 

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PQ 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



729 



was also in position; and the destructive 
effects of a very tempest of bullets were to 
be aggravated by showers of grape and 
canister. 

"All at once, this tremendous fire fell upon 
the already torn and decimated lin s on 
Pickett's left; and they knew they were in 
the presence of the Army of the Potomac. 
There was no more fight in them. Terror- 
stricken, Pettigrew's men broke in utter con- 
fusion, large numbers of them flinging down 
their arms, and accepting mercy at the hands 
of their antagonists. General Pettigrew him- 
self was wounded ; but, being able to retain 
command, he vainly strove to rally his men. 
Fifteen colors, and two thousand prisoners 
rewarded the skill and activity with which 
Hays met the threatened attack. 

" While disaster was thus befalling the 
Confederate columns on the right and left 
Pickett's brave Virginians were pressing 
forward vigorously towards Gibbon's front, 
and were about to fall with all their weight 
on Owen's brigade, now temporarily com- 
manded by General Webb. 

The Final Struggle. 

" In spite of the dreadful fire of artillery and 
musketry which was mowing down their 
ranks, Pickett's men rush bravely on. They 
are now close to the stone wall. The two 
National regiments in front, yield and fall 
back to the regiment in the rear. Webb and 
his officers are at hand ; the retreating regi- 
ments are quickly rallied and re-formed; and 
the second line is held. But the Confederates 
have pushed themselves over the breast- 
works, and planted their battle flags on the 
wall. The struggle now becomes fierce and 
terrific in the extreme. It is a hand-to-hand 
conflict, man facing man, and fighting with 
the energy of despair. The clothes of the 
men are actually being burned by the powder 
of the exploding cartridges; and the National 



cannoneers, refusing to retire, are clubbed 
and bayoneted at their guns. 

" Pickett, however, is now left entirely alone. 
The forces which were intended to cover his 
left have been defeated, captured or driven 
from the field. Wilcox, whose duty it was 
to come up and cover his right, has failed to 
advance. The right of his own division has 
been badly cut up and destroyed. Hancock, 
who this day revealed all the qualities of a 
great commander in actual conflict, now 
massed his men on the point which was in 
danger. Hall and Harrow, who had now no 
longer an enemy in their front, were brought 
over with their brigades to reinforce the 
centre. The Nineteenth Massachusetts, Col- 
onel Devereux, and Mallou's Forty-Second 
New York, both of Gate's brigade, of Double- 
day's division, of the First corps, were moved 
in the same direction. 

" Stannard, at the same time, moved for- 
ward two of his Vermont regiments to strike 
the enemy on the right flank. The situation, 
Hancock tells us, 'had now become very pecu- 
liar. The men of all the brigades had, in 
some measure, lost their regimental organiza- 
tion, but individually, they were firm. The 
ambition of individual commanders to cover 
the point penetrated by the enemy, the smoke 
of the battle and the intensity of the engage- 
ment caused this confusion. The point, how- 
ever, was covered. In regular formation, our 
line would have stood four ranks deep.' 
Pickett's men were now pressed on all sides. 

" The colors of the different National regi- 
ments were well advanced. Cheered by the 
words, and fired by the example of their 
officers, the men pressed bravely forward. 
It is the climax of the fight ; but the end is 
at hand. Pickett's men had done their best 
and their utmost — they had fought like true 
heroes ; but now, utterly overpowered, and 
reduced to the last stage of desperation, they 
give up the fight. Flinging their arms from 



730 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



them, many of them raise their hands in 



token of surrender; others 



upon the 




MAP SHOWING VICKSBURG AND ITS APPROACHES 



" In this last struggle, Gibbon's division 
took twelve colors and two thousand five 
hundred prisoners. So far, 
Hancock had captured twenty- 
seven battle flags and four 
thousand five hundred pris- 
oners. It was a magnificent 
trophy. The losses on both 
sides were very heavy. The 
face of the hill and the low 
ground was literally covered 
with the dead and wounded. 
In no previous battle had the 
officers suffered so severely. 
On the National side large 
numbers had been struck 
down, Generals Gibbon and 
Hancock being among the 
wounded. The Confederates 
left on the field fourteen of 
their field-officers, only one 
of that rank escaping unhurt; 
and, of the three brigade com- 
manders, of Pickett's division, 
Garnett was killed, Armitage 
fell within the National lines, 
fatally wounded, and Kemper 
was carried off the field, dan- 
gei'ously hurt." 

The victory was decisive. 
It put an end to the Confed- 
erate invasion. On the night 
of the fourth of July General 
Lee withdrew from Seminary 
Ridge and retreated to the 
Potomac, which he crossed 
on the thirteenth and four- 
teenth without serious opposi- 
tion from the Federal army. 
On the fifteenth Lee moved 
back to Winchester, The Fed- 
eral loss at Gettysburg was 



ground to escape the destructive fire ; the I twenty-three thousand, and that of the Con- 
remainder seek safety in precipitate flight. j federates about the same. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



731 



On the seventeenth and eighteenth of July 
General Meade crossed the Potomac below 
Harper's Ferry, and moving east of the Blue 
Ridge, endeavored to place his army between 
Lee and Richmond. The Confederate com- 
mander by rapid marches reached Culpepper 
Court-house in advance of him, however, and 
about the first of August occupied the line 
of the Rappahannock. The remainder of 
the year witnessed but one important oper- 



the Federal arms. At the opening of the 
year the army of General Grant lay on the 
Mississippi above Vicksburg, assisted by the 
fleet of gunboats under Admiral Porter. The 
first three months of the year were passed by 
the Federal army in a series of movements 
along the Yazoo River, the result of which 
was to convince General Grant that Vicks- 
burg could not be taken from that quarter. 
He therefore determined upon a new and 




VICKSBURG, 

ation by the armies in Virginia. In October 
General Lee made a sudden forward move- 
ment for the purpose of throwing his army 
between Meade and Washington, but the 
latter eluded him and reached Centreville in 
safety. Lee then withdrew to the Rapidan, 
and the army of the Potomac took position 
on the north side of that stream. Both 
armies passed the winter there. 

In the west and southwest success crowned 



MISSISSIPPI. 

more daring plan of operations. He decided 
to march his army across the Louisiana shore 
from Milliken's bend, above Vicksburg, to 
New Carthage, below that city, and to run 
his gunboats and transports by the bat- 
teries. 

Should the boats succeed in passing, he 
meant to cross his command to the Missis- 
sippi shore, and attack Vicksburg from the 
rear. By investing the city from the land 




732 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



733 



side his flanks would rest upon and be cov- 
ered by the Mississippi, and he could re-estab- 
lish communication between his right wing 
and his base of supplies at Milliken's Bend. 
The plan was daring in the highest degree, 
and required the greatest skill and resolution 
in its execution. 

In order to retain their hold upon the Mis- 
sissippi the Confederates had fortified Vicks- 
burg with great care. Port Hudson, about 
two hundred and forty miles lower down the 
river, had also been fortified, but not so 
strongly as Vicksburg. As long as the Con- 
federates held these points they were able to 
keep a considerable extent of the river open 
to themselves and closed to the Union gun- 
boats. 

Preparing for the Struggle. 

Thus they were enabled to cross in safety 
the enormous herds of beef cattle which they 
drew from the rich pastures of Texas for their 
armies east of the Mississippi. A strong 
force held the works at Port Hudson. Vicks- 
burg was occupied by a large garrison, and 
was under the command of Lieutenant-Gen- 
eral John C. Pemberton, who, with an army 
of about thirty thousand men, independent of 
the garrison of Vicksburg, held the country 
in the rear of that city. Appreciating the 
importance of defeating the Federal army in 
this quarter, the Confederate Government, in 
the spring of 1863, sent General Joseph E. 
Johnston to take command of all the forces 
in Mississippi. It failed to supply him with 
a proper force of troops, and General Pem- 
berton treated his orders with open defiance. 

Grant having comple*-ed his preparations 
moved his army from Milliken's Bend to a 
point on the Louisiana shore opposite Grand 
Gulf. On the night of the sixteenth of April a 
division of gunboats and transports ran by the 
Vicksburg batteries, suffering severely from 
.the heavy fire to which they were exposed 



for a distance of eight miles. On the night of 
the twenty-second a second division passed 
the batteries with similar loss. Once below 
Vicksburg, however, the boats were safe. 
They then proceeded to Grant's position on 
the river below. On the twenty-ninth of 
April the gunboats attacked the batteries at 
Grand Gulf, but were repulsed. The troops 
were then marched to a point opposite Bruins- 
burg, Mississippi, and the gunboats and 
transports were run by the Grand Gulf bat- 
teries. 

On the first of May the Federal army was 
ferried across to the Mississippi shore, and at 




GENERAL JOHN C. PEMBERTON. 

once began its march into the interior. Near 
Port Gibson a part of Pemberton's army was 
encountered and defeated on the same day. 
This success compelled the evacuation of 
Grand Gulf by the Confederates. Grant now 
boldly threw his army between Johnston's 
forces at Jackson and Pemberton's army, 
intending to hold the former in check, and 
drive the latter within the defences of Vicks- 
burg. On the fourteenth of May he attacked 
Johnston at Jackson, the capital of Missis- 
sippi, and forced him to retreat northward 
towards Canton. Then turning upon Pem- 
berton he attacked him at Champion Hills, 
or Baker's Creek, on the sixteenth, and 



734 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



inflicted a severe defeat upon him. Peni- 
berton withdrew towards the Big Black 
River, and the next day met a second 
defeat there. He now retreated within the 
defences of Vicksburg, which place was 
promptly invested by Grant's army. 

On the nineteenth of May Grant attempted 
to carry the Confederate position by assault, 
but was repulsed with heavy loss. The 
assault was repeated with a like result on 
the twenty-second. There remained then 
nothing but a regular siege. This was 




GRANTS HEADQUARTERS NEAR VICKSBURG 

pressed with vigor, and the city was sub- 
jected to a terrible bombardment, which 
caused great suffering to the people. While 
the siege was carried on Johnston's army 
was held back, and prevented from under- 
taking any movement for the relief of Vicks- 
burg. At length, reduced to despair by the 
steady approach of the Union trenches, Pem- 
berton surrendered the city and his army to 
General Grant on the fourth of July. By 
this surrender thirty thousand prisoners, two 
hundred and fifty cannon, and sixty thousand 



stand of arms, together with a large quan- 
tity of military stores, fell into the hands of 
the Union forces. It was justly esteemed 
the greatest victory of the war. 

While the siege of Vicksburg was in pro- 
gress. General Banks ascended the Mis- 
sissippi from New Orleans and laid siege to 
Port Hudson. Upon hearing of the fall of 
Vicksburg, the Confederate commander sur- 
rendered the post and his army of sixty-two 
hundred and thirty-three men to General 
Banks, on the eighth of July. 

These victories wrested 
from the Confederates 
their last hold upon the 
Mississippi. They cre- 
ated the most intense 
rejoicing in the Northern 
and Western States, and 
a corresponding depres- 
sion in the South. Being 
simultaneous with the 
defeat of the Southern 
army at Gettysburg, they 
were regarded as deci- 
sive of the war : as indeed 
they were. From this 
time we shall trace the 
declining fortunes of the 
Southern Confederacy 
and the gradual but 
steady re-establishment 
of the authority of the Union over the 
Southern States. 

After the battle of Murfreesboro', or Stone 
River, the army of General Rosecrans 
remained quietly in winter quarters at Nash- 
ville and Murfreesboro'. Bragg's army 
passed the winter at Chattanooga. Towards 
the last of June Rosecrans moved forward 
from Nashville, and advancing slowly threat- 
ened Bragg's communications with Rich- 
mond. The Confederate commander had no 
wish to emulate the example of Pembertoa 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



735 



at Vicksburg, and at once evacuated Chatta- 
nooga, on the eighth of September, and 
retired towards Dal- 
ton, Georgia, This 
movement, which was 
interpreted by Rose- 
crans as a retreat, was 
desisfned to secure the 



union with Bragg's 
army of Longstreet's 
corps, which had been 
detached from Lee's 
army and sent to join 
Bragg. This junc- 
tion was effected on 
the eighteenth, and 
other reinforcements 
arrived from Missis- 
sippi. Thus strength- 
ened Bragg suddenly 
wheeled upon Rose- 
crans, and on the nine- 
teenth of September 
attacked him at Chick- 
amauga. The battle 
was severe, but inde- 
cisive, and was re- 
newed the next day. 
Towards noon, on 
the twentieth, Rose- 
crans having greatly 
weakened the other 
parts of his line to 
help the left, which 
was hard pressed, 
Longstreet made a fu- 
rious dash at the weak- 
ened part, and in an ir- 
resistible attack swept 
the Federal right and 
centre from the field. 
Rosecrans endeavored 
to stop the retreat, but was borne along in 
the dense crowd of fugitives. Only the left 



wing, under the command of General George 
H. Thomas, remained firm. Had that given 




MAP OF THE CHICKAMAUGA AND CHATTANOOGA CAMPAIGNS. 



way the rout would have been complete; 
but all through the long afternoon, Thomas 



THE CIVIL WAR. 




POSITIONS OF THE ARMIES AT THE BATTLE OF MISSIONARY RIDGE. 



held on to his position with a grim resolution 
which nothing could shake. After nightfall 



three thousand men 
his assistance, and 



he withdrew his corps 
in good order and re- 
tired upon Chatta- 
nooga. The Union 
loss at Chickamauga 
was sixteen thousand 
men and fifty-one 
guns; Bragg's about 
eighteen thousand 
men. 

Bragg advanced at 
once upon the defeated 
army of Rosecrans, 
which had taken re- 
fuge in Chattanooga, 
occupied the heights 
commanding the city, 
and seized the com- 
munications of the 
Federal army with 
Nashville. Thus close- 
ly besieged, the Union 
forces suffered consid- 
erably from a scarcity 
of provisions. 

General Rosecrans 
was now removed 
from the command of 
the Army of the Cum- 
berland, and General 
Grant was appointed 
to the chief command 
of all the western ar- 
mies. He at once set 
to work to extricate 
the Army of the Cum- 
berland, to the com- 
mand of which Gen- 
eral Thomas had suc- 
ceeded, from its peril- 
ous situation. Hooker 
was sent with twenty- 
from Meade's army to 
Sherman was ordered 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



737 



ito march with the force which had taken 
"Vicksburg along the line of the railway 
from Memphis to Chattanooga. The arrival 
of these reinforcements soon changed the 
.aspect of affairs. 

On the twenty-third of November the 
Army of the Cumberland made a vigorous 
sortie and drove the Confederates from the 
important position of Orchard Knob. On 
the twenty- fourth, Hooker stormed Lookout 
Mountain, the left of the Confederate line, 
and carried it after a hard fight. The invest- 
ment was now thoroughly broken, and the 
Confederates were confined to Missionary 
Ridge, which had formerly constituted the 
right of their line. On 
the twenty-fifth, this posi- 
tion was assaulted by the 
whole strength of the 
Federal army, and was 
carried after a stubborn 
fight. Bragg, beaten at 
all points, with heavy 
loss, retreated into Geor- 
gia, where he was soon 
after removed from his 
command and immedi- 
ately succeeded by Gen- 
eral Joseph E. Johnston. 

During the progress of this campaign 
General Burnside had moved from Kentucky 
with a force of about twenty-five thousand 
men, about the time that Rosecrans began 
his advance from Nashville in June. The 
strong position of Cumberland Gap was sur- 
rendered to him with scarcely an effort for 
its defence by the Confederates, and he 
moved into East Tennessee. Driving back 
the Confederate forces, which sought to stop 
his march, he occupied Knoxville. The 
object of his expedition was to afford a ral- 
lying point for the Union men of East Ten- 
nessee. After the battle of Chickamauga, 

and the investment of Chattanooga, President 
47 



Jefferson Davis visited Bragg's army, and 
being convinced that the capture of Rose- 
crans' force was inevitable, decided to with- 
draw General Longstreet's corps from Bragg, 
and to send it to drive Burnside out of East 
Tennessee. 

Longstreet's men were in no condition to 
undertake such a campaign, but under their 
energetic commander, succeeded in confining 
Burnside's army to the defences of Knoxville. 
The siege of that place was formed, and 
several assaults were made upon the Union 
works, but were each repulsed with heavy 
loss. Burnside's men were reduced almost 
to starvation, but held out with unshaken 




grant's headquarters near CHATTANOOGA. 



resolution. After the defeat of Bragg at Mis 
sionary Ridge, Grant ordered Sherman to 
march with his corps to the relief of Knox- 
ville. Upon the approach of this force Long- 
street, on the fourth of December, raised the 
siege and retreated into Virginia. 

Beyond the Mississippi the war was car- 
ried on with varying success throughout the 
year 1863, but to the general advantage of 
the Federal forces. On the third of July 
the Confederates, under General Holmes, 
attacked Helena, Arkansas, but were re- 
pulsed. By the close of the year the Con- 
federate forces had been pressed back as far 
as the Red River. 



738 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



On the first of January, 1863, Galveston, 
Texas, which had surrendered to the Federal 
forces in the fall of 1862, was recaptured by 



of land troops, under General Gilmore, effected 
a lodgment on the south end of Morris' 
Island, and secured their position by intrench- 



the Confederates, under General Magruder. j ments. 

By the capture of this place, the Confederates The Union parallels were pushed forward 



obtained one more port from which they 
could maintain communications with and 
receive supplies from Europe. 



steadily towards Fort Wagner, at the north 
end of the island, and a final assault of that 
work was ordered. Before the order could 




^'^^^r^"^:'"'^^-^'^^/ 

--^W ^^^^^y 



CAPTURE OF LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN. 



. In the spring of 1863, a powerful naval 
expedition, under Admiral Dupont, was des- 
patched against Charleston. On the seventh 
of April, Dupont attempted to force his way 
into the harbor, but was driven back by the 
forts and batteries, and nine of his iron-clads 
were severely injured. Early in July, a force 



be executed. Fort Wagner was evacuated on 
the night of the sixth of September. The 
Federal batteries on Morris' Island now 
maintained a heavy and constant fire upon 
Fort Sumter, and reduced it to a shapeless 
mass of rubbish on the land side. Yet, m 
this condition it was stronger than at first,. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



739 



the mass of rubbish offering a more effectual 
resistance to shot and shell than the walls. 
The long-range guns on Morris' Island threw 
shells into the city of Charleston, which was 
regularly bombarded from this time until its 
fall, in 1865. The capture of Fort Wagner 
enabled the Federal forces to close the har- 
bor of Charleston effectually against blockade 
runners. 

In spite of the victories of Chancellorsville 
and Chickamauga, and the invasion of the 
North, the close of the year found the South 
fairly on the downward road to final failure. 
Missouri was freed from the presence of the 
Confederate army, and the greater part of 
Arkansas was held 
by the Federal 
troops. The Mis- 
sissippi was lost to 
the South, and the 
immense supplies 
from the trans-Mis- 
sissippi region were 
no longer available 
to the Confederate 
forces east of the 
great river. Tennes- 
see was occupied by 

the Federal forces, and the invasion of the 
North had ended in disaster. 

The resources of the South were gradually 
becoming exhausted, and the supply of men 
was falling off. The North, on the other 
hand, was increasing in determination. The 
war had opened new channels of industry, 
and these had more than repaid the losses of 
the first period of the struggle. The North 
was growing richer in spite of the war, while 
the South was growing poorer because of it. 
At the end of 1863 the Federal debt had 
reached the enormous total of ^1,300,000,000, 
with the certainty of a heavy increase during 
the coming year. Still the people of the 
loyal States responded with heartiness to the 



heavy demands of the Federal government 
for men and money. Specie had long since 
disappeared from circulation, but a system of 
Treasury notes, which were made a legal 
tender, had replaced coin as a circulating 
medium. The new paper money was abun- 
dant, and the North gave few outward signs 
of distress. Everything spoke of prosperity. 
The contrast between the condition of the 
Union and the Confederacy was striking and 
most suggestive. 

Early in the spring of 1864 an expedition 
was sent into that part of Louisiana known 
as the Red River country. It consisted of a 
force of ten thousand troops, under General 




MISSIONARY RIDGE FROM THE CEMETERY AT CHATTANOOGA. 

Smith, from Vicksburg, and a fleet of gun- 
boats, under Admiral Porter. On the four- 
teenth of March Fort de Russy was captured 
by the troops, and on the twenty-first Natch- 
itoches was occupied General Banks now 
arrived with a strong reinforcement of troops 
from New Orleans, and took command of the 
expedition. About the first of April he set 
out for Shreveport, at the head of navigation 
on the Red River, his army marching along 
the shore, and the gunboats ascending the 
stream. The Confederates gathered in heavy 
force, under the command of General Kirby 
Smith, to oppose his advance. 

On the eighth of April the Confederate 
army attacked Banks at Sabine Cross-Roads, 



740 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



near Mansfield, and inflicted a stinging defeat 
upon him. The Union forces were raUied at 
Pleasant Hill, where they were attacked by 
the Confederates on the ninth. The Confed- 
erates were repulsed, but Banks continued 
his retreat, and reached Alexandria on the 
twenty-fifth of April. The expedition then 
returned to the Mississippi. Banks was 



The Red River expedition was thus a total 
failure, and was a source of great mortifica- 
tion, as well as serious loss, to the Federal 
government. 

Early in March General Grant was raised 
to the grade of Lieutenant-General, that 
rank having been revived by act of Congress 
to reward him for his great services during 





THE ATTACK ON FORT SUMTER BY THE MONITOR FLEET. 



relieved of the command at New Orleans, 
and was succeeded by General Canby. 

General Steele, commanding the Union 
forces in Arkanses, had moved from Little 
Rock, on the twenty-third of March, towards 
Shreveport, to co-operate with General 
Banks. He was attacked by the Confed- 
erates and driven back to Little Rock, which 
he reached on the second of May. 



the war. It had been held only by Wash- 
ington. General Scott having been given 
only the brevet rank. He was also appomted 
commander of all the armies of the United 
States. He decided to assume the immedi- 
ate direction of the campaign in Virginia, 
and established his headquarters with the 
Army of the Potomac. At the same time 
General W. T. Sherman was appointed to 




PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. 



742 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



the command of the military division of the 
Mississippi, in which were included the 
Armies of the Cumberland, of the Ohio, and 
of the Tennessee. 

The supreme control of the military oper- 
ations both east and west was vested in Gen- 
eral Grant — a great gain, inasmuch as the oper- 
ations in the two quarters of the Union could 
now be made to assist each other. The plan 
of the campaign embraced a simultaneous 
advance of both armies ; the Army of the 
Potomac was charged with the task of defeat- 
ing Lee and capturing Richmond ; the west- 
ern army, under Sherman, was to force John- 
ston back into Georgia. 




FORT DE RUSSY. 

The Army of the Potomac numbered one 
hundred and forty thousand men on the first 
of May, 1864; the Confederate army, under 
General Lee, about fifty thousand. General 
Meade retained the immediate command of 
the Army of the Potomac, but General Grant 
accompanied it, and directed its movements. 
On the morning of May 4th — just three days 
before Sherman moved from Chattanooga — 
the Federal army crossed the Rapidan, and, 
turning the right of Lee's position, entered 
the region known as the Wilderness. Gen- 
eral Lee determined to attack this force and 
prevent it from reaching the open country 
beyond the Wilderness. On the fifth of May 



he encountered the Army of the Potomac in 
the Wilderness, near the old battle-field of 
Chancellorsville. 

The attack was made by the Federal 
forces, which endeavored to drive off Lee's 
army, which blocked the route by which 
they were advancing. Lee held his ground 
during the day, and that night both armies 
bivouacked upon the field. The battle was 
renewed on the sixth, but Grant failed to 
force the Confederate position. The fighting 
during these two days was carried on in a 
thickly-wooded region, in which the artillery 
of the two armies could not be used to advan- 
tage. On the sixth the Confederates suf- 
fered a serious loss in the person of General 
Longstreet, who was severely wounded, 
" and was incapacitated from continuing in 
command. The losses in killed and wounded 
were very heavy on both sides, as the fight- 
ing was of a desperate character. 

Six Days' Fighting in Virginia. 

On the seventh General Grant moved 
his army around Lee's right, and marched 
rapidly to seize the strong position of 
Spottsylvania Court-house, which would 
have placed him between the Confederates 
and Richmond. Lee at once divined his 
purpose, and fell back rapidly to the heights 
around Spottsylvania Court-house, which 
he occupied on the eighth. Upon arriving 
before this position Grant found his enemy 
strongly entrenched in it, and at once re- 
solved to drive him from it. On the tenth 
of May he made a determined attack upon 
the Confederate line, but failed to carry it. 

On the morning of the eleventh, General 
Grant sent a characteristic dispatch to the 
Secretary of War. " We have now," he 
wrote, " ended the sixth day of very hard 
fighting. The result to this time is much 
in our favor. Our losses have been heavy, 
as well as those of the enemy. I think the 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



743 



loss of the enemy must be greater. We 
have taken over five thousand prisoners in 
battle, while he has taken from us but few, 
except stragglers. I propose to fight it out 
on this line, if it takes all summer." 

The eleventh was Wednesday. The 
morning rose bright and clear. The two 
opposing armies lay in close proximity to 
each other. As the day advanced there was 
some skirmishing ; but on neither side was 
any attempt made to provoke a general 
engagement. Both commanders, it was evi- 
dent, were preparing for battle; nor could 
doubt remain in any mind that, whatever 
might be the result, another and even more 
fearful encounter at 
Spottsylvania was 
imminent. 

Grant was still 
bent on carrying 
out his policy of ^ 



extend his left, and to concentrate on that 
wing. Warren was to make a diversionary 
movement on the Confederate left, in his own 
front, the object being to give the enemy 
sufficient employment in that direction, and 
so prevent the withdrawal of his troops for 
the relief of the menaced point. 

Burnside, for a similar reason, was to make 
a vigorous assault on the extreme left. Rain 
fell heavily in the afternoon. When night 
came the rain-storm had not abated ; and, as 
the moon was in its first quarter, the night 
was dark and dismal. Soon after midnight, 
under cover of the darkness and the storm, 
Hancock moved out from his intrenchments. 




continuous ham- 
mering. His sue- ^S^y 
cess, however, on 
the Tuesday, in his 
repeated attacks on 
the enemy's left 
and left centre, had 

not been encouraging. There was no rea- 
son to hope that another attack, made in 
the same direction, would be attended with 
any better results. It was resolved, there- 
fore, to strike a bold and effective blow on 
the enemy's right centre. At that point, and 
near the Landrum House, Lee's lines formed 
a salient. It was Grant's conviction that the 
point was vulnerable. Arrangements for the 
attack were made forthwith. Hancock, who 
was chosen to strike the blow, was ordered 
to leave his entrenchments in front of 
A. P. Hill, and, by moving to the left, to 
take position between the Sixth and Ninth 
corps. The movement was to have the sup- 
port of the entire army. Wright was to 



BAILEY S RED RIVER DAM. 

and, guided by the compass, passed in rear 
of Warren and Wright, and took position 
within 1,200 yards of the enemy's front, at 
the point to be attacked. Barlow's division, 
in two lines of masses, was placed on the 
left ; Birney's division, in two deployed lines, 
was placed on the right ; Mott's division, 
Hancock's Fourth, supported Birney, and 
Gibbon's division was held in reserve. Of 
the actual strength of the position about to 
be attacked, the Nationalists knew nothing. 
It might be weak and defenceless. It might 
be well fortified and proof against any attack. 
It mattered not. Hancock was ready, wait- 
ing for the first streak of early dawn to launch 
forth his brave battalions to victory or to death. 



744 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



It is now half-past four o'clock on the 
morning of Thursday, May twelfth. A heavy 
fog is resting on the entire surrounding 
country, and the feeble light of the rising 
sun struggles hard to penetrate the gloom. 
Hancock's divisions are already in motion. 
Steadily and silently they move towards the 
salient — Barlow over open ground, which 
extends up to the Confederate lines, Birney 
through the thickly wooded ground more to 
the right. Not a shot has yet been fired — 
not a word uttered. More than half of the 
intervening distance has already been crossed. 




GRANT WRITING DISPATCHES BEFORE CROSSING THE RAPIDAN 



Suddenly there is a loud-resoundincr cheer, 
which rings along the whole line. Spontan- 
eously the men take the double-quick. On 
they roll like a resistless wave. Nothing 
can now restrain their fierce impetuosity. 
They have reached the abatis, torn it up and 
tossed it aside. 

With wild cries, they rush bounding over 
the entrenchments, Barlow and Birney's men 
entering almost simultaneously. Inside the 
intrenchmects there is a terrible hand-to- 
hand struggle, the bayonet and the clubbed- 
musket being freely used. Nothing, how- 



ever, can save the doomed Confederates.. 
Some four thousand men, including General 
Johnson, of Ewell's corps, and General 
George H. Stewart are surrounded and cap- 
tured ; and with them thirty pieces of artil- 
lery and as many colors. Meanwhile, the 
remainder of the Confederate force, stricken 
with terror and thrown into the wildest con- 
fusion, have fallen back, seeking safety in the 
rear. 

This attack of Hancock's was justly 
regarded as the most brilliant feat of arms 
yet accomplished in the campaign. Never 
was surprise more com- 
plete or more successful. 
The officers were taken 
at their breakfast. The 
captured generals were 
greatly mortified. An 
hour only had elapsed 
since the column of at- 
tack was formed. Along 
with the prisoners, which 
he sent to Grant, Han- 
cock sent a note hastily 
written in pencil, saying: 
"I have finished up John- 
son, and am now going 
into Early." This second 
task, as we shall soon see,. 
he found to be less easy 
of accomplishment than the former. 

Early, like Johnson, commanded a divis- 
ion of Ewell's corps. At the point pene- 
trated, Lee's army, as we have seen, formed 
a salient. Hancock had, therefore, by his 
first success, thrust a wedge between the 
Confederate right and centre. It was his 
hope that he would be able to cut Lee's 
army in two ; and there can be no doubt 
that if sufficient provision had been made, 
promptly and in force, to follow up the 
advantage Hancock had won by his first 
brilliant assault, the desired end would have 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



74S 



been accomplished. As it was, Hancock's 
troops, flushed with success, and incapable 
of being restrained after the capture of the 
intrenchments, pressed on through the forest 
in the direction of Spottsylvania driving the 
flying enemy before 
them. 

At the distance of 
half a mile, they were 
suddenly brought to 
a halt in their triumph- 
ant career. They had 
reached a fresh line of 
breast-works. Behind 
these works, Ewell 
had taken shelter ; 
and reinforcements 
had reached him from 
the corps of Anderson 
and Hill. The Na- 
tional advance was 
now effectually check- 
ed. It was not only 
impossible to make 
headway — it was im- 
possible to remain in 
the position in which 
they found them- 
selves. The tide of 
battle was now turned. 
Gathering themselves 
up for a supreme ef- 
fort, the Confederates, 
in overwhelming 
numbers and in mag- 
nificent array, rushed 
from the breast- works, 
and, falling with crush- 



the right and left of the angle of the works, 
he stoutly resisted the fierce and repeated 
onsets of the enemy, and firmly held his 
position. His situation, however, was becom- 
ing every moment more critical. Lee was 




ing weight on Hancock's men, now slightly 
disordered by their fearless rush through the 
woods, drove them back to the line which 
they had captured in the early morning. 

Here, however, Hancock managed to rally 
his troops ; and, getting them into line on 



GENERAL JAMES LONGSTREET. 

resolved, if possible, to recover the lost line 
of works ; and, with this end in view, he was 
putting forth the most Herculean efforts, and 
bringing his entire strength to bear on the 
one point. It was now si.x o'clock — one hour 
and a half since the first onset. Hancock 



746 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



was still holding his position ; but relief was 
sorely needed. 

At this opportune moment, when most 
needed, relief came. Wright, who had been 
hurried forward with his Sixth corps, arrived 
on the ground, and took position on the 
right of the salient. Hancock, thus relieved, 
concentrated his troops on the left of the 
angle. A little later, about eight o'clock, 
and with a view to relieve the pressure on 
Hancock and Wright, Burnside and Warren 
were ordered to attack along their whole 
fronts. The battle now raged furiously at 
every point. No evidence was given that 
Lee had changed his purpose. The last line 




THE PLACE WHERE SEDGWICK WAS KILLED, 



at the salient was still the object of his ambi- 
tion. On Hancock and Wright he dealt his 
heaviest and most terrific blows. Again and 
again, and in rapid succession, he rolled 
against them his heavy masses. He seemed 
resolved to dislodge them. 

Seeing this, and becoming convinced that 
Burnside and Warren were producing no 
impression on their respective fronts, Grant 
detached two divisions from the Fifth corps — 
those of Cutler and Griffin — and sent them 
to the aid of the Second and Sixth corps at 
the angle which was still regarded as the 
prize of battle, and where was the focus of 
(the fight. Five times did Lee hurl his heavy 
columns against the National lines entrusted 



with the defense of this position. Five times, 
after severe hand-to-hand fighting, in which 
the slaughter on both sides was dreadful, 
were the attacking columns repulsed. It 
was not until after midnight that Lee with- 
drew his shattered and bleeding lines and 
re-formed them in his interior position. 
Hancock held the works he had captured 
in the morning. The battle had lasted 
twenty hours. The losses on either side 
were about 10,000 men. 

Such was the great battle of Spottsylvania 
Court House. Although not a decisive vic- 
tory it was a positive gain to the National 
cause. Its moral effect was great. It was 
, _ one of the bloodiest 

battles of the war. 
The sight presented 
at the angle where 
the tide of battle 
surged and roared 
from earliest dawn 
till past midnight 
of that summer 
day, as described 
by eye-witnesses, 
was something 
shocking to wit- 
ness. The bodies of the dead and wounded 
were piled in heaps and mingled together 
in wild confusion. It was, as one has 
said, " an angle of death — one hideous 
Golgotha." The severity of the musketry 
fire was evidenced by the condition of the 
forest after the battle. The trees were not 
only pierced by the bullets, but literally cut 
down. At Washington, as a relic of this 
fight, there is preserved the trunk of an oak 
tree which was cut through and through by 
bullets. The trunk is about twenty inches 
in diameter. 

It was evident that the Confederates could 
not be dislodged from their position without 
a still heavier loss to the Union army, and 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



747 



General Grant determined to draw them 
from the heights of Spottsylvania by another 
march to the right. 

On the twenty-first of May the Army of 
the Potomac moved from Spottsylvania to 
the banks of the North Anna River, and 
reached that stream on the twenty-third. 
Lee had marched rapidly by a shorter route, 
and his army was in position on the south side 
of the river when Grant reached the 
northern shore. Lee had chosen a posi- 
tion of very great strength in front of 
Hanover Junction, and had covered it 
with earthworks. 

On the twenty-fifth Grant crossed a 
large part of his force to the south side 
of the North Anna, and endeavored to 
force the Confederate line, but discover- 
ing its remarkable strength, withdrew his 
troops to the north shore, and on the 
twenty-sixth moved around Lee's right 
in the direction of the Chickahominy. 
Lee followed him promptly and took 
position at Cold Harbor, on the north 
side of the Chickahominy, and within 
nine miles of Richmond, occupying very 
much the same position held by McClel- 
lan's army in the battle of Cold Harbor, 
on the twenty-seventh of June, 1862. 
He covered his entire line with strong 
earthworks. 

On the first of June a sharp encounter 
occurred between the Federal right and 
the Confederate left wings, and on the 
morning of the third of June, Grant made a 
general assault upon the Confederate works. 
The attack was made with great gallantry, but 
was repulsed with a loss to the Federal army 
of thirteen thousand men. The losses of 
the Army of the Potomac since the passage 
of the Rapidan had reached the enormous 
total of over sixty thousand men. The Con- 
federate loss during the same period was 
about twenty thousand. Failing to force the 



Confederate line at Cold Harbor, General 
Grant drew off leisurely towards the James 
River at Wilcox's Landing, intending to cross 
that river and attack Richmond from the 
south side of the James. 

In the meantime, upon reaching Spottsyl- 
vania Court-house, General Grant had sent 
General Sheridan, with ten thousand cavalry, 
to destroy the railroads connecting Rich- 




GENERAL FITZHUGH LEE. 

mond with Lee's army and the valley of Vir- 
ginia. Sheridan executed his orders with 
complete success, and went within seven 
miles of Richmond. On the tenth of May 
he reached Ashland. He was attacked there 
by the Confederate cavarly under General 
Stuart, and moved off towards Richmond. 
Stuart, marching by a shorter route, threw 
his cavalry between Sheridan and Richmond, 
and aeain encountered him at the Yellow 



748 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



Tavern, on the Brook turnpike, seven miles 
from the city. 

Stuart was mortally wounded, and Sheri- 
dan secured his retreat across the Chicka- 
hominy and down the peninsula. In General 
Stuart the Confederates lost their only great 
cavalry leader. Had Sheridan, instead of 
halting at Ashland, pushed straight on to 
Richmond, the Confederate capital must 
have fallen into his hands. On the twenty- 
fifth of June he rejoined General Grant. 



a force of about eighteen thousand men,, 
under General Beauregard, and posted them 
in a fortified line, extending from the James to 
the Appomattox, in front of the Richmond' 
and Petersburg railroad. On the sixteenth 
of May, Butler's army, having advanced' 
within a short distance of this line, was 
attacked by the Confederates and driven back 
to Bermuda Hundreds. The Confederates 
then formed their lines across the narrow 
peninsula, and kept Butler's force enclosed 




BATTLE OF COLD HARBOR. 



At the opening of the campaign, General 
Butler, with a force of about thirty thousand 
men, known as the Army of the James, was 
sent up the James River to attack the defen- 
ces of Richmond, on the south side of that 
river. He occupied City Point and Bermuda 
Hundreds on the fifth of May, and a kw days 
later, advanced up the neck of land lying 
between the James and the Appomattox 
Rivers. 

To oppose him, the Confederates collected 



between their works and the two rivers until 
the crossing of the James River by the Army 
of the Potomac. 

The Federal plan of campaign also included 
the seizure of the valley of Virginia, and of 
the railway connecting Virginia with East 
Tennessee and Georgia. On the first of May, 
General Sigel, with an army of ten thousand 
men, adv^anced up the valley towards Staun- 
ton. On the fifteenth, he was defeated with 
considerable loss by the Confederates, under 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



749 



General Breckenridge, at New Market, and 
was driven back down the valley. General 
Hunter was appointed in Sigel's place, and 
succeeded in forcing his way to the vicinity 
of Lynchburg. Lee, becoming alarmed for 
the safety of that place, sent General Early, 
with twelve thousand men, to its assistance. 



advanced upon Petersburg. At the same time 
General Butler moved forward with the Army 
of the James against the southern works 
between the James and Appomattox. On the 
sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth. Grant 
made repeated attempts to storm the Con- 
federate works before Petersburg and south 




BATTLE OF SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT-HOUSE. 



Early, at once attacked Hunter, and forced 
him to retreat by a circuitous route into 
West Virginia. 

In the meantime, General Grant had 
reached the James River, where his army was 
reinforced to one hundred and fifty thousand 
men. On the fifteenth and sixteenth of June 
he crossed his troops near City Point, and 



of the James, but was repulsed with a total 
loss of nine thousand six hundred and sixty- 
five men. 

Being unable to carry the southern works 
by storm, he began the siege of Petersburg. 
His right rested on the James above Ber- 
muda Hundreds, and from this point his line 
extended across the Appomattox, with his 



750 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



left thrown out towards the Weldon railroad. 
During the summer and fall he continued to 
extend his left until he had seized the Weldon 
road. From this point he sought to extend 
his left still further, and to seize the South 




GENERAL J. E. B. STUART 

Side railroad, Lee's only remaining line of 
communication with the South and South- 
west. 

Frequent encounters occurred between the 
two armies during the summer and fall, a 
number of which attained the proportions of 



battles, but we have not space to relate them 
all. On the thirtieth of July a mine was 
sprung under one of the principal works of 
Lee's line, and the explosion was followed 
by an assault by Burnside's corps. The attack 
was repulsed with a 
loss of over five thou- 
sand men to the Union 
troops. During the 
early autumn General 
Grant extended his 
lines across the James 
river, and established 
a force on the north 
side of that river to 
lay siege to the de- 
fences of Richmond. 
The right of this force 
was extended as far as 
the Williamsburg 
road. This was the 
situation of the two 
armies at the close of 
the year. 

In the meantime 
Early had advanced 
into the valley of Vir- 
ginia after the defeat of 
Hunter. The retreat 
of that commander in- 
to West Virginia had 
left the Potomac un- 
guarded, and Wash- 
ington City exposed 
to attack. General 
Lee at once reinforced 
Early to fifteen thou- 
sand men, and ordered 
him to cross the Potomac and to threaten 
Washington, hoping by this bold movement 
to compel Grant to weaken his army for the 
protection of the capital, if not to raise the 
siege of Petersburg. Early moved rapidly, 
crossed the Potomac near Martinsburs: on 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



751 



the fifth of July, and on the seventh occupied 
Frederick City in Maryland. On the ninth 
he defeated a small force under General 
Lewis Wallace at Manocacy Bridge, and 
advanced upon Washington. The Nine- 
teenth army corps of the Federal army was 
at Fortress Monroe, where it had just arrived 
from New Orleans, en 
route to join Grant's 
army. It was at once or- 
dered to Washington, 
which, until its arrival, 
was held by a small gar- 
rison, and Grant at the 
same time embarked the 
Sixth corps, and sent it 
with all speed around to 
the Potomac. 

These troops reached 
Washington before the 
arrival of Early, who 
appeared before the de- 
fences of that city on 
the eleventh of July. He 
found the works too 
strongly manned to be 
attacked by his force. 
After skirmishing for 
several days before them, 
he withdrew across the 
Potomac on the four- 
teenth, and retreated to 
the neighborhood of 
Winchester. 

Early's movement so 
alarmed the Federal gov- 
ernment for the safety of 
Washington that a force of forty thousand 
men, ten thousand of which were the splen- 
did cavalry of Sheridan, was stationed in the 
valley, and Major-General Sheridan was ap- 
pointed to the command of this army. Had 
Grant been able to retain these troops with 
his own army, it is safe to say that Lee would 



have been forced to abandon his position at 
Petersburg in the autumn of 1864. Their 
absence in the valley enabled the Con- 
federate leader to prolong his defence through 
the winter. 

As soon as he had gotten his forces well 
in hand, Sheridan advanced upon Early, and 




GENERAL WINFIELD S. HANCOCK. 

on the nineteenth defeated him at Win- 
chester, and drove him back to Fisher's 
Hill, where on the twenty-second, he again 
defeated him and drove him out of the 
valley, pursuing him as far as Staunton, By 
the orders of General Grant, General Sheri- 
dan now laid waste the entire valley of the 




752 



STUART'S CAVALRY CUTTING TELEGRAPH WIRES 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



753 



Shenandoah, destroying all the crops, mills, 
barns, and farming implements, and driving 
off the cattle with his army as he moved 
back. 

Early was reinforced after his retreat to 
the upper valley, and about the middle of 
October advanced down the valley towards 
the Federal position with a force of nine 
thousand men and forty pieces of cannon. 
The Union army lay at Cedar Creek, and 
was under the temporary command of Gen- 
eral Wright during the absence of General 
Sheridan. On the 
nineteenth of Oc- 
tober Early attack- 
ed this force, and 
drove it back for 
several miles. In- 
stead of continuing 
the pursuit, his 
troops stopped to 
plunder the Federal 
camp,whichhad fal- 
len into theirhands. 

General Wright 

rallied his men and 

reformed them in a 

new position, and 

at this moment 

General Sheridan 

.arrived on the field. 

He had heard the firing at Winchester, 

"twenty miles away," and had ridden at full 

speed from that place to rejoin his army. He 

,at once ordered it to advance upon Early, 

whose men, laden with the plunder of the 

captured camp, were driven back with terrible 

force and pursued up the valley for thirty 

miles. This success cleared the valley of the 

Confederate forces, for Early was not able 

after this to collect more than a handful of 

men, and Lee had no troops to spare him. 

Sheridan's brilliant victories cost him a total 

loss of seventeen thousand men. 
48 



A more extended account of General 
Sheridan's operations, by the historian, John 
I^ird Wilson, will be of interest to the 
reader : 

*'As Sheridan returned down the valley 
towards Cedar Creek, he was closely followed 
by the Confederate cavalry under Rosser, 
supported by the main body of Early's army. 
On October ninth, the head of Sheridan's 
infantry column having entered Strasburg by 
the east road, while the rear was still some 
miles further south, the enemy following the 







PONTOON BRIDGE AT DEEP BOTTOM. 

cavalry on the west road, had advanced so 
far as to get on the left flank of the infantry 
column. Custer and Merritt then turned and 
attacked with their cavalry, when a report 
having spread among Rosser's men that the 
National infantry were at the same time 
flanking them, they immediately gave way 
and broke into a stampede. The pursuit was 
continued seven miles. The loss of the 
enemy was not great, being only about three 
hundred men, including prisoners ; but he 
abandoned eleven guns, four caissons, and an 
ammunition train. 



754 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



" Things remained quiet for several days 
after this affair ; but on the twelfth, the Con- 
federates again appeared in the neighborhood 
of Strasburg and opened an artillery fire on 
Emory's and Crook's corps. These troops 
were then partially withdrawn and Crook 
pushed out a reconnoissance, which brought 




GENERAL PHILIP H. SHERIDAN 

on a smart engagement of three hours' dura- 
tion. Night, however, closed upon the scene 
without any advantage and with little loss to 
either side. 

" On the fifteenth, Sheridan went to Wash- 
ington on important business, leaving the 
army under the command of General Wright, 



whose corps was, in the meantime intrusted* 
to General Ricketts. Fisher's Hill had been 
abandoned as not affording any good defens- 
ible line on its southern slope, on which side 
Early would be likely to approach, and the 
army had now lain for several days in front 
of Strasburg, behind breast-works throwm 
up on rising and rolling 
ground, mostly along the 
east side of Cedar Creek — 
Crook, with the Eighth 
corps on the left, the Nine- 
teenth corps in the centre,, 
the Sixth on the right. On 
the right of the Sixth, a 
little in the rear and in 
reserve, were the two ca- 
valry divisions of Custer 
and Merritt. The line was 
four or five miles long, and 
following the course of the 
creek, nearly north and 
south. 

"Crook's corps rested its 
left flank on the North 
Fork of Shenandoah and 
its right on the Winchester 
-: and Strasburg turnpike, the 
. principal highway in that 
region. Behind Crook's 
left and at right angles to 
it, with a view to guard 
against any turning move- 
ment on that flank, lay a 
force about equivalent to 
a brigade, known as Kitch- 
ing's provisional division. 
North of the turnpike came the Nineteenth 
corps, Grover's division holding its left and 
resting on the turnpike, where it joined 
Thorburn's division of Crook's command. 
The Sixth corps on the right, and the 
second cavalry division, were not strongly 
protected with works, as was all the rest of 




PORTRAITS OF FEDERAL CAVALRY COMMANDERS. 



755 



756 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



the line, but were well posted on high ridges, 
and held firmly the Middle road, or that 
which runs next north of the turnpike. A 
small stream called Meadow Run, flows into 
the creek between the two roads mentioned. 



was picketed by Powell's cavalry division 
from Cedar Creek all the way to Front 
Royal. Weir's battery commanded the fords, 
supported by cavalry which were so posted 
as to prevent surprise from the direction of 




Sheridan's cavalry charge at cedar creek. 



" In front the National position was consid- 
ered impregnable, except by surprise, and to 
turn it would be, it was believed, an under- 
taking of extreme temerity. To guard 
against surprise on the left, the North Fork 



the Luray Valley. Artillery was posted in 
front of the positions of Crook and Emory, 
so as to command the ford and the bridge 
over Cedar Creek, as well as the rising ground 
on the west side. The wagon trains and 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



reserve artillery lay in the rear on the turn 
pike. On the seventeenth, the cavalry on the 
right, under Custer, 
was attacked by Con- 
federate cavalry and 
infantry, and a severe 
skirmish ensued, re- 
sulting in the repulse 
of the enemy. Next 
day a careful recon- 
noissance was made 
from the left towards 
Strasburg and Fish 
er's Hill; but no sign 
of movement on the 
part of the enemy 
v/as discovered. Dis- 
patches, however.were 
captured; and it was 
thus ascertained that 
reinforcements had 
been sent to Early, 
for the purpose of 
enabling him to attack 
and defeat Sheridan. 

"Early, in fact, had 
just received a rein- 
forcement of some 
twelve thousand men. 
His actual strength 
was thus increased to 
twenty-seven thou- 
sand. His army was 
still smaller than that 
of Sheridan. Encour- 
aged, however, by so 
large an accession of 
strength, Early pre- 
pared to put in execu- 
tion one of the most 
audacious movements 
of the war. 

" Before break of day on the nineteenth, 
he arranged his troops at Fisher's Hill and 



757 

began to move against Sheridan's lines. His 
cavalry and light artillery were directed to 




COUNTRY BETWEEN CHATTANOOGA AND ATLANTA. 

advance against the National right, so as to 
occupy the attention of Torbert and the 



758 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



Sixth corps. His infantry marched in five 
columns, of which Gordon's, Ramseur's, and 
Pegram's were ordered to place themselves 
by daybreak on the left rear of the whole 
National position, while Kershaw's and 
Wharton's were to endeavor to get, about 
the same time, close under the entrenched 
rising ground on which lay Crook's com- 
mand. To turn the National left, it was 




GENERAL JOSEPH E. JOHNSTON. 

necessary that Early's columns should 
descend into the gorge at the base of the 
Massanutten Mountain, ford the North Fork 
of the Shenandoah, and skirt Crook's en- 
campment for some distance, in some places 
within four hundred yards of his pickets. 

" It was a hazardous as well as audacious 
experiment; but it was executed with won- 
derful skill, and, as the result proved, with 
complete success. The movement was con- 



ducted quietly, and with great caution. The 
result was that before daybreak the Con- 
federate infantry, formed and ready for battle, 
lay within six hundred yards of the National 
camps. Gordon's column was diagonally in 
the rear of the Nineteenth corps ; on the left 
of Crook, facing Kitching's provisional 
division, was Ramseur supported by Pegram ; 
in front of Crook was Kershaw supported by 
Wharton. Under cover of the morning mist, 
Kershaw's column moved rapidly through 
Crook's picket line, and with tremendous 
fury rushed upon the entrenchments. The 
onslaught was fearful. The surprise was 
complete. 

" In a quarter of an hour Crook's gallant 
army of Western Virginia became a dis- 
organized mass of fugitives in rapid rout 
towards the position of the Nineteenth 
corps. Crook lost several batteries, some 
seven hundred men made prisoners, and 
about one hundred in killed and wounded. 
The Sixth corps was at the same time 
menaced; and its attention occupied by 
the enemy's cavalry and light artillery. It 
fell to the lot of the Nineteenth corps to 
resist unaided the shock of Gordon's col- 
umn, now advancing solidly massed up 
the slope of a broad, bare hill which com- 
manded Emory's camp. The Confederate 
force, including the divisions of Ramseur 
and Pegram, was as strong as Emory's, and 
was supported by another column coming 
up through the woods on the left, and 
along the turnpike in front. 

" The Nineteenth corps was thus not only 
taken in the rear, but outnumbered. Still it 
held out for about an hour ; and then its left 
gave way, leaving a part of the artillery in 
the enemy's hands. The left and centre of 
the National army had now fallen into com- 
plete confusion ; and all the trains that could 
be got away were sent off in haste along the 
turnpike towards Winchester. The sun was 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



759 



now high in the heavens, and the extent of 
the disaster was rendered visible. The Con- 
federates had succeeded in rolling up the left 
of the line, and in severing Powell's cavalry 
division on the extreme left from the rest of 
the army; and they were now forcing back 
the entire centre, and occupying the entrench- 
ments of the Nineteenth corps as they had 
those of Crook's command. They had also 
captured eighteen pieces of artillery, thus not 
only lessening the National power for 
defense, but increasing their own power for 
attack. The captured cannon were turned 
with terrible effect on their late possessors. 
The Sixth corps was now ordered over from 
the right ; and these troops, executing quickly 
a change of front which brought them at 
right angles to their former line, were soon 
engaged in desperate battle. 

A Desperate Struggle. 

" The resistance made by the Sixth corps 
in covering the retreat afforded opportunity 
for re-enforcing the fugitives to some extent ; 
but the Confederates increased their artillery 
♦ and musketry fire to the utmost, and still 
pressed the National left flank, with the 
view, apparently, of getting full possession of 
the turnpike, that they might seize the trains 
and get between the National army and 
Winchester. The enemy pressed the left 
much more vigorously than the right. 
Merritt's and Custer's cavalry were trans- 
ferred from the right to the left ; and a severe 
contest took place in the thickly-wooded 
country near Middletown, in which the left 
had been placed by its rapid retreat. 

" About nine o'clock Sheridan's army had 
got into line of battle again, and made des- 
perate efforts to check the enemy. Both 
sides used artillery ; but the Confederates 
had greatly the advantage in this arm, having 
not only their own batteries, but the cap- 
tured guns of their antagonists besides. The 



Sixth corps held its ground well ; but 
Crook's corps on the left was forced back, 
and the whole line gradually gave way, the 
enemy again getting past the National left 
flank, and finally gaining the village of Mid- 
dletown, about three miles northeast of the 
position from which Sheridan's army had 
been driven. The principal aim of the 
National commanders now was to cover the 
trains and draw off the army with as little 
loss as possible to Newton, where they hoped 
to be able to re-form and offer an effective 
resistance. The battle had been completely 
lost. Camps, earth- works, some twenty-four 
guns and one thousand eight hundred pris- 
oners — all were left in the hands of the 
enemy. The routed Nationals were flying 
in all directions, large numbers of them 
making their way to Winchester. 

•' Face the Other Way, Boys ! " 

" The National army fell back, as we have 
seen, first towards Middletown, and after- 
wards in the direction of Newton. About a 
mile or so in the rear of Middletown,Wright 
succeeded in restoring something like order. 
Sheridan was still absent. He had been, as 
we have mentioned, on a visit to Washing- 
ton. On his return, he spent the night at 
Winchester. It was not until his army had 
been defeated that he was made aware of 
Early's attack. He was in his saddle in a 
minute. He had scarcely left Winchester 
when he beheld sad evidences of the disaster 
which had befallen his army. The road was 
covered with wagon trains and crowds of 
weary fugitives. 

" As he rode along on his splendid 
charger, the air was rent with cheers. The 
fugitives felt abashed and halted; and the 
wounded by the wayside feebly waved a 
joyful salute. He did not slacken his pace 
to rebuke or encourage. Waving his hat to 
the cheering crowds, his horse still at full 



760 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



gallop, he shouted, ' Face the other way, 
boys ! Face the other way ! We are going 
back to our camps. We are going to lick 
them out of their boots.' The words were 
electric. The tide of fugitives began to turn. 
As he neared the main body, the enthusiasm 
became unbounded. Officers and men 
tossed their hats and cheered to the echo. 
He repeated his fiery words, ' Boys, if I had 
been here this would never have happened. 
We are going back. We'll have all these 
camps and cannon back again.' What 
Sheridan said he meant; and the men 
believed him. He was in the field shortly 
after ten o'clock. 

General Early Repulsed. 

"There was a lull in the fight, which 
lasted several hours. Wright, as has been 
mentioned, had already restored order, and 
made dispositions, if not for attack, at least 
for effective resistance. Sheridan approved 
of the arrangements; and mid the most 
enthusiastic cheers, he rode along the lines, 
studying the ground and encouraging the 
men. About one o'clock Early made a 
charge, which was vigorously repulsed by 
Emory. About three o'clock Sheridan gave 
the order, 'The entire line will advance. 
The Nineteenth corps will move in con- 
nection with the Sixth. The right of the 
Nineteenth will swing to the left, so as to 
drive the enemy upon the pike.' 

"The order was promptly obeyed. The 
entire line moved forward — Getty's divis- 
ion leading the charge. Merritt's cav- 
alry covered the left flank ; and Custer's 
cavalry was thrown out on the right. As 
the Nationals advanced they were checked 
for a moment by a tremendous fire of artillery 
and musketry. The check, however, was 
but momentary ; for Emory swung around 
upon the foe, and by two gallant charges 
greatly disordered his lines. Almost at the 



same moment, the National cavalry fell upon 
Early's flank. The tide of battle had already 
turned. 

" The Confederates fought with bravery 
and determination ; but Sheridan's men now 
fighting in the presence of their favorite 
chief, were not to be resisted. The battle, in 
fact, was already won; and what was so 
recently a retreat, was now changed into a 
pursuit. It was a perfect rout. On his arri- 
val, Sheridan said, ' We'll have all those 
camps and cannon back again.' His word 
was made good. That night, the National 
infantry halted within their old camps ; but 
the cavalry pursued, hanging upon the flanks 
and rear of the retreating foe, until he was 
beyond Strasburg, and night fell upon the 
scene. Early halted for the night at Fisher's 
Hill, and in the morning resumed his retreat 
southward. In the pursuit, all the captured 
guns were recovered. The Nationals cap- 
tured hot only their own guns, but twenty- 
three of those of the enemy, together with 
one thousand five hundred prisoners, and 
any quantity of horses, mules, ambulances,, 
wagons and stores of various kinds." 

Sharp Struggle at Resaca. 

The Western army under General Sherman 
was increased to one hundred thousand men, 
and was concentrated in and around Chatta- 
nooga about the last of April. Opposed to 
this force. General Joseph E. Johnston had 
collected an army of fifty thousand men at 
Dalton, Georgia. The objective point of 
Sherman was Atlanta, Georgia, the key to 
the railroad system of the South. 

On the seventh of May the Federal army 
began its advance. The position at Dalton 
being too strong to be assaulted, Sherman 
turned it by a flank movement upon Resaca, 
to which place Johnston fell back. On the 
fourteenth and fifteenth of May Sherman 
endeavored to force the Confederate lines near 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



761 



Resaca, but without success. He therefore 
moved around Johnston's left again, and com- 
pelled him to fall back to Dallas. Severe 
fighting occurred on the twenty fifth at New 
Hope Church, but Johnston maintained his 
position. Heavy skirmishing ensued until 
the twenty-eighth, 
when Sherman hav- 
ing turned Allatoona 
Pass, Johnston oc- 
cupied a new position, 
embracing Pine, Lost 
and Kenesaw Moun- 
tains. Between the 
fifteenth of June and 
the second of July 
Sherman made several 
attempts to force this 
position, which was 
one of the strongest 
yet occupied by tht 
Confederates, and fail 
ing to carry it, again 
moved to the left and 
turned it. 

Johnston at once fell 
back across the Chat- 
tahoochee and within 
the lines of Atlanta. 
He had prepared this 
city for a siege, and 
strongly fortified it. 
He had his army well 
in hand, and he was 
determined as soon 
as the Federal army 
had passed the Chat- 
tahoochee to attack 



in its ruin, and at all events would be de- 
cisive of the campaign. At this juncture, 
however, he was removed from his command 
on the seventeenth of July by the Confeder- 
ate President, who was greatly dissatisfied 
with the results of the campaign, and who^ 




MAJOR- 



Sherman and force him to a decisive en- 
counter. He hoped to defeat him, and had 
purposely avoided a general battle until 
now. Should he succeed in his attempt 
the defeat of the Federal army at such a 
ereat distance from its base might result 



GENERAL JAMES B. m'pHERSON. 

it was generally believed, was influenced by 
his personal hostility to Johnston, 

General John B. Hood, a gallant soldier, 
but unfit for the great task imposed upon' 
him, was appointed to succeed General 
Johnston. In Johnston General Sherman 



762 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



had recognized an antagonist of the first 
rank, and had conducted the campaign 
accordingly. He regarded the appoint- 
ment of General Hood as greatly simplify- 
ing the task before him. The Federal army 
had already paid the heavy price of over 
thirty thousand men for its advance to 
Atlanta, while Johnston had lost less than 
eight thousand men 
now to be reversed. 



GENERAL GEORGE H. THOMAS. 

On the seventeenth of July the Union 
army crossed the Chattahoochee, and 
advanced towards Atlanta. On the twen- 
tieth and twenty-second Hood attacked the 
Federai lines on Peach Tree Creek, but only 
to be beaten back with a loss of over eight 
jthousand men, without inflicting any serious 
injury upon the Union army, which, how- 
ever, lost General McPherson, one of its 



ablest commanders. Sherman now drew in 
his lines closer to Atlanta, and by a skilful 
movement thrust his army between the two 
wings of Hood's forces, thus exposing them 
to the danger of being beaten in detail. This 
movement sealed the fate of Atlanta, which 
was evacuated by the Confederates on the 
thirty-first of August. On the second of 
The conditions were 1 September Sherman occupied the city. 
Hood retreated towards Macon. The loss 
of Atlanta was a serious blow to the 
South. It placed the Federal army in 
the heart of Georgia, and destroyed the 
principal source from which the Con- 
federate armies were supplied with mili- 
tary stores, which had been manufactured 
in great quantities at Atlanta. Rome, 
Georgia, which was captured by Sher- 
man's army during the campaign, was 
also largely engaged in the manufacture 
of arms and ammunition. 

General Sherman was now anxious to 
march his army through Georgia, and 
unite with the Union forces on the coast, 
but he was unable as yet to undertake 
this movement, as Hood, with an army 
of thirty-five thousand men lay in his 
front, and his communications with Chat- 
tanooga and Knoxville were exposed to 
the raids of the Confederate cavalry. 
He now learned that the Confederate 
government had ordered General Hood 
to invade Tennessee for the purpose of 
drawing his army out of Georgia, and 
concluded to make no effort to prevent 
this movement. The task of watching Hood 
was confided to the Army of the Tennessee, 
under General George H. Thomas, who was 
given a sufficient force to hold Tennessee, 
and Sherman set about preparing his army 
for his march to the sea. Thomas was 
heavily reinforced from the North. 

Hood began his forward movement towards 
the last of October, and on the thirty-first of 





PORTRAITS OF SHERMAN AND SOME OF HIS COMMANDERS. 



763 



764 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



that month, crossed the Tennessee, near 
Florence. He remained on this river until 




command of General Schofield, and effecting 
a passage of Duck River, on the twenty- 
ninth. Schofield fell 
back to Franklin, 
eighteen miles south 
of Nashville. He was 
attacked on the thir- 
tieth, by the Confed- 
erates and forced back 
to Nashville, within 
the defences of which 
city, General Thomas 
had collected an army 
of about forty thou- 
sand men. Hood in- 
vested the city, and 
hastened forward his 
preparations to assault 
the Federal works. 
General Thomas, how- 
ever, anticipated him, 
and on the fifteenth 
of December, attacked 
the Confederate army 
and forced it back at 
all points. The next 
day, the sixteenth, the 
battle was renewed, 
and Hood was com- 
pletely routed. 

On the seventeenth 
the Union army set 
out in pursuit of 
Hood's broken col- 
umns, and followed 
them for over fifty 
miles. But for the 
gallantry of a small 
rear guard, which pre- 
served its discipline 
and covered the re- 



THE COUNTRY TRAVERSED BY SHERMAN IN HIS MARCH THROUGH GEORGIA. ^^^^^ ^^ ^-^^ j^g^.^ ^hg 



the middle of November, and on the nine- 
teenth, marched northward, forcing back the 



Confederate army would have been scattered 
beyond all hope of reunion. Hood recrossed 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



765 



the Tennessee with barely twenty thousand 
men out of the thirty-five thousand with 
which he had begun 
the campaign. He 
had lost half of his 
generals and nearly 
all of his artillery. He 
fell back to Tupelo, 
Mississippi, andon the 
twenty-third of Jan- 
uary, 1865, was, at his 
own request, relieved 
of his command. In 
the meantime Gen- 
eral Sherman, leaving 
Thomas to deal with 
Hood, had begun his 
march through the 
State of Georgia. Sat- 
isfied that the war 
was practically de- 
cided in the South- 
west, he proposed to 
march to the sea near 
Savannah, and thence 
through the Confed- 
eracy to the position 
of General Grant's 
army. This move- 
ment would compel 
the Confederates to 
mass their forces in 
his front, and would 
confine the decisive 
operations of the war 
to the country be- 
tween his own and 
Grant's armies, be- 
tween which it was 
believed the Southern 
forces could be crush- 
ed. Everything being 
in readiness, Sherman 



fire to Atlanta. On the fourteenth of No- 
vember he set out on his " March to the Sea," 




MAP SHOWING THE CITY OF MOBILE AND ITS DEFENCES. 



cut loose from his 
communications with Chattanooga and set 



at the head of a splendid army of sixty- 
thousand men. He ravaged the country as 



766 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



he went, leaving behind him a broad belt of 
desolation, sixty miles in width and three 
hundred in length. 

The Confederates had not sufficient force 
to offer serious opposition to his march, and 




COMMODORE DAVID G. FARRAGUT 

in about four weeks he reached the coast 
near the mouth of the Savannah River. On 
the thirteenth of December he stormed and 
captured Fort McAllister, which commanded 
that river. The city of Savannah was thus 



left at Sherman's mercy, and was occupied 
by his army on the twenty-second of Decem- 
ber. By this successful march to the sea, 
General Sherman had not only gotten his 
army in a position to co-operate with Grant 

in the final struggle 
of the war, but had 
struck terror to the 
South. The most 
hopeful Confeder- 
ate now saw that 
the triumph of the 
Union cause was 
inevitable and close 
at hand. 

During the year 
important opera- 
tions had been un- 
dertaken by the 
Federal forces on- 
the coast. In July,, 
a powerful fleet un- 
der Admiral Far- 
ragut, accompanied 
by a strong force of 
troops under Gen- 
eral Granger, was 
sent against Mo- 
bile. This city was 
one of the principal 
ports of the Con- 
federacy and was- 
strongly fortified. 
The entrance to the 
bay was command- 
ed by Forts Mor- 
gan and Gaines, 
two powerful works 
built before the war, 
and a number of batteries and a Confederate 
fleet under Admiral Buchanan — who had 
commanded the "Virginia" in her fight with 
the "Monitor" — lay beyond the forts ready 
to contest the possession of the bay. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



7^7 



On the fifthof August Farragut passed the I employed during the war was assembled in 
forts with his fleet with the loss of but one | Hampton Roads under Admiral Porter. A 
iron-clad, and entered 
Mobile Bay. He im- 
mediately attacked the 
Confederate fleet, the 
flag-ship of which was 
a powerful iron-clad 
ram — the " Tennes- 
see." After one of 
the most desperate 
fights in naval annals, 
the entire fleet was 
destroyed or captured 
by the Union vessels. 
Fort Powell was evac- 
uated and blown up 
by its garrison on the 
same day. On the 
seventh of August 
Fort Gaines surren- 
dered to General 
Granger, and on the 
twenty-third Fort 
Morgan also capitul- 
ated. These successes 
made the Federal 
forces masters of Mo- 
bile Bay, and closed 
the port to blockade- 
runners ; but the city, 
which was strongly 
fortified, was not taken 
until the next year. 

Wilmington, on the 
Cape Fear River, was 
now the only port in 
the Confederacy re- 
maining open to block- 
ade runners. It was 
defended by Fort 
Fisher, an unusually 




CAPE FEAR RIVER AND APPROACHES TO WILMINGTON, N. C. 



formidable work near the mouth of the Cape 
Fear. A larger fleet than had yet been 



force of eight thousand troops under General 
Butler was embarked, and the expeditioa 




768 



BOAi Ui' iilL •• L'LLkHOUND " RESCUING CAPTAIN SEMMES. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



769 



sailed to the Cape Fear. Fort Fisher was 
subjected to a vigorous bombardment, which 
was begun on the twenty-fourth of Decem- 
ber, and the troops were landed ; but at the 
last moment General Buder decided that the 
fort was too strong to be assaulted, and the 
expedition returned to Hampton Roads. 



Mobile in August of that year. In January, 
1863, she ran the blockade, and in three 
months captured and destroyed fifteen mer- 
chant vessels. She was at length seized in 
the harbor of Bahia, in Brazil, by a Federal 
man-of-war, and taken to Hampton Roads. 
The Brazilian Government, resenting this 




SINKING OF THE " ALABAMA " BY THE " KEARSARGE 



Since the opening of the war the Confed- 
erate cruisers had nearly driven the commerce 
of the Northern States from the ocean. 
These vessels were built in England, and 
were usually manned by crews of English 
seamen under Confederate naval officers. 
One of these, the " Florida," put to sea in the 
summer of 1862, and succeeded in reaching 
49 



breach of its neutrality, demanded the release 
of the " Florida," but while the negotiations 
were in progress, she was sunk in Hampton 
Roads by a collision with another vessel. 

The most famous of all the Confederate 
cruisers, was the "Alabama." She was built 
at Liverpool, and was suffered to go to sea 
in spite of the protest of the American 



770 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



minister at London. She was commanded by- 
Captain Raphael Semmes, and during her 
long career, captured sixty-five merchant 
vessels, and destroyed over ten millions of 
dollars worth of property. During her entire 
career, she never entered a Confederate port. 
In the summer of 1864, she put into the 
harbor of Cherbourg, in France, and was 
blockaded there by the United States war 
steamer, " Kearsarge," Captain Winslow. 
The French government ordered the "Ala- 
bama " to leave Cherbourg, and she went to 
sea on the nineteenth of June. She was at 
once attacked by the " Kearsarge," and was 
sunk by the guns of that steamer, after an 




RAPHAEL SEMMES. 

engagement of an hour and a quarter. 
Semmes was saved from drowning by the 
English yacht; " Deerhound," that had wit- 
nessed the battle and was set ashore. Tiie 
destruction of the "Alabama" was hailed 
with delight throughout the North. 

In the fall of 1864, the presidential election 
was held in the States remaining faithful to the 
Union. The Republican party nominated 
President Lincoln for re-election, and Andrew 
Johnson, of Tennessee for the vice-presidency. 
The Democratic party supported General 
George B. McClellan for the presidency, and 
George H. Pendleton, of Ohio, for the vice- 
presidency. Mr. Lincoln received at the 



polls, 2,213,665 votes to 1,802,237 cast for 
McClellan ; and the electoral votes of every 
State, save those of New Jersey, Delaware, 
and Kentucky, were cast for him. 

On the thirty-first of October, 1864, Nevada 
was admitted into the Union as a separate 
State. 

The year 1864 closed brilliantly for the 
Union cause. Though the Confederates had 
gained a number of important victories dur- 
ing the year, they had, on the whole, steadily 
lost ground. Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, 
Alabama, Mississippi and Florida, were over- 
run by the Federal armies, and on the coast 
there was not a single port remaining open 
to the Confederacy save that of Wilmington, 
which was blockaded by a powerful fleet. 

A Million Union Troops. 

It was evident that the coming spring cam- 
paign would end the war. The Federal forces 
had been increased to the enormous total of 
one million of men. The Confederates could 
bring into the field scarcely two hundred 
thousand men, and for these it was difficult 
to find subsistence. The vicious financial 
system adopted by the Confederate Govern- 
ment had run its appointed course, and the 
notes of the Confederate Treasury were worth 
scarcely three or four cents on the dollar. 

The year 1865 opened with an effort to 
secure the return of peace without further 
bloodshed. In January Mr. F. P. Blair, Sr., 
came from Washington to Richmond, and on 
his own responsibility proposed to the Con- 
federate Government the appointment of 
commissioners to negotiate with the Federal 
Government for the close of the war. The 
following commissioners were appointed by 
the Confederate Government : Alexander H. 
Stephens, Vice-President of the Confederate 
States; R. M. T. Hunter, Senator from Vir- 
ginia in the Confederate Congress, and John 
A. Campbell, Assistant Secretary of War. 




PORTRAITS OF PROMINENT FEDERAL GENERALS. 



771 



772 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



They proceeded to City Point under a safe 
conduct from General Grant, and were con- 
veyed from that place to Hampton Roads in 
a Government steamer. On the third of 
February President Lincoln and Secretary 
Seward having reached Hampton Roads, an 




MAJOR-GENERAL J. M. SCHOFIELD 

informal conference was held between the 
President and the commissioners. The Presi- 
dent refused to entertain any propositions 
which were not based upon the unconditional 
submission of the Southern States to the 
authority of the Union, and as the commis- 
sioners had no authority from their govern- 



ment to enter into any such arrangement the 
conference accomplished nothing. 

In the meantime, however, Admiral Porter, 
undaunted by the failure of Butler to take 
Fort Fisher, had remained off the fort with 
his fleet and had asked for troops to renew 
the attempt. The same 
force that Butler had 
commanded, with fifteen 
hundred additional men, 
was placed under Gen- 
eral Terry's command 
and ordered to join Por- 
ter. This force arrived 
off Fort Fisher on the 
twelfth of January, and 
on the morning of the 
thirteenth accomplished 
its landing with success. 
A terrible fire was rained 
upon the fort by the fleet 
during the thirteenth and 
fourteenth, and on the 
fourteenth a daring re- 
tonnoissance of the 
Union force revealed the 
fact that the fort had 
been severely damaged 
by this bombardment. 
The trenches of the 
Union army were pushed 
rapidly through the sand 
to within two hundred 
yards of Fort Fisher in 
order to attract the atten- 
tion of the garrison, and 
on the fifteenth a feint was 
made by a force of sailors and marines from 
the fleet in this direction. At the same time 
the troops under General Terry stormed the 
fort from the land side, and after a hard hand- 
to-hand struggle of about five hours, during 
which each traverse was carried in succession 
by a separate fight, Fort Fisher was captured* 




PORTRAITS OF FEDERAL CAVALRY COMMANDERS. 



773 



774 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



On the sixteenth and seventeenth the Con- 
federates blew up their other works at the 
mouth of the Cape Fear and retreated 
towards Wilmington. The mouth of the 
river was now in the possession of the Fed- 
eral forces, and the last port of the South was 
closed. A number of blockade runners, igno- 
rant of the capture, ran into the river andfell 
into the hands of the victors. Later in the 
month, General J. M. Schofield was placed 
in command of the department of North 
Carolina, and on the twenty-second of Feb- 
ruary occupied the city of Wilmington, North 
Carolina, with his troops. 




INTERIOR OF FORT STEADMAN. 

Sherman, after the capture of Savannah, 
allowed his army a month's rest on the coast, 
and towards the end of January moved 
northward through South Carolina towards 
Virginia. His force was sixty thousand 
strong and moved in four columns, covering 
a front of fifty miles. His route was marked 
by the same desolation he had spread through 
Georgia. The roads were in a horrible con- 
dition, and in many places the men were 
forced to wade through the icy waters up to 
the armpits. Still he pressed on right into 
the heart of the Confederacy. On the seven- 
teenth of February he reached Columbia, 
South Carolina, having destroyed the rail- 
road leading north from Charleston. 



General Hardee, commanding the Con- 
federate forces at Charleston, apprehensive 
of being shut up in that city, which was 
utterly unprepared for a siege, evacuated 
Charleston and its defences on the seven- 
teenth of February and retreated northward 
to join General Johnston in North Carolina. 
The next day Charleston was occupied by 
the Federal forces. Fort Sumter was also 
taken possession of at the same time. The 
fort was a mass of ruins; the city was not 
much better off It had suffered severely 
from the bombardment to which it had been 
subjected since the fall of Fort Wagner, and 
the Confederates upon their withdrawal 
had set fire to a considerable part of it. 

From Columbia, Sherman moved to- 
wards Fayetteville, North Carolina, driv- 
incr back the Confederate forces that 
resisted his progress, and entered that 
place on the twelfth of March. From 
Fayetteville he moved towards Golds- 
borough. 
' The Confederate government, in the 
emergency to which it was reduced, was 
obliged to reappoint General Joseph E. 
Johnston to the command of the force 
assembling in Sherman's front. Johns- 
ton succeeded in collecting about thirty-five 
thousand troops,with which he attacked Sher- 
man at Averasborough on the sixteenth of 
March, and again at Bentonville on the nine- 
teenth. The Confederates fought with their 
old enthusiasm in these encounters, but were 
unable to stay the progress of the Federal 
army, and on the twenty-third of March 
Sherman occupied Goldsborough. Johnston 
withdrew towards Raleigh. At Goldsborough 
Sherman was joined by the forces of Gen- 
erals Schofield and Terry, which had come 
up from the coast. 

The armies of Grant and Lee had lain con- 
fronting each other during the winter. 
General Lee had little hope of maintaining 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



775 



his position after the opening of hostilities. 
His army was growing weaker from sickness 
and desertion, and no 
more men could be 
obtained. The Con- 
federate Congress 
made a feeble effort 
during the winter to 
enlist negro troops in 
its service, but with 
singular recklessness 
refused to offer the 
boon of freedom to 
such of the blacks as 
would take up arms. 
That body believed 
that the negroes 
would fight for their 
own enslavement. 

Early having been 
driven out of the val- 
ley, General Sheridan 
was ordered to start 
from Winchester with 
a column often thou- 
sand cavalry, and cut 
the communications 
of Lee's army by rail- 
road and telegraph 
north and east of Rich- 
mond. He left Win- 
chester on the twenty- 
seventh of February, 
and defeating Early's 
force at Waynesbor- 
ough, broke the Vir- 
ginia Central Railroad 
at that point and 
moved to Charlottes- 
ville, which surrend- 
ered to him. He then 
divided his force into 



destroyed the railroad between Charlottes- 
ville and Lynchburg for about forty miles, 




POSITIONS OF THE ARMIES NEAR PETERSBURG, VA. 



two columns and resumed his "ride" on 
the sixth of March. He most thoroughly 



and the canal between Richmond and 
Lynchburg shared the same fate for a 



77^ 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



considerable distance. Being unable to cross 
the James above Richmond on account of 
the high water, he moved around the north 
of Richmond, crossed the river at Deep 
Bottom and joined Grant before Petersburg 
on the twenty-sixth of March. He had 
utterly laid waste the country along his 
route. The arrival of this splendid force of 
cavalry was of the greatest service to Grant, 
as we shall see. 

The situation of General Lee's army was 




GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE. 

growmg more critical every day. He had 
less than forty thousand troops. He was 
fully convinced of the necessity of abandon- 
ing Richmond and Petersburg, and was anx- 
ious to do so at once, and unite his army 
with that of General Johnston and occupy a 
new position in the interior of the South. In 
order to secure the withdrawal of his army, 
he determined to make a vigorous attack 
upon Grant's right, hoping to compel him, in 
order to help his right, to draw back his left 
wing, which was in dangerous proximity to 



the road by which Lee wished to retreat- 
Could he succeed in this effort, he meant to 
evacuate his position at Petersburg andretire 
towards Danville, where he hoped to unite 
with General Johnston. 

On the twenty-fifth of March, he made a 
heavy attack upon Fort Steadman, on the 
right of Grant's line, and captured it. The 
Federal forces rallied, however, and drove 
the Confederates from the captured works 
back to their own line, inflicting upon them. 
a loss of three thousand men. Lee had 
now no alternative but to await the move- 
ments of General Grant, as he could not 
afford to make the sacrifice of men which 
a renewal of his efforts would require of 
him. 

General Grant lost no time in taking 
the field. By the last of March, his army, 
numbering about one hundred and seventy 
thousand men, including Sheridan's mag- 
nificent cavalry division, was in readiness- 
to begin the campaign. On the twenty- 
ninth of March, the advance of the Federal 
army was begun. Leaving the bulk of his 
army before Petersburg, Grant sent a col- 
umn of twenty-five thousand men to turn 
the Confederate right and seize the South- 
side railroad, Lee's only means of com- 
munication with Johnston's army and the 
country in his rear. By the morning of the 
thirtieth, the Federal left had gotten fairly 
to the right of the Confederates. 

On the thirtieth, a heavy storm prevented 
a further advance, and Lee took advantage of 
the delay to reinforce his right wing with all 
the troops he could spare. On the thirty- 
first, he attempted to drive back the Federal 
left, but without success. While this battle 
was going on, Sheridan swung around the 
Confederate right and seized the important 
position of Five Forks. Lee then sent Pick- 
ett's and Johnston's divisions to recover this 
point, and they drove off the cavalry, and. 




m 



G3 






^^ 






ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



177 



occupied Five Forks at night-fall on the 
thirty-first. Being joined by the Fifth corps, 
Sheridan attacked the Confederates on the 
morning of the first of April, and defeated 
them after a determined encounter, taking 
over five thousand prisoners. 

As soon as Sheridan had secured Five 
Forks, Grant opened a heavy artillery fire 
upon the lines of Petersburg along his whole 
front, and continued the bombardment 
through the night. On the morning of the 
second of April he made a determined attack 
upon Lee's line and broke 
it at several points. Gen- 
eral Lee was now forced 
to assume a new and 
shorter line immediately 
around Petersburg. The 
Federal army made a 
vigorous effort to force 
its way into the city, but 
was unsuccessful. 

The fate of Petersburg 
was now decided. It was 
impossible to hold it 
longer. On the night of 
the second of April Gen- 
eral Lee withdrew his 
army from Richmond 
and Petersburg and re- 
treated in the direction 
of Amelia Court-house. 
His intention was to move towards Danville 
and endeavor to join Johnston. His retreat 
was discovered on the morning of the third of 
April, and the Federal army, leaving a small 
force to occupy Petersburg, set off in pursuit, 
following the line qf the Southside Railroad. 

On the morning of the third the withdrawal 
of the Confederates from the lines of Rich- 
mond was discovered by General Weitzel 
commanding the Federal forces on the north 
side of the James. He at once advanced and 
occupied the city of Richmond, a large part 



of which was in flames as he entered it, hav- 
ing been set on fire by the Confederates upon 
their evacuation of it. Thus fell the Confed- 
erate capital after four long years of bloody 
war for its possession. 

Upon reaching Amelia Court-house Gen- 
eral Lee found that the supplies he had 
ordered to be sent there from Danville were 
not to be had. The trains sent from Danville 
by his instructions had been ordered to Rich- 
mond to remove the property of the Confed- 
erate government, and had not been allowed 




THE LAST CAVALRY CHARGE OF THE WAR. 

to unload their stores at Amelia Court-house. 
This was a terrible blow to Lee, who was now 
unable to furnish food to his troops, who had 
eaten nothing since the coinmencement of 
the retreat. Parties were sent into the sur- 
rounding country to obtain supplies, and this 
consumed the whole of the fourth and fifth of 
April, which Lee had hoped to spend in 
pushing on beyond his pursuers. 

The delay enabled Sheridan, with eighteen 
thousand mounted men, to seize the Confed- 
erate line of retreat at Jetersville. This 



yyZ 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



movement put an end to Lee's hope of reach- 
ing Danville and joining Johnston. A battle 
was impossible, for Sheridan had a force nearly 
equal to his own, and Grant was hurrying on 
with the rest of the Federal army. General 
Lee therefore turned off and retreated towards 
Farmville, hoping to be able to reach Lynch- 
burg, but Sheridan, after passing Farmville, 
pushed forward again, and by a forced march 
reached Appomattox Station, on the South- 
side Railroad, on the night of the eighth, and 
planted his force squarely across the Confed- 
erate line of retreat. 

Surrender of General Lee. 

The next morning Lee, when near Appo- 
mattox Court-house, discovered this obstacle 
in his way, and about the same time Sheridan 
was joined by the Army of the James, under 
General Ord, while the Army of the Poto- 
mac, under General Meade, was closing in 
fast upon Lee's rear. General Lee had now 
but eight thousand men with arms in their 
hands. The bulk of his forces, being too 
much broken down by fatigue and hunger 
to keep their places in their ranks, accompa- 
nied the regiments in a disorganized mass. 
As soon as he discovered Sheridan in his 
front, Lee attempted to cut his way through 
his lines, but failing in this effort, and being 
convinced that further resistance would 
merely be a useless sacrifice of his men, he 
asked for a suspension of hostilities, and 
went to meet General Grant. 

The two commanders met at a house near 
Appomattox Court-house, and after a brief 
interview arranged the terms of the surren- 
der. General Grant treated the beaten army 
with great liberality. The hungry Confed- 
erates were fed by the victors, and after 
laying down their arms were permitted to 
return to their homes. In order that the 
men might betake themselves as soon as 
possible to the cultivation of the soil, and so 



avoid the suffering which the failure of the 
harvest would entail upon the South, Gen- 
eral Grant released all captured horses which 
were identified as the property of the sol- 
diers surrendering them. 

The terms of the surrender were arranged 
on the ninth of April, On the twelfth the 
Army of Northern Virginia formed in divis- 
ions for the last time, and marching to a des- 
ignated spot near Appomattox Court-house, 
laid down its arms, and disbanded. About 
seventy-five hundred men with arms, and 
about eighteen thousand unarmed strag- 
glers, took part in the surrender. The Fed- 
eral troops treated their vanquished oppo- 
nents with true soldierly kindness, and care- 
fully refrained from everything which might 
seem to insult the valor that had won their 
earnest admiration. 

Terms of Surrender. 
The following is a detailed account of the 
correspondence which passed between Gen- 
erals Grant and Lee, and a full statement of 
the terms upon which the Confederate Gen- 
eral surrendered his army. On the evening 
of April 7th Lee received Grant's first letter. 

" April 7th, 1865. 

" General : The result of the last week must con- 
vince you of the hopelessness of further resistance 
on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia in this 
struggle. I feel that it is so, and regard it as my 
duty to shift from myself the responsibility of any 
further effusion of blood, by asking of you the sur- 
render of that portion of the Confederate States 
army known as the Army of Northern Virginia. 

" U. S. GRANT, Lieut.-General. 

" General R. E. Lee." 



To this letter Lee wrote 
answer ; but it was not until 



an immediate 
the following 
morning that it reached Grant at Farmville. 
It was couched in these words : 

" April 7th, 1865. 
"General: I have received your note of this" 
date. Though not entertaining the opinion you ex- 
press of the hopelessness of further resistance on the 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



779 



part of the Army of Northern Virginia, I reciprocate 
your desire*to avoid useless effusion of blood, and, 
therefore, before considering your proposition, ask 
the terms you will offer, on condition of its surren- 
der. " R. E. LEE, General. 
" Lieut.-General U. S. Grant." 

On the instant Grant replied as follows : 

'•April 8th, 1865. 

' ' General : Your note of last evening, in reply to 
mine of the same date, asking the condition on 
which I will accept the surrender of the Army of 
Northern Virginia, is just received. In reply, I 
would say that peace being my first desire, there is 
but one condition that I insist upon, viz. : That the 
men surrendered shall be disqualified for taking up 
arms against the government of the United States 
until properly exchanged. I will meet you, or des- 
ignate officers to meet any officers you may name 
for the same purpose, at any point agreeable to you, 
for the purpose of arranging definitely, the terms 
upon which the surrender of the Army of Northern 
Virginia will be received. 

" U. S. GRANT, Lieut.- General. 

" General R. E. Lee." 

Lee was in a strongly intrenched position, 
a few miles to the north of the Appomattox. 
As soon as he indited his reply to Grant's 
first message he resumed his retreat under 
cover of the darkness ; and so quietly was it 
conducted that Humphreys was ignorant of 
the fact until morning, when he was prepared 
to renew the attack. Lee's skillful general- 
ship was again conspicuously revealed. Ever 
vigilant, ever fertile in resource, and ever 
active, he had again put miles between him- 
self and his pursuers. 

Lee's Hurried Retreat. 

The fact that Lee had retreated durmgthe 
night was at once made known to Grant, who 
immediately gave orders for the renewal of 
the pursuit. The Second and Sixth corps, 
under the immediate direction of Meade, who 
was accompanied by the General-in-chief, 
were pushed forward with all possible haste 
along the north bank of the Appomattox. 
Sheridan meanwhile had made excellent use 



both of his troopers and of his time. Lee 
was pressing along that gradually narrowing 
neck of land which lies between the head- 
waters of the Appomattox and the affluents 
of the James. 

It was of the utmost importance that Sheri- 
dan should be able to interpose his troops 
between Lee's army and Lynchburg. If he 
could close the outlet in the direction of that 
city it would be all over with Lee, pursued 
closely as he was by the Second and Sixth 
corps, under the direction of Meade and the 
General-in-chief. This was precisely what 
Sheridan was aiming at, and what, within a 
few hours, he actually did accomplish. Hav- 
ing learned from one of his scouts early on 
the morning of the eighth that four trains of 
cars with supplies for Lee's army were at 
Appomattox Station, he at once notified Mer- 
ritt and Crook, and briskly pushed the whole 
command towards that point. 

Desperate Attempt to Escape. 

Lee was not ignorant of the extreme peril 
of his situation; but he kept pressing eagerly 
forward, still clinging to the skirts of hope, 
and, in spite of almost irresistible evidence to 
the contrary, indulging the thought that he 
might yet find refuge among the ranges of the 
Blue Ridge, beyond Lynchburg. In these 
circumstances he received Grant's second let- 
ter, and replied as follows : 

" April 8th, 1865. 
"General: I received at a late hour your note 
of to-day. In mine of yesterday, I did not intend to 
propose the surrender of the Army of Northern Vir- 
ginia, but to ask the terms of your proposition. To 
be frank, I do not think the emergency has arisen 
to call for the surrender of this army ; but as the res- 
toration of peace should be the sole object of all, I 
desire to know whether your proposals would tend 
to that end. I cannot, therefore, meet you with a 
view to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia; 
but so far as your proposition may affect the Confed- 
erate States forces under my command, and tend to 
the restoration of peace, I should be pleased to meet 



78o 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



you at ten A. m., to-morrow, on the old stage-road 
to Richmond, between the picket-lines of the two 
armies. 

" R. E. LEE, General. 

" Lieut.-General U. S. Grant." 

This note was received by Grant about 
midnight ; and he replied next morning in 
the following terms : 

"April 8th, 1865. 

" General : Your note of yesterday is received. 




GENERAL JOHN 



GORDON. 



As I have no authority to treat on the subject of 
peace, the meeting proposed for ten A. M., to-day, 
could lead to no good. I will state, however. Gen- 
eral, that I am equally anxious for peace with your- 
self; and the whole North entertain the same feel- 
ing. The terms upon which peace can be had are 
well understood. By the South laying down their 
arms they will hasten that most desirable event, 
save thousands of human lives, and hundreds of 
millions of property not yet destroyed. Sincerely 
hoping that all our difficulties may be settled with- 



out the loss of another life, I subscribe «iyself, 

" U. S. GRANT, Lieutenatit-General. 
" General R. E. Lee." 

As soon as he had finished this letter 
Grant left Meade in charge of the Second 
and Sixth corps and hurried on to join 
Sheridan and Griffin. While the letter was 
on its way, and before the General-in-chief 
had joined the one or the other, further 
parley had become unnecessary. Sheridan 
had already settled the question. On the 
morning of the eighth, after a forced march 
of about thirty miles, his advance, under 
Custer, had reached Appomattox Station,, 
about four miles to the south of Appomat- 
tox Court House. Lee's vanguard had just 
arrived with four trains of cars, laden with 

supplies. 

Custer Makes a Dash. 

Custer, with lightning-like rapidity,, 
dashed upon the rear of the trains, and cap- 
tured them. Supported by Devin, who had 
come up, he then rushed with fierce energy 
on the vanguard, and drove it back to Ap- 
pomattox Court House, near which was 
the main body of Lee's army. Twenty-five 
guns, a hospital train, a large number of ad- 
ditional wagons, with many prisoners, were 
captured by the National cavalry. Sheridan, 
hurrying forward with the remainder of his 
command, flung himself across the line of 
Lee's retreat, with the determination of hold- 
ing his ground at any and every risk until the 
morning, when, he knew, he would be joined 
by Ord, and the Army of the James, and by 
Griffin Avith the Fifth corps. He knew also 
that by that time, Meade, with the Second 
and Sixth corps, would be well forward and 
able to fall with effect on the Confederate rear. 
Such was the situation of affairs on the 
night of the eighth. Lee was completely cut 
off from his own line of retreat. Brave and 
resolute to the last, and believing that he 
had nothing but cavalry in front of him, he 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



781 



decided to make an attempt, at least, to cut 
through Sheridan's lines. 

Early on the morning of the ninth Lee 
was ready to carry out his purpose. His 
heart, however, must have bled within him, 
when he looked around him, and beheld the 
wretched remnant of what was once the 
proud and invincible army of Northern Vir- 
ginia. It consisted of two thin lines — the 
one composed of what was left of Hill's, 
now Gordon's command, the other of the 
wreck of Longstreet's corps. Between these 
lines were the debris of the wagon-train, and 
some thousands of miserable 
creatures who were too weak to ,=^_ 

carry arms. Lee gave orders to 
Gordon to cut his way through, 
at all hazards. The charge was 
made with tremendous energy. 
Such, in truth, was the violence 
of the shock, and so persistent 
was the pressure, that Sheridan's 
men who had dismounted to 
resist the attack, were forced 
back. 

At this critical moment, Sher- 
idan, who had been to Appomat- 
tox Station for the purpose of 
hurrying forward Ord, arrived on 
the scene of action. Knowing well 
the purpose of the enemy, and keenly alive to 
the value of time, he directed his troopers to 
fall back gradually, but to continue to offer 
a firm and steady resistance, so as to allow 
Ord, with his infantry, to come up and form 
his lines. This done, they were to move to 
the right and mount. Sheridan's orders were 
admirably executed. As soon as the cavalry 
moved towards their own right, the Confed- 
erates beheld to their amazement, the glit- 
tering arms and serried ranks of the in- 
fantry. 

The unlooked-for vision had all the effect 
of a stunning and unexpected blow. The 



Confederates immediately discontinued their 
pressure, and began to give way. The Na- 
tional infantry were now pressing upon the 
confused and bewildered multitude. Sheridan 
had ridden round to the Confederate left 
flank ; his bugles had sounded the order to 
remount, and he was just about to fall with 
all his weight on the already disordered 
mass, when a flag of truce was presented to 
Custer who led the advance. Sheridan rode 
to Appomattox Court House, where he was 
met by General Gordon and General Wilcox. 
Gordon asked for a suspension of hostilities. 




THE McLEAN HOUSE. 



and informed Sheridan that Grant and Lee 
were, even now, making arrangements for the 
surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. 
There was no more fighting between the two 
great rival armies — the Army of the Potomac 
and the Army of Northern Virginia. 

On the morning of the ninth, a heavy fog 
enveloped the entire country around Appo- 
mattox Court House. Long before that fog 
dispersed, Lee, clad in a new gray uniform, 
might have been seen at a camp-fire with 
Mahone and Longstreet. Care and anxiety 
were written on each of their countenances. 
Longstreet, his arm in a sling, and a cigar in 



782 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



his mouth, sat on the trunk of a felled tree. 
Gordon had been sent on his mission. It 




SURRENDER OF GENERAL LEE. 



was agreed that if success were denied him 
there was no longer any chance of escape. 



Of Gordon's failure to penetrate the National 
lines, they were soon made aware. 

Lee mounted his 
horse. "General 
Longstreet," he said, 
"I leave you in charge ; 
I am going to hold a 
conference with Gen- 
eral Grant." He then 
rode off. On his way 
he received Grant's 
letter, before quoted. 
He replied immedi- 
ately : 

"April 9, 1865. 
"General: I received 
your note of this morning, 
on the picket-line, whither 
I had come to meet you, 
and ascertain definitely 
what terms were embrac- 
ed in your proposition of 
yesterday, with reference 
to the surrender of this 
army. I now ask an in- 
terview, in accordance 
with the offer contained 
in your letter of yesterday 
for that purpose. 

" R. E. LEE, General. 
" Lieut.-General 

U. S. Grant." 

To this Grant re- 
plied as follows : 

"April 9th, 1865. 
" General : Your note 
of this date is but this 
moment (i 1.50 A. M.) re- 
ceived. In consequence 
of my having passed from 
the Richmondand Lynch- 
burg road to the Farmville 
y and Lynchburg road, I am 
at this writing about four 
miles west of Walter's 
Church, and will push forward to the front for the 
purpose of meeting you. Notice sent to me on this 



784 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



road, where you wish the interview to take place, 
will meet me. 

" U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General. 
'• General R. E. Lee." 

The scene and the main features of the 
interview have been preserved for us by an 
eye-witness. It took place at the house of 
Mr. Wilmer McLean — a square brick build- 
ing surrounded with roses, violets and daffo- 
dils. Grant — with his slouched hat, dark 
blue frock-coat unbuttoned and covered with 
mud, gray pantaloons tucked in his soiled 
boots, and a dark waistcoat, and with nothing 
to indicate his rank, except the double row 
of brass buttons and the three silver stars — 
walked up to the house, accompanied by 
Ord, Sheridan and their respective staffs. 
Lee had already arrived ; and his blooded 
iron-gray horse, in charge of an orderly, was 
nibbling at the grass. Grant and two aids 
entered the house; the others who accom- 
panied him, sat down on the porch. Lee 
was standing beside a table, wearing a bright 
bluish-gray uniform, a military hat, with a 
gold cord, buckskin gauntlets, high riding 
boots, and the splendid dress-sword which 
had been presented to him by the State of 
Virginia. Tall and erect, he had a fine 
soldierly bearing. It was noticed that his 
hair was long and gray. He was attended 
only by Colonel Marshall, his chief of staff. 
On Grant's entrance the two shook hands, 
sat down and proceeded to business. 

Grant Delivers His Terms. 

As Lee made no special request. Grant at 
once wrote out his terms : 

" Appomattox Court House, \ 
April 9, 1865. ) 

"General: In accordance with the substance of 
my letter to you of the eighth instant, I propose to 
receive the surrender of the Army of Northern Vir- 
ginia on the following terms, to wit : Rolls of all the 
officers and men to be made in duplicate, one copy 
to be given to an officer designated by me, the other 



to be retained by such officers as you may designate. 
The officers to give their individual paroles not to 
take up arms against the Government of the United 
States until properly exchanged, and each company 
or regimental commander to sign a like parole for 
the men of his command. The arms, artillery and 
public property to be parked and stacked and turned 
over to the officers appointed by me to receivethem. 
This will not embrace the side-arms of the officers, 
nor their private horses or baggage. This done, 
each officer and man will be allowed to return to his 
home, not to be disturbed by United States authority 
so long as they observe their paroles and the laws 
in force where they may reside. 

" U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant- General. 
"General R. E. Lee." 

The following is Lee's letter of acceptance : 

" Headquarters Army of Northern ) 
Virginia, April 9, 1865. j 

"General: I have received your letter of this 
date, containing the terms of the surrender of the 
Army of Northern Virginia, as proposed by you. 
As they are substantially the same as those expressed 
in your letter of the eighth instant, they are accepted. 
I will proceed to designate the proper officers to 
carry the stipulations into effect. 

" R. E. LEE, General. 

" Lieut.-General U. S. Grant." 

The signatures had just been attached, 
when Lee, after a moment's reflection, said 
that he had forgotten one thing. Many of 
the cavalry and artillery horses belonged to 
the men who had charge of them. It was 
too late, however, to speak of that now. 

Grant replied, " I will instruct my paroling 
officers that all the enlisted men of your 
cavalry and artillery, who own horses, are to 
retain them, just as the officers do theirs. 
They will need them for their spring plough- 
ing, and other farm work." Lee seemed 
greatly pleased with Grant's prompt com- 
pliance with his only half-expressed wish. 
"General," he said earnestly, "there is nothing 
which you could have accomplished more 
for the good of the people or of the govern- 
ment." Grant's terms were in the last degree 
magnanimous and liberal. 




5° 



7as 



786 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



The news of the capture of Richmond and 
Petersburg and the surrender of Lee's army 
was received in the North with the greatest 
rejoicing. Bells were rung, cannon fired, 
and illuminations flashed from every town 
and village, fof it was understood that these 
great successes were decisive of the war. 

In the midst of these rejoicings occurred 



/^V, 



o-^\. 




"-^^^^^^^''^^^^^/^ 



THE GRAVE OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 

a terrible tragedy which plunged the country 
into mourning. President Lincoln, whose 
re-election we have related, entered upon his 
second term on the fourth of March, 1865, 
amid the congratulations of the country. 
On the evening of the fourteenth of April he 
attended a performance at Ford's Theatre, in 
the city of Washington. During the midst 
of the performance the report of a pistol 



rang through the house, and the next moment 
a man leaped from the President's box upon 
the stage, and waving a pistol over his head, 
shouted " Sic semper tyrannis'' (Thus always 
with tyrants), and disappeared behind the 
scenes. The cry was raised that the Presi- 
dent had been killed, and in the commotion' 
which ensued the assassin escaped. The 

murderer had en- 
tered the lobby of 
the theatre, and had 
fired from the door 
of the private box 
^ upon the unsuspic- 
ious President, 
who was sitting 
with his back to 
him. 

Mr. Lincoln fell 
heavily forward and 
never spoke again. 
He was conveyed 
to a house on the 
opposite side of the 
street, and the high- 
est skill was exert- 
ed to save him, but 
all in vain. He died 
on the morning of 
the fifteenth, sur- 
rounded by his fa- 
mily and the lead- 
ing men of the na- 
tion. Appropriate 
funeral services 
were held on the nineteenth, and the body 
of the martyred President was conveyed 
through the principal cities of the North 
and West to Springfield, Illinois, where it 
was buried. Along the entire route it was 
received with the evidences of the nation's 
grief. Cities were draped in mourning, and 
dense crowds poured out to greet the fun- 
eral cortege, and testify their love and sorrow 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



787 



for the dead man. Even in the South, 
which had made the election of Abraham 
Lincoln the occasion of the dissolution of 
the Union, the unaffected and manly virtues 
of this simply great man had conquered the 
people, who had come to regard him as their 
best and truest friend. 

His death was sincerely lamented there, 
and in the lamentation of the South, Abra- 
ham Lincoln had his proudest triumph. His 
death was a crushing misfortune to the whole 
country. He was the only man capable of 
carrying out a policy of generous concilia- 
tion towards the South, and he had resolved 
upon buch a course. He was sincerely 
desirous to heal the wounds of the war as 
soon as possible, and was strong enough to 
put down all opposition to his policy. His 
untimely death, as well as the manner of it, 
threw back the settlement of our national 
troubles fully five years. 

The Assassin Escapes. 

As he leaped from the President's box to 
the stage, the assassin's foot caught in an 
American flag with which the box was 
draped, and he fell heavily, breaking his leg. 
He managed to escape, however. It was 
immediately ascertained that the assassin was 
John Wilkes Booth, a younger son of the 
famous actor Junius Brutus Booth. Almost 
at the same time that the President was shot, 
another assassin, one Payne, alias Powell, 
entered the residence of Secretary Seward. 
Proceeding to the chamber where the Secre- 
tary was confined to a sick bed, he attacked 
the two attendants of the invalid and his son, 
Frederick W. Seward, and injured them 
severely, and then attempted to cut Mr. 
Seward's throat. He succeeded in gashing 
the face of his intended victim, but fled 
before further harm could be done. 

Booth, who was most probably insane, had 
drawn quite a number of persons into a con- 



spiracy, which had for its object the murder 
of the President and Vice-President, Secre- 
taries Seward and Stanton, and Chief Justice 
Chase. The plot failed through unexpected 
movements of some of the intended victims 
and the cowardice of some of the conspirators. 
Booth and a young man named Harold fled 
into lower Maryland, from which they 
crossed the Potomac into Virginia. They 
were pursued by the government detectives 
and a squadron of cavalry, and were tracked 
to a barn in Caroline County, Virginia, 
between Bowling Green and Port Royal. 

Booth Shot by Sergeant Corbett. 

Here they were surrounded on the twenty- 
sixth of April. Harold surrendered himself, 
but Booth, refusing to yield, was shot by 
Sergeant Boston Corbett, and died a few 
hours later, after suffering intensely. His 
accomplices were arrested, and were brought 
to trial before a military commission at 
Washington. Payne or Powell, Atzerot, 
Harold, and Mrs. Surratt were condemned 
to death, and were hanged on the seventh of 
July, 1865, for complicity in the plot. Dr. 
Mudd, O'Laughlin and Arnold were im- 
prisoned in the Dry Tortugas for life, and 
Spangler for six years. What Booth expected 
to accomplish by his horrible deed yet 
remains a mystery. It is now generally 
believed that he was insane ; rendered so 
perhaps by his dissipated habits — and in this 
state of mind had conceived the idea that 
Mr. Lincoln was a tyrant, and as such ought 
to be put to death. He had no accomplices 
in the South, and his bloody deed was 
regarded with horror by the southern people. 

We must now return to Sherman's army, 
which we left resting at Goldsboro'. John- 
ston's army was in the vicinity of Raleigh, 
and after the fall of Richmond was joined by 
Mr. Davis and the various officers of the 
Confederate government. On the tenth of 



788 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



April Sherman advanced from Goldsboro' 
towards Johnston's position, and steadily 
pressed the Confederate army back. On the 
thirteenth Sherman entered Raleigh. Being 
convinced that further resistance was hope- 
less, and having learned of the surrender of 
General Lee's army, General Johnston now 



States of the Confederacy to their lost places 
in the Union, it was disapproved by the 
Federal government, and . Sherman was 
ordered to resume hostilities. General John- 
ston was at once notified by General Sherman 
of this order, and on the twenty-sixth of 
April entered into an agreement with him by 




INTERVIEW BETWEEN GENERALS SHERMAN AND JOHNSTON. 



opened negotiations with General Sherman 
for the surrender of his army to the Federal 
commander. 

The result of these negotiations was an 
agreement signed by the two commanders 
on the eighteenth of April. As this agree- 
ment provided for the restoration of the 



which he surrendered to General Sherman 
all the Confederate forces under his command, 
on terms similar to those granted to General 
Lee by General Grant. 

The example of Generals Lee and John- 
ston was followed by the other Confederate 
commanders throughout the South. The 



ADMINISTRATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



789 



last to surrender was General E. Kirby 
Smith, in Texas, on the twenty-sixth of 
May. On the twenry-ninth of May Presi- 
dent Johnson issued a proclamation announc- 
ing the close of the war, and offering amnesty 
to all who had participated in it on the Con- 
federate side, with the exception of fourteen 
specified classes. 

Upon the surrender of Johnston's army, 
Mr, Davis and the members of his former 
cabinet endeavored to make their way to the 
coast of Florida, from which they hoped to 
be able to reach the West Indies. Some of 



them succeeded in doing so, but Mr. Davis 
was captured at Irwinsville, Georgia, on the 
tenth of May, and was sent as a prisoner to 
Fortress Monroe, where he was held in con- 
finement until May, 1867. 

The civil war was over. It had cost the 
country one million men in the killed and 
crippled for life of the two armies. In money 
the North and South had expended proba- 
bly the enormous sum of ;$ 5, 000 ,000,000. 
The exact amount will never be known as 
the Confederate debt perished with the gov- 
ernment which created it. 




CHAPTER XLIII 
The Administration of Andrew Johnson 

The New President — Return of the Army to Civil Life — The Public Debt — The Reconstruction Question — Action of the 
President — He Declares the Southern States Readmitted into the Union — The Fifteenth Amendment — Meeting of 
Congress — The President's Acts Annulled — Reconstruction Policy of Congress — The Fourteenth Amendment — The 
Freedman's Bureau and Civil Rights Bills — The Tenure of Office Act — Admission of Nebraska into the Union — The 
Southern States Organized as Military Districts — Admission of Southern States into the Union — The Fourteenth 
Amendment Ratified — President Johnson's Quarrel with Secretary Stanton — Impeachment of the President — His 
Acquital — Release of Jefferson Davis — Indian War — The French in Mexico — Fall of the Mexican Empire — Laying 
of the Atlantic Telegraph — Purchase of Alaska — Naturalization Treaty with Germany — Treaty with China — Death of 
General Scott — Death of ex-President Buchanan — General Grant Elected President — The Fifteenth Amendment. 



UPON the death of Mr. Lincoln, 
Andrew Johnson, the vice-Pres- 
ident, by the terms of the Consti- 
tution, became President of the 
United States. He took the oath of office 
on the fifteenth of April, and at once entered 
upon the discharge of his duties. His first 
act was to retain all the members of the 
cabinet appointed by Mr. Lincoln. 

Mr. Johnson was a native of North Caro- 
lina, having been born in Raleigh on the 
twenty-ninth of December, 1808. At the 
age of ten he was bound as an apprentice to 
a tailor of that city. He was at this time 
unable to read or write. Some years later, 
being determined to acquire an education, he 
learned the alphabet from a fellow- workman, 
and a friend taught him spelling. He was 
soon able to read, and pursued his studies 
steadily, working ten or twelve hours a day 
at his trade, and studying two or three more. 
In 1826 he removed to Greenville, Tennes- 
see, carrying with him his mother, who was 
dependent upon him for support. 

Upon attaining manhood he married, and 
continued his studies under the direction of 
his wife, supporting his family in the mean- 
time by his trade. He was subsequently 
chosen alderman of his town, and with this 
■election entered upon his political career. 

790 



Studing law he abandoned tailoring, and 
devoted himself to legal pursuits and politics. 
He was succesively chosen mayor, member 
of the legislature, presidential elector, and 
State senator. He was twice elected gover- 
nor of Tennessee, and three times a senator of 
the United States from that State. Upon the 
seccession of Tennessee from the Union he 
refused to relinquish his seat in the Senate, 
and remained faithful. to the cause of the 
Union throughout the war, wining consider- 
able reputation during the struggle by his 
services in behalf of the national cause. 

He was an earnest, honest-hearted man, 
who sincerely desired to do his duty to the 
country. His mistakes were due to his tem- 
perament, and proceeded from no desire to 
serve his own interests or those of any party. 
In his public life he was incorruptible. A 
man of ardent nature, strong convictions, 
and indomitable will, it was not possible that 
he should avoid errors, or fail to stir up a 
warm and determined opposition to his policy. 

The first duty devolving upon the new 
administration was the disbanding of the 
army, which at the close of the war numbered 
over a million of men. It was prophesied 
by foreign nations, and feared by many per- 
sons at home, that the sudden return of such 
a large body of men to the pursuits of civil 



ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 



791 



life would be attended with serious evils, but 
both the Union and the Confederate soldiers 
went back quietly and readily to their old 
avocations. Thus did these citizen-soldiers 
give to the world a splendid exhibition of 
the triumph of law and order in a free 
country, and a proof 
of the stability of our 
institutions. 

Two questions — 
both difficult and de- 
licate — presented 
themselves for settle- 
ment by the govern- 
ment. In June, 1865, 
the war debt amount- 
ed to ;g2,7oo,ooo,ooo. 
The interest on this 
sum was ^133 ,000,000, 
and was nearly all pay- 



able in gold. The gov- 
ernment was called 
upon to raise the latter 
amount to pay the 
interest on its bonds, 
and at the same time 
to take measures to 
strengthen the confi- 
dence of the bond- 
holders in the security 
of their investments. 
The latter object was 
accomplished by a 
solemn resolution of 
the House of Repre- 
sentatives, adopted 
with but one dissent- 
ing voice on the fifth 

of December, 1865, pledging the faith of the 
nation to the payment of the public debt, 
"principal and interest." 

In order to provide for the immediate 
wants of the government Congress levied 
additional duties on imported articles, and 



imposed taxes upon manufactured articles, 
incomes, etc. These burdensome imposts 
were cheerfully submitted to by the people, 
and a revenue of over ;^300,ooo,ooo was 
raised, providing not only for the payment 
of the interest on the debt, and of the current 




ANDREW JOHNSON. 

expenses of the government, but also leaving 
a large surplus, which was applied to the 
reduction of the national debt. In the year 
1866, "before all the extra troops called out 
by the war had been discharged, the debt 
had been diminished more than thirty-one 



792 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



millions of dollars " — a striking proof of the 
ability as well as the willingness of the nation 
to discharge its financial obligations. During 
the remainder of Mr. Johnson's term this 
policy was faithfully adhered to under the 
able guidance of Hugh McCulloch, secretary 
of the treasury. 



which he claimed they had no power to 
renounce. Now that they had submit- 
ted to the authority they had formerly endea- 
vored to reject, he claimed that they were 
entitled to immediate restoration to their old 
places in the Union. 

In support of his position he quoted the 




RUINS OF RICHMOND AFTER THE WAR. 



The other question demanding immediate 
attention was the adjustment of the relations 
of the States of the South to the Union. The 
President held that they had never been out 
of the Union but had simply been in insur- 
rection, and had been brought back to the 
acknowledgment of their allegiance to the 
constitution and laws of the United States, 



solemn declaration of Congress in the sum- 
mer of 1 86 1, and the assurances of Mr. 
Lincoln's administration that the war was 
fought for the restoration of the Union, and 
not for purposes of conquest. In accordance 
with these declarations, provisional govern- 
ments had been formed in some of the South- 
ern States and their representatives had been. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 



793 



admited to Congress during the progress of 
the war. A considerable party in the North 
supported President Johnson in this position ; 
but the Republican i)arty, now the dominant 
political organization of the United States, 
opposed his views with great determination. 
The Republicans insisted that the results 
of the war should be secured by stringent 
laws, and that the Southern States, before 
their admission into the Union, should be 



President Johnson, however, proceeded 
alone and without delay to the work of 
restoring the Southern States to their places 
in the Union. On the twenty-ninth of May, 
1865, he issued a proclamation appointing a 
provisional governor for the State of North 
Carolina, and providing for the assembling 
of a convention in that State for the purpose 
of forming a new constitution, under which 
the State would be recognized by him as a 




FORT WARREN, BOSTON HARBOR. 



compelled to give guarantees for the perpet- 
uation of these results. The Republican 
party, moreover, claimed that the work of 
reconstructing the Union properly belonged 
to the legislative branch of the government 
and not to the President. Had the President 
summoned Congress in extra session and 
sought the aid of that body in the task 
before him, a conciliatory policy might have 
been agreed upon, and the work of recon- 
struction have been completed without delay. 



member of the Federal Union. In the mean- 
time North Carolina was kept under military 
rule. A similar course was pursued by the 
President towards the States of Virginia^ 
South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama^ 
Mississipi, Arkan.sas, Louisiana and Texas. 

The people of the ten Southern States 
held conventions in accordance with the 
President's requirements, annulled their or- 
dinances of secession, renewed their obliga- 
tions to the Federal Union, adopted new 



794 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



State constitutions, and ratified the thirteenth 
amendement to the constitution of the United 
States prohibiting slavery forever in all the 
States of the Union. They also elected sen- 
ators and representatives to Congress, and 
were recognized by the President as formally 
restored to their places in the Federal Union. 
On the first of February, 1865, Congress 
passed a resolution submitting to the legisla- 
tures of the various States the following 
amendement to the constitution : 

" Article XIII. Section i. Neither slavery nor 
involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for 
crime, whereof the party shall have been duly con- 
victed, shall exist within the United States, or any 
place subject to their jurisdiction. 

" Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce 
this article by appropriate legislation." 

On the eighteenth of December, William 
H. Seward, Secretary of State, formally an- 
nounced that this, the thirteenth amendment, 
had been duly ratified by the States, and had 
become a part of the constitution of the 
United States. The ratification of this amend" 
ment had been required of the Southern 
States by the President as a condition of 
their readimission into the Union. 

The Thirty-ninth Congress met in Decem- 
bre, 1865, and at once took measures to 
neutralize the reconstruction policy of the 
President, The Republican party had a 
large majority in each house, and was thor- 
oughly united in its opposition to the Presi- 
dent. The senators and representatives of 
the Southern States were refused admission 
to seats in Congress, and the reconstruction 
measures of the President were treated as 
null and void. Congress insisted that the 
Union should not be " restored " as it was 
before the war, but " reconstructed " upon 
an entirely new basis. 

The measures of the President had made 
no change in the political status of the black 
population of the South. The negroes were 



secured in their freedom by the thirteenth 
amendment. Congress now proceeded to 
make the negro a citizen of the United 
States, and to reconstruct the Union upon 
this basis. The following, known as the 
fourteenth amendment to the constitution, 
was adopted by Congress and proposed to 
the States for ratification : 

" Article XIV. Section i. All persons born or 
naturalized in the United States, and subject to the 
jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States 
and of the States wherein they reside. No State 
shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge 
the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United 
States ; nor shall any State deprive any person of 
life, liberty, or property, without due process of law, 
nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the 
equal protection of the laws. 

"Section 2. Representatives shall be apportioned 
among the several States according to their respec- 
tive numbers, counting the whole number of persons 
in each State, excluding Indians not taxed ; but 
when the right to vote at any election, for the 
choice of electors for President and vice-President 
of the United States, representatives in Congress, 
the executive and judicial officers of a State or 
the members of the legislature thereof, is denied to 
any of the male inhabitants of such State (being 
twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United 
States), or in any way abridged except for participa- 
tion in rebellion or other crime, the basis of repre- 
sentation therein shall be reduced in the proportion 
which the number of such male citizens shall bear 
to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one 
years of age, in said State. 

"Section j. No person shall be a senator or repre- 
sentative in Congress, or elector of President and 
vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, 
under the United States, or under any State, who, 
having previously taken an oath as a member of 
Congress, or as an officer of the United States or as 
a member of any State legislature, or as an execu- 
tive or judicial officer of any State, to support the 
constitution of the United States, shall have en- 
gaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, 
or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof; but 
Congress may, by a vote of two-thirds of each House, 
remove such disability. 

"Section 4. The vahdity of the public debt of the 
United States authorized by law, including debts 



ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 



795 



incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for 
services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, 
shall not be questioned ; but neither the United 
States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt 
or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebel- 
lion against the United States, or any claim for the 
loss or emancipation of any slave ; but all such debts, 
obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void. 

''Section j. The Congress shall have power to 
enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions 
of this article." 

This amendement was rejected by all the 
Southern States except Tennessee, and by 
several of the North- 
ern States. Tennessee 
ratified the amend- 
ment, and was admit- 
ted by Congress into 
the Union. Congress 
at this session enacted 
what is known as the 
" Freedman's Bureau 
Bill," creating a de- 
partment under the 
Federal Government 
for the care and pro- 
tection of the newly 
emancipated negroes 
and the destitute 
whites of the South. 
This measure was ve- 
toed by the President 
as unconstitutional, 
and was passed over 



As the quarrel between the President and 
Congress deepened, various efforts were made 
by the latter to hamper the executive and 
impair his powers. The Thirty-ninth Con- 
gress adopted for this purpose a measure 
known as the " Tenure of Office Act," by 
the terms of which the President was forbid- 
den to remove any person from a civil office 
under the government without the consent 
of the Senate. This bill was promptly vetoed 
by the President, but was passed over his 
veto by the Congress. 




LINCOLN MONUMENT IN FAIRMOUNT PARK. PHILADELPHIA. 



his veto. It was immediately put in operation 
throughout the South. While the Freed- 
man's Bureau did much to assist the negro 
in adapting himself to the duties of his new 
position, it was productive of an immense 
amount of corruption and fraud. 

Another measure of Congress which was 
vetoed by the President upon constitutional 
grounds, and was passed over his veto, was 
the " Civil Rights Bill," which secured to the 
negro the rights of a citizen. 



On the first of March, 1867, a new State 
was added to the Union by the admission of 
Nebraska on an equality with the original 
thirteen States — four of which were at that 
time undergoing the process of reconstruc- 
tion. 

In February, 1867, Congress proceeded to 
take extreme measures wiih the Southern 
States that had refused to ratify the four- 
teenth amendment. The State governments 
were abolished, the State officers removed, 



796 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



and the Southern States were organized as 
military districts, and placed under absolute 
martial law. The writ of habeas corpus was 
suspended, and the civil law was made to 
give place to the will of a military com- 
mander. This was done with the avowed 
intention of compelling the Southern States 
to ratify the fourteenth amendment and seek 
admission into the Union upon the terms 
prescribed by Congress. 

Bitter Hostility in the South. 

The effect of the measures of Congress was 
to disfranchise the better class of the South- 
ern people, and to confer the unrestricted 
right of suffrage upon the negroes. The 
intelligence of the Southern States was denied 
any voice in their government, which was 
intrusted to the most ignorant and degraded 
part of their population. The measures of 
Congress were regarded with bitter hostility 
by the South, and there were very many of 
the more thoughtful Republicans of the 
North who seriously doubted the wisdom of 
this method of reconstruction. The mea- 
sures of Congress were vetoed by the Presi- 
dent, but were passed over his veto, March 
2, 1867. 

Upon the organization of the military dis- 
tricts, the commanding generals, who, as a 
rule, exercised their power with moderation 
and forbearance, caused a registry of voters 
to be made, and ordered elections to be held 
for conventions to form State governments. 
The conventions so elected could not in any 
case be said to represent the white people of 
the South. After a bitter and protracted 
struggle, some of the conventions ratified 
the fourteenth amendment, and organized 
State governments. On the twenty-fourth 
of June, 1867, Congress passed a bill over 
the President's veto admiting the States of 
Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louis- 
iana, North Carolina, and South Carolina 



into the Union, Virginia, Mississippi, and 
Texas, having refused to ratify the amend- 
ment, were denied admission into the Union. 
The fourteenth amendment having been 
adopted by the requisite number of States, 
was formally declared a part of the constitu- 
tion on the twenty-eighth of July, 1868. 

Attempt to Impeach the President. 

In the meantime the quarrel between the 
President and Congress came to a decisive 
issue. The extreme or radical wing of the 
Republican party, comprising the majority 
in Congress, was anxious to remove Mr. 
Johnson from his position. Could it succeed 
in doing so, Benjamin Wade, of Ohio, the 
President of the Senate, would, by virtue of 
his office, become President of the United 
States. As Mr. Wade was one of the ex- 
treme radical leaders, this would place 
the whole power of the government in 
the hands of that party. A quarrel be- 
tween the President and Mr. Stanton, the 
Secretary of War, furnished the occasion for 
this effort. On the twelfth of August, 1867, 
Secretary Stanton was removed from the war 
department by President Johnson, who ap- 
pointed General Grant Secretary of War ad 
interim. Upon the meeting of Congress, in 
December, 1867, the President's course was 
denounced as a violation of the tenure of 
office act, and on the twelfth of January, 1 868, 
the Senate refused to sanction the removal of 
Mr. Stanton. Mr. Stanton thereupon de- 
manded of General Grant the surrender of 
the war department, and the latter at once 
complied with the demand. 

On the twenty-first of February, President 
Johnson again removed Mr. Stanton, and 
appointed General Lorenzo Thomas, adjutant- 
general of the United States, Secretary of 
War ad interim. He held the tenure of office 
act to be unconstitutional, and an invasion 
of his lawful powers as chief magistrate of 



ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 



797 



the Republic. This second removal of Mr. 
Stanton brought matters to a crisis, and on 
the twenty-fourth of February, 1868,' the 
House of Representatives, by a strict party 
vote, ordered the President to be impeached 
of high crimes and misdemeanors.* The 
Senate, siting as a high court of impeach- 
ment, met on the fifth of March, 1868, under 
the presidency of Chief-Justice Chase. The 
impeachment was conducted by managers 
appointed by the House, and the President 
was defended by able counsel. On the 
twenty-sixth of May, the case being closed, 
the vote was taken, with the following result : 
For conviction, thirty-four; for acquittal, 
nineteen. There not being the requisite 
two-thirds vote for conviction, the President 
was acquitted. 

Jefferson Davis Releasd on Bail. 

Jefferson Davis had been confined in For- 
tress Monroe since his capture by the Federal 
forces, in May, 1865. All the Confederate 
officials taken by the Union forces had been 
released within a year after their capture on 
giving their parole to answer any prosecution 
that might be brought against them by the 
Federal authorities. Mr. Davis was ex- 
cepted from this clemency, and remained in 



prison for two years. A prosecution for 
treason was instituted against him in the 
district court of Virginia, but he was not 
brought to trial. A number of prominent 
citizens of the North who had been so 
active in their support of the war that 
their motives could not be suspected, ex- 
erted, themselves to procure his release on 
bail, and became his sureties. He was ac- 
cordingly released on bail on the thirteenth 
of May, 1867. During the following year 
the indictment against him was quashed by 
the government. 

During the latter part of the civil war a 
vexatious and bloody warfare with the 
Indians broke out on the frontier. It began 
in 1864, and extended through 1865 and 
1866, and until the fall of 1868 its ravages 
were spread along the frontier through 
Southern Colorado into the Indian Territory, 
causing severe suffering to the settlers of this 
region. By the winter of iS6^-66 the war 
had assumed such formidable proportions 
that General Sheridan was sent with a con- 
siderable force against the savages. The 
vigorous measures of Sheridan, and General 
Custer's victory over the band of Black 
Kettle at Wacheta, brought the war to a 
close in the fall of 1868. 



* The charges against the President may be summed up as follows : l. Unlawfully ordering the removal of Mr. Stanton 
from the office of Secretary of War, in violation of the provisions of the tenure of office act. 2. The unlawful appointment 
of General Lorenzo Thomas as Secretary of War at/ hiterim. 3. Conspiring with General Thomas and other persons to 
prevent Edwin M. Stanton, the lawfully appointed Secretaiy of War, from holding that office. 5. Conspiring with 
General Thomas and other persons to hinder the operation of the tenure of office act ; and in pusuance of this conspiracy 
attempting to prevent Mr. Stanton from acting as Secretary of War. 6. Conspiring with General Thomas and others to 
take forcible possession of the property in the war department. 7. The President was charged with having called 
before him the commander of the troops in the department of Washington, and declaring to him that a law passed on the 
thirtieth of June, 1867, directing that " all orders and instructions relating to military operations, issued by the President 
or Secretary of War, shall be issued through the general of the army, and in case of his inability, through the next in rank," 
was unconstitutional, and not binding upon the commander of the department of Washington, the design being to induce 
that commander to violate the law, and obey orders issued directly from the President. 8. That in a number of public 
speeches the President had attempted to set aside the authority of Congress, to bring it into disgrace, and to excite the 
hatred and resentment of the people against Congress and the laws enacted by it. 9. That in August, 1866, in a public 
speech in Washington, the President hatl declared that Congress was not a body authorized by the constitution to exercise 
legislative powers. Then followed a specification of alleged attempts on the part of the President to prevent the execution 
of the laws of Congress. The impeachment articles were eleven in number. The other two were simply repetitions of 
.some of the above charges. 



798 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



While the civil war was at its height, 
France, England and Spain became involved 
in a quarrel with Mexico concerning the non- 
payment of certain claims due citizens of 
those countries by the Mexican republic, 



the fourth of March, 1862, and withdrew 
their forces. 

The French, however, continued the war, 
and after a hard struggle, during which the 
Mexicans fought gallantly for their country,. 




EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN. 



and a joint expedition was despatched to 
Mexico in the fall of 1861. Discovering 
that France was seeking to use the expe- 
dition to destroythe independence of Mexico, 
England and Spain settled their claims with 
the republic by the convention of SoHdad, on 



Mexico was conquered, and early in June,. 
1863, the French army entered the capital. 
The emperor of the French now proceeded 
to overthrow the republic, it being his 
intention to replace it with an empire which 
should be dependent upon France. An 



ADMINISTRATION OF ANDREW JOHNSON. 799 



election was held, and under the intimidation 
of the French, resulted in a majority in favor 
of the abolition of the republic and the 
erection of the empire. Through the same 
influence, the Mexicans chose Maximilian, 
archduke of Austria, emporer of Mexico, and 
in an evil hour for himself, that amiable and 
high-souled prince accepted the crown. 

The government of the United States had 
viewed the interference of France in Mexican 
affairs with marked displeasure, but being too 
much engaged in its efforts to bring the civil 
war to a successful close to undertake any 
new difficulty, simply 
entered its protest 
against the action of 
France. The civil war 
having been brought 
to a close, however, it 
took a bolder stand, 
and demanded of the 
French emporer the 
withdrawal cf his 
troops from Mexico. 
The action of the cfov- 
ernment was sustained 
by the great mass of 
the American people, 
and it was believed by 
many that a foreign 
war would be a sure 

and speedy way of bringing about the res- 
toration of the Union. 

The Emperor Napoleon hesitated for a 
while, but finally acceded to the American 
demand. The French troops were recalled 
at the close of the year 1 866, and the Emperor 
Maximilian was left to face the Mexican 
people alone. They at once rose against 
him, defeated hisforces and took him prisoner. 
On the nineteenth of June, 1867, he was shot 
by order of the Mexican government, in 
spite of the efforts of the United States to 
save him. Thus ended the hope of reviving 



the dominion of France on the American 
continent. 

The efforts of the gentlemen interested in 
the laying of a telegraphic cable across the 
Atlantic did not end with their failures in 
1858. In 1865 the same company succeeded 
in laying a cable for about fourteen hundred 
miles from the Irish coast, when it suddenly 
parted and sank into the sea. The expe- 
dition then returned to England. Undis- 
mayed by this failure, Mr. Cyrus W. Field, 
of New York, to whose courage and deter- 
mination the final success of the scheme was 




NATIVES OF ALASKA BUILDING HOUSES. 

due, succeeded in persuading capitalists to 
make one more effort, and in July, 1866, a 
cable was laid from Valentia Bay, in Ireland, 
to Heart's Content, in Newfoundland, a dis- 
tance of eighteen hundred and sixty-four 
miles. It was found to work to the entire 
satisfaction of all parties, and the great enter- 
prise was now an accomplished fact. 

The fleet then sailed from Newfoundland 
to the spot w^here the cable of 1865 had 
parted in mid-ocean, and proceeded to grap- 
ple for it. It was recovered and raised from 
a depth of over two miles, and was then 



8oo 



THE CIVIL WAR. 



splicea to the coil on board the " Great 
Eastern," the ship employed in the under- 
taking. The huge steamer then put about, 
and completed the laying of the cable to 
Heart's Content, thus giving the company 
two working lines. The completion of the 
work was hailed with rejoicings in both 
America and Europe. 

Purchase of Russian America. 

On the twenty-ninth of March, 1 867, atreaty 
was concluded between the United States 
and Russia, by which the latter power sold to 
the United States for the sum of seven mil- 
lion two hundred thousand dollars, all of the 
region in the extreme northwestern part of 
the American continent known as Russian 
America. The treaty was ratified by the 
Senate on the ninth of April. The new 
territory added to the area of the United 
States a district of about five hundred and 
seventy-seven thousand three hundred and 
ninety square miles. 

In the same year a treaty was negotiated 
"with China, through an embassy from that 
"country, which visited the United States 
under the charge of Anson Burlingame, for- 
merly the American Minister to China. It 
was the first instance in which that exclusive 
nation had ever sought to negotiate a treaty 
of commerce and friendship with a foreign 
nation. Liberty of conscience to Americans 
residing in China, protection of their property 
and persons and important commercial privi- 
leges were secured by this treaty. 

In 1 866 the Fenians, a secret society, organ- 
ized for the purpose of delivering Ireland 
from British rule, invaded Canada in large 
numbers from Buffalo, New York, and St. 
Albans, Vermont. President Johnson at once 
issued his proclamation declaring the Fenian 
movement a violation of the neutrality of the 
United States, and sent General Meade with 



a sufficient force to the border to execute the 
laws. This decisive action put an end to the 
hopes of the Fenians of embroiling this coun- 
try in hostilities with Great Britain, and after 
some slight encounters with the British troops 
in Canada they abandoned the expedition. 

During President Johnson's administration, 
two distinguished public servants passed 
away. On the twenty-ninth of May, 1866, 
Lieutenant-General Winfield Scott, the vet- 
eran conqueror of Mexico, died at the age of 
eighty years. On the first of June, 1868, 
ex-President James Buchanan died at his 
home at Wheatland, near Lancaster, Penn- 
sylvania, in the seventy-eighth year of his 
age. 

In the fall of 1868, the presidential election 
was held. The Republican party nominated 
General Ulysses S. Grant, the commanding- 
general of the army, for the presidency, and 
Schuyler Colfax, of Indiana, for the vice- 
presidency. The Democratic party nomin- 
ated Horatio Seymour, of New York, for the 
presidency, and Frank P. Blair, of Missouri, 
for the vice-presidency. The election resulted 
in the choice of General Grant by a popular 
vote of 2,985,031 to 2,648,830 votes cast for 
Mr, Seymour. In the electoral college. Grant 
received two hundred and seventeen votes 
and Seymour, seventy-seven. The States of 
Virginia, Mississippi and Texas were not 
allowed to take part in this election, being 
still out of the Union. 

In February, 1869, the two houses of Con- 
gress adopted the fifteenth amendment to the 
constitution of the United States, and sub- 
mitted it to the various States for ratification 
by them. It was in the following words: 
" The right of the citizens of the United States 
to vote shall not be denied or abridged by 
the United States, or any State, on account 
of race, color, or previous condition of servi- 
tude." 



CHAPTER XLIV. 



The Administration of Ulysses S. Grant. 

"Early Life of President Grant — Completion of the Pacific Railway — Death of ex-President Pierce — The Fifteenth 
Amendment Ratified — Prosperity of the Country — The Enforcement Act — The Test-oath Abolished — The Constitu- 
tionality of the Legal Tender Act Affirmed — Death of Admiral Farragut — Death of General Lee — The Income Tax 
Repealed — The Alabama Claims — Treaty of Washington — The Geneva Conference — Award in favor of the United 
States — The San Juan Boundary Question settled — Efforts to annex St. Domingo — Burning of Chicago — Forest Fires — 
The Civil Disabilities removed from the Southern People — Re-election of General Grant — Death of Horace Greeley 
— Great fire at Boston — The Modoc War — Murder of General Canby and the Peace Commissioners — Execution of the 
Modoc Chiefs — The Cuban Revolution — Capture of the " Virginius " — Execution of the Prisoners — Action of the 
Federal Government — The Panic of 1873 — Bill for the Resumption of Specie Payments — The Centennial Exhibition 
— The Sioux War — Death of General Custer — Presidential Election — Controversy over it — The Electoral Commission — 
The Count of the Vote — Hayes declared elected. 



ULYSSES S. GRANT, the eigh- 
teenth president of the United 
States, was inaugurated at Wash- 
ington with imposing ceremonies, 
on the fourth of March, 1869. He was born 
at Mount Pleasant, Ohio, on the twenty- 
seventh of April, 1822. His father was a 
tanner, and wished him to follow his trade, 
but the boy had more ambitious hopes, and 
at the age of seventeen, a friend secured for 
him an appointment as a cadet at West Point, 
where he was educated. Upon graduating, 
he entered the army. Two years later he 
was sent to Mexico, and served through the 
war with that country with distinction. He 
was specially noticed by his commanders, 
aiid was promoted for gallant conduct. 

Soon after the close of the war he resigned 
his commission, and remained in civil life and 
obscurity until the breaking out of the civil 
war, when he volunteered his services, and 
was commissioned by Governor Yates, col- 
^onel of the twenty-first Illinois regiment. He 
was soon made a brigadier-general, and 
fought his first battle at Belmont. His sub- 
sequent career has already been related in 
these pages. He selected the members of 
his cabinet more because of his personal 
51 



friendship for them, than for their weight and 
influence in the party that had elected him. 
Hamilton Fish, of New York, was made sec- 
retary of state. 

The most important event of the year 
1869, was the opening of the Pacific rail- 
way from the Missouri River to the Pacific 
Ocean. The eastern division of this road is 
known as the Union Pacific railway, and was 
begun at Omaha, Nebraska, in December, 
1863, and carried we::tward. But little prog- 
ress was made in the work until 1865, when 
it was pushed rapidly forward. The western 
division, known as the Central Pacific rail- 
way, was begun at San Francisco, near about 
the same time, and carried eastward across 
the Sierra Nevada. The two roads unite at 
Ogden, near Salt Lake City, in Utah, and 
the union was accomplished on the tenth of 
May, 1869, on which day the last rail was 
laid. The Union Pacific railway, from Omaha 
to Ogden, is one thousand and thirty-two 
miles in length ; the Central Pacific, from 
Ogden to San Francisco, eight hundred and 
eighty-two miles ; making a total line of 
nineteen hundred and fourteen miles, and 
constituting by far the most important rail- 
way enterprise in the world. 

801 



802 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



By the completion of this great road, to 
the construction of which the general gov- 
ernment contributed liberally in money and 
lands, Portland, Maine, and San Francisco, 
the extremes of the continent, are brought 
within a week's travel. The long and difficult 
journey across the plains has been dispensed 
with, and the traveler may now pass over 
this once terrible and dangerous route with 
speed and safety, enjoying all the while the 
hisfhest comforts of the most advanced civil- 
ization. 




ULYSSES S. GRANT. 

The east and the west are no longer separ- j 
ated, and the rapid development of the 
resources of the rich Pacific slope has more 
than repaid the enormous cost of the road. 
A direct trade with China and Japan has 
been opened, and the wealth of the Orient is 
beginning to pour into America through the 
portals of the Golden Gate. The shortest 
route to India — the dream of Columbus and 
the old mariners — has indeed been found. 

On the eighth of October, 1869, ex-Presi- 



dent Franklin Pierce died, at the age of sixty- 
five years. 

The fifteenth amendment, having been 
ratified by the necessary number of States, 
was formally proclaimed by Hamilton Fish, 
secretary of state, a part of the constitution 
of the United States, on the thirtieth of March, 
1870. 

In the year 1870 the ninth census of the 
United States was taken, and showed the 
population of the country to be 38,558,371 
souls. 

The country had now attained a marked 
degree of prosperity. Gold fell to one 
hundred and ten, and during the first two 
years of President Grant's administration, 
^204,000,000 of the national debt were paid. 
The effects of the war were being rapidly 
overcome, and the bitter feelings engendered 
by the struggle were giving way to a more 
friendly intercourse between the North and 
the South. The manufacturing industries 
of the country had nearly doubled since 
i860, and the five years that had elapsed 
since the war had witnessed a marked 
improvement in the condition of the South, 
which was gradually adjusting her industry 
upon the basis of free labor, and entering 
upon new and profitable enterprises of 
manufacture and commerce. 

The work of reconstruction was concluded 
in the year 1870. On the eighth of October 
1869, the State of Virginia ratified the four- 
teenth and fifteenth amendments, and on the 
twenty-sixth of January, 1870, was read- 
mitted into the Union. On the eleventh of 
January, 1870, Mississippi ratified these 
amendments, and was readmitted into the 
Union on the seventeenth of February, 1870, 
Texas was the last to return to the Union, 
but came in during the year, having ratified 
the amendments to the constitution. 

The political troubles in the South, how- 
ever, did not end with the return of the States 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



So- 



to the Union. A great deal of lawlessly pre- 
vailed in many of the Southern States, and con- 
siderable suffering was experienced by tlie 
negroes, whose sudden endowment with the 
rights and privileges of citizenship was re- 
sented by a lawless class of white men. 
The Federal goverment undertook to remedy 
these troubles rather than leave them to be 
dealt with by the States. 



ber issued a proclamation suspending the 
writ of habeas corpus in nine counties in 
South Carolina, in order that the law might 
be enforced witliout the interference of the 
Courts of the State. The evils which these 
severe measures were intended to remedy 
were unquestionably very great, but the 
enforcement bill was nevertheless a danger- 
ous departure from the principles of free 





VIEW ON THE GREENE RIVER AT THE CROSSING OF THE U. P. R. R., WYOMING. 



In the spring of 1871 Congress passed a 
measure known as the " Enforcement Act," 
or the "KukluxAct of 1871," which gave 
to the Federal officials absolute power over 
the liberties of the citizens of the States in 
which these troubles occurred. The Presi- 
dent carried out the terms of the act with 
promptness, and on the seventeenth of Octo- 



government as understood in this country. 
A free people cannot too jealously guard 
their liberties. 

On the thirty-first of January, 1871, Con- 
gress repealed the test oath law, which 
required all applicants for civil offices to 
swear that they had not participated in the 
secession movement. As few Southern men 



8o4 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



could take this oath, this law excluded the 
genuine inhabitants of the Southern States 
from office under the general government, 
and threw the political power of those States 
into the hands of a class of adventurers, who 
had been drawn to the South since the war 
by the hope of obtaining office. The repeal 




PRESIDENT GRANT ON HIS WAY TO THE INAUGURATION 



of this law by Congress restored the control 
of the Southern States to the legitimate 
citizens and tax-payers thereof 

In 1870 the Supreme Court of the United 
States decided that the act of Congress 
making " greenbacks," or the notes of the 
Pederal treasury, a legal tender, was uncon- 
stitutional as regarded the payment of debts 



contracted prior to the passage of that act. 
As this decision had been given by a majority 
of but one justice, Mr. Hoar, the Attorney- 
General, moved to reconsider it. The case 
was heard again, and the decision of the 
court was reversed by a vote of five to four, 
on the eighteenth of January, 1871. Thus 
the constitutionality of the legal- 
tender act was affirmed. 

In 1870 died Admiral David G. 
Farragut, on the fourteenth of 
August, aged sixty-nine; General 
George H. Thomas, " the Rock of 
Chickamauga," and the defender of 
Nashville, on the twenty-eighth of 
December, aged fifty-three, and 
General Robert E. Lee, the com- 
mander of the Confederate army 
of Northern Virginia during the 
civil war, on the twelfth of October, 
aged sixty-three. 

On the twenty-sixth of January, 
1 87 1, Congress repealed the income 
tax. It had been retained long after 
the necessity for it had passed away 
and had become odious to the na- 
tion, which had only submitted to 
it at first because of the urgency 
of the need for it. 

Immediately upon the opening 
of President Lincoln's second term 
of office,Mr. Charles Francis Adams, 
the American minister at the court 
of St. James, was instructed to call 
the attention of the British Govern- 
ment to the depredations committed 
upon American commerce by Confederate 
cruisers, built, equipped and manned in Eng- 
land, and to insist upon the responsibility 
of Great Britain for the losses thus incurred 
by American ship-owners. Mr. Adams dis- 
charged this duty in a communication 
addressed to the British Government, on 
the seventh of April, 1865. This led to a 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



805 



correspondence which continued through the 
summer of that year. Great Britain refused 
to admit the validity of the American claim, 
or to submit the question to the arbitration 
of any foreign government. 

The " Alabama question " remained unset- 
tled for several years, and occasioned a con- 
siderable amount of ill-feeling between the 
two countries. Both governments regarded 
it as full of danger, but to Great Britain it 
was especially so, as in the event of a war 
between that country and any foreign power, 
the United States, fol- 
lowing the example 
of England, might and 
doubtless would allow 
cruisers to be sent out 
from their ports which 
would seriously crip 
pie, if they did no' 
destroy, the British 
commerce. After Mr 
Adams' return fron 
England, his succes- 
sor, Reverdy Johnson, 
was directed by the 
President to reopen 
the matter. He nego- 
tiated a treaty with 
the Earl of Clarendon 
on behalf of the Brit- 
ish Government in 1869, but this arrange- 
ment was unsatisfactory to the Senate, which 
body refused to ratify it. 

Two years later the matter was revived, 
and in 1871 a joint high commission, com- 
posed of a number of distinguished public 
men, appointed by the American and British 
Governments, met at Washington, and 
arranged a settlement known as the treaty of 
Washington, which was ratified by both 
Governments. This treaty was ratified by 
the Senate on the twenty-fourth of May, and 
provided for the settlement not only of the 



Alabama claims, but of all other questions 
at issue between the United States and Great 
Britain. 

The Alabama claims were referred by the 
treaty of Washington to a board of arbitra- 
tion composed of five commissioners selected 
from the neutral nations. This board met 
at Geneva, in Switzerland, on the fifteenth of 
April, 1872, and the American and English 
representatives presented to it their respective 
cases, which had been prepared by the most 
learned counsel in both countries. On the 




HUMBOLDT PALISADES, PACIFIC RAILWAY. 

twenty-seventh of June the board announced 
its decision. The claims of the United States 
were admitted, and the damages awarded to 
that Government were ^16,250,000. These 
were paid in due time. 

In our account of the administration of 
Mr. Buchanan we have related the dispute 
between the United States and Great Britain 
concerning the possession of the Island of 
San Juan, growing out of the uncertainty as 
to the true course of the northwestern bound- 
ary of the Union. This had been an open 
question all through the civil war. By the 



8o6 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



thirty-fourth article of the treaty of Washing- 
ton the two countries agreed to refer this 
dispute to the friendly arbitration of the 
Emperor of Germany. Soon after the award 
of the Geneva conference was made the 
boundary question was decided by the Emper- 
or William in favor of the United States, 
into the possession of which the island of San 
Juan accordingly passed. Thus were these 
delicate and dangerous questions satisfactor- 



Measures were introduced into Congress for 
the purpose of securing this union, but were 
warmly opposed. A commission of eminent 
gentlemen was appointed by the President to 
visit the island and examine into its condi- 
tion. They reported favorably, but after a 
warm debate in Congress the measures for 
the annexation of the Dominican republic 
were defeated by a decisive majority. 

On the night of Sunday, October 8, 1871, 




CHEYENNE INDIANS RECONNOITERING THE FIRST TRAIN ON THE PACIFIC RAILROAD. 



ily adjusted by peaceful methods, and not by 
the sword. 

In 1870 the republic of St. Domingo, com- 
prising a large part of the island of Hayti, 
applied for annexation to the United States. 
President Grant was very anxious to secure 
the annexation of this island, and to accom- 
plish it went to the very verge of his consti- 
tutional powers — going farther, indeed, than 
many of his friends believed he had the right. 



a fire broke out in the city of Chicago, and 
raged with tremendous violence for two days, 
laying the greater part of the city in ashes. 
It was the most destructive conflagration of 
modern times. The total area of the city 
burned over was two thousand one hundred 
and twenty-four acres, or very nearly three 
and one-third square miles. The number of 
buildings destroyed was seventeen thousand 
four hundred and fifty. About two hundred 




8o7 



8o8 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



and fifty persons died from various causes 
during the conflagration, and ninety-eight 
thousand persons were rendered homeless by 
it. The entire business quarter was destroyed. 
The actual loss will never be known. As far 
as it can be ascertained, it was about one 
hundred and ninety-six millions of dollars. 

Almost simultaneous with this disaster 
extensive forest fires swept over the woods of 



sities of life was liberally extended! to the- 
sufferers in Chicago and the other afflicted 
communities. The telegraph flashed the 
news across the Atlantic, and in an almost 
incredibly short time liberal contributions in 
money came pouring in from England and 
continental Europe, and even from the far-off 
cities of India. 

On the twenty-ninth of May, 1872, Con- 




THE BURNING OF CHICAGO. 



Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan. Whole 
villages were destroyed by the flames, which 
traveled with such speed that it was often 
impossible for the fleetest horse to escape 
from them. Over fifteen hundred people 
perished in Wisconsin alone. 

These terrible calamities aroused the een- 
erous spmpathy of the rest of the country, 
and aid in money, clothing, and the neces- 



gress passed an act removing the disabilities 
imposed upon the Southern people by the- 
third section of the fourteenth amendment to- 
the constitution. From this general exemption, 
were excepted all persons who had been, 
members of Congress, officers of the army 
or navy, heads of departments under the 
general government, or ministers to foreign 
countries, who had resigned their positions. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



809 



and joined the secession movement. By this 
act at least one hundred and fifty thousand 
men of capacity and experience, whose 
services were greatly needed by the South, 
were restored to political life. 

In the fall of 1872 the presidential elecnon 
occurred. The canvass was marked by the 
most intense partisan bitterness. The Repub- 
lican party renominated General Grant for 
the Presidency, and supported Henry Wilson 
for the Vice-Presidency. The mea- 
sures of the administration had arrayed 
a large numbir of Republicans against 
it. These now organized themselves 
as the Liberal Republican party, and 
nominated Horace Greeley of New 
York for the Presidency, and B. Gratz 
Brown of Missouri for the Vice-Presi- 
dency. The Democratic party made 
no nominations, and its convention 
endorsed the candidates of the Liberal 
Republican party. The election re- 
sulted in the triumph of the Republican 
candidates by overwhelming majorities. 

The elections were scarcely over 
when the country was saddened by the 
death of Horace Greeley. He had been 
one of the founders of the Republican i 
party, and had been closely identified 
with the political history of the coun- 
try for over thirty years. He was 
the " Founder of the New York 
Tribune" and had done good service 
with his journal in behalf of the 
cause he believed to be founded in right. 
He was a man of simple and childlike 
.character, utterly unaffected, and generous 
to a fault. In his manner and dress he 
was eccentric, but nature had made him a 
true gentleman at heart. His intellectual 
ability was conceded by all. His experience 
in public life and his natural disposition 
induced him to favor a policy of conciliation 
in the settlement of the reconstruction I 



question, and, influenced by these convictions, 
he signed the bail-bond of Jefferson Davis 
and secured the release of the fallen leader of 
the South from his imprisonment. 

This act cost him a large part of his popu- 
larity in the North. He accepted the presi- 
dential nomination of the Liberal party in the 
belief that his election would aid in bringing^ 
about a better state of feeling between the 
North and the South. He was attacked by 




HORACE GREELEY. 

his political opponents with a bitterness 
which caused him much suffering, and many 
of his old friends deserted hiii and joined in 
the warfare upon him. Just before the close 
of the canvass, his wife, to whom he was ten- 
derly attached, died, and his grief for her and 
the excitement and sorrow caused him by the 
political contest, broke down his firmness and 
unsettled his mind. He was conveyed by his 
friends to a private asylum, where he died on 



8io 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



the twenty-ninth of November, 1872, in the 
sixy-second year of his age. The country 
could ill afford to spare him. 

On the ninth of November, 1872, a fire 
occurred in Boston, and burned until late on 
the tenth, sweeping over an area of sixty-five 



Grant was inaugurated a second time, at 
Washington, with great pomp. Twelve thou- 
sand troops took part in the procession which 
escorted him to the capitol. 

Early in 1873, a troublesome war began 
with the Modoc Indian tribe, on the Pacific 




PRESIDENT GRANT PASSING THROUGH THE ROTUNDA TO TAKE THE OATH OF OFFICE. 



acres in the centre of the wholesale trade of 
the city, and destroying property to the 
amount of seventy-eight million dollars. As 
this fire was confined to the business quarter 
of the city, compartively few persons were 
deprived of their homes. 

On the fourth of March, 1873, President 



coast. These Indians had been removed by 
the government from their old homes in Cal- 
ifornia to reservations in the northern part of 
Oregon. They at length became dissatisfied 
with their new location, which they declared 
was unable to afford them a support, and 
began a series of depredations upon the 






ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



8ii 



settlements of the whites, which soon drew 
upon them the vengence of the Federal gov- 
ernment. Troops were sent against them, but 
they retreated to their fastnesses in the lava 
beds, where they maintained a successful 
resistance for several months. The govern- 
ment at length reinforced the troops operating 
against them, and General Canby, command- 
ing the department of the Pacific, assumed 
the immediate command of the troops in the 
field. 

At the same time, a commission was 
appointed by the government to endeavor 
to settle the quarrel with the Indians peace- 
ably. This commission held several con- 
ferences with Captain Jack, the head chief 
of the Modocs, and the other Indian leaders, 
but accomplished nothing. At length the 
commissioners and General Canby agreed 
to meet the Indians in the lava beds, a short 
distance in advance of the lines of the troops. 
They went unarmed and without an escort. 
While the conference was in progress, the 
Indians suddenly rose upon the commis- 
sioners, and killed all but one, who managed 
to escape with severe wounds. General 
Canby was shot down at the same time, 
and died instantly. 

The Indians at once fled to their strong- 
holds amid the rocks. The troops, infu- 
riated by the murder of their commander, 
closed in upon them from all sides, and shut 
them in the lava beds. Their position was 
one which a handful of men might defend 
against an army, and they held it with a 
desperate determination. They were dis- 
lodged finally by the shells of the American 
guns, and such as were not killed were cap- 
tured. Captain Jack and his associates in 
the murder of General Canby and the com- 
missioners were tried by a court-martial and 
sentenced to death. They were hanged in 
the presence of their countrymen and of the 
troops ,on the third of October, 1873. 



For many years Cuba had been growing 
dissatisfied with the rule of Spain. In 1868 
a revolution broke out in that island, having 
for its object the expulsion of the Spaniards 
and the establishment of the independence 
of Cuba. The patriot army was able to 
win numerous successes over the Spanish 
troops, and for several years maintained its 
position against every effort to dislodge it. 
Very great sympathy was manifested for the 
Cuban patriots by the people of the United 




MRS. 



GRANT. 



States, and repeated efforts were made to 
induce the government of this country to 
recognize the independence of Cuba and 
assist the patriots, or at least to acknowledge 
their rights as belligerents. The govern- 
ment, however, faithfully observed its obli- 
gations as a neutral power, and forbade the 
organization or djparture of all expeditions 
from this country for the assistance of the 
Cubans. The Cuban agents were prevented 
ft om shipping arms or military supplies to 



8l2 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S GRANT. 



their forces, and several vessels intended to 
serve as cruisers against the Spanish com 
merce were seized and detained by the 
Federal authorities. 

In spite of the precautions of the govern- 
ment, however, several expeditions did suc- 
ceed in getting to sea and reaching Cuba. 
One of these embarked on the steamer 



the next day. Captain Fry, the com- 
mander of the " Virginias," and the crew 
and passengers of the vessel were thrown 
into prison. 

After a mock trial, in which the simplest 
forms of decency were disregarded, Captain 
Fry and a number of the crew and passengers 
of the " Virginius," about thirty-five or fortv 




THE LAVA BEDS — SCENE OF THE MODOC WAR. 



"Virginius," in the fall of 1873. When off 
the coast of Jamaica the Spanish war steamer 
" Tornado " was sighted. She at once gave 
chase, and though the "Virginius" was on 
the high seas and was flying the American 
flag, overhauled her and took possession of 
her on the thirty-first of October. The 
" Tornado " then carried her prize into the 
port of Santiago de Cuba, which was reached 



in all, were shot by order of the military 
authorities. The other prisoners were held 
in a most cruel captivity to await the pleasure 
of the Spanish officials at Havana. The con- 
sul of the United States at Santiago de Cuba 
made great exertions to save Fry and those 
condemned to die with him. He was treated 
with great indignity by the Spanish officials, 
and was not allowed to communicate with 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



813 



Havana, from which point he could consult 
his government by telegraph. 

When the news of the seizure of the " Vir- 
ginius " at sea under the American flag 
reached the United States it aroused a storm 
of indio-nation. Meetings were held in all 
the principal cities, and the press unanimously- 
sustained the popular demand that the gov- 
ernment should require satisfaction for the 
outrage upon its flag. The general senti- 
ment of the people was in favor of instant 
war, and it was openly declared that a better 
opportunity would never arise to drive the 
Spaniards out of Cuba and obtain possession 
of the island. 

Prompt Demands of the United States. 

The government acted with firmness and 
prudence. Several vessels of war were sent 
to Santiago de Cuba to prevent the execution 
of the surviving prisoners taken with the 
^' Virginius;" the fleet in the West Indies 
was reinforced as rapidly as possible, and the 
navy was at once put on a war footing in 
order to be ready for any emergency. The 
President was urged to convene Congress in 
extra session, but he declined to do so, know- 
ing that that body would be most likely to 
yield to the popular demand for war, and he 
was anxious to settle the difficulty by peace- 
ful means if possible. 

General Sickels, the American minister at 
Madrid, was ordered to demand of the 
Spanish government the arrest and punish- 
ment of the officials implicated in the mas- 
sacre of Captain Fry and his associates, a 
suitable indemnity in money for the families 
of the murdered men, an apology to the 
United States for the outrage upon their flag, 
and the surrender of the " Virginius " to the 
naval authorities of the United States. These 
demands were at once submitted to Sefior 
Castellar, the President of the Spanish repub- 
lic. In the critical situation in which Spain 



was then placed by her internal dissensions, 
Castellar had no choice but to submit to the 
American demands. Orders were at once 
transmitted to Cuba to surrender the " Vir- 
ginius " and all the prisoners to the Ameri- 
can naval forces. 

The orders of the Spanish government 
were at first disregarded by the officials at 
Havana, who blustered a great deal, and 
declared their willingness to go to war with 
the United States. They were brought to 
their senses, however, by the warning of 
Captain General Jovellar, who told them that 
their refusal to obey the orders of the Madrid 
government would certainly involve them in 
a war with the United States, in which Spain 
would leave them to fight that power without 
aid from her. The Havana officials, there- 
fore, yielded an ungracious obedience to the 
orders of the home government. 

The survivors of the " Virginius " expe- 
dition, who were in a most pitiable condition 
in consequence of the cruelty with which 
they had been treated during their imprison- 
ment, were released, and delivered on board 
of an American man-of-war in the harbor of 
Havana. On the twelfth of December the 
" Virginius" which had been taken to Havana 
by her captors some time before, was towed 
out that harbor and delivered to an American 
vessel sent to receive her. She was carried 
to Key West, from which port she was 
ordered to New York. On the voyage she 
foundered at sea in a gale off Cape Fear, on 
the twenty-sixth of December. At a later 
period the Spanish government paid the 
indemnity demanded by the United States. 

Financial Crisis. 

In the fall of 1873 a severe commercial crisis, 
known as the " Railroad Panic," burst upno 
the country. It was caused by excessive 
speculation in railway stocks and the reckless 
construction of railways in portions of the 



8i4 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



country where they were not yet needed and 
which could not support them. The excite- 
ment began op the seventeenth of September, 
and on the eighteenth, nineteenth and twen- 
tieth several of the principal banking firms 
of New York and Philadelphia suspended 
payment. The failure of these houses in- 
volved hundreds of other firms in all parts of 
the country in their ruin. The excitement 



measures to be taken for the relief of the 
business of the country. Various measures 
were urged upon them. A strong appeal 
was made to the President to lend the whole 
or the greater part of the treasury reserve of 
forty-four million dollars of greenbacks to the 
banks to furnish the Wall street brokers with 
funds to settle their losses and resume busi- 
ness. He at once declined to take so grave 




SCENE IN THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE DURING THE PANIC OF I 873. 



became so intense that on the twentieth the 
New York Stock Exchange closed its doors 
and put a stop to all sales of stocks in order 
to prevent a general destruction of the values 
of all securities. The banks Avere obliged to 
resort to the most stringent measures to avoid 
being drawn into the common ruin. 

President Grant and the Secretary of the 
Treasury hastened to New York to consult 
the capitalists of that city as to the proper 



a step, and, thanks to his firmness, the cred't 
of the United States was not placed at the 
mercy of the reckless men who had caused 
the trouble. 

The government as a measure of relief con- 
sented to purchase a number of its bonds of 
a certain class at a fair price, and thus enable 
the holders who were in need of money to 
obtain it without sacrificing their securities. 
On the twenty-second the excitement in New 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



815 



York and the Eastern cities began to subside. 
The trouble was not over, however. The 
stringency of the money market which fol- 
lowed the first excitement prevailed for fully 
a year, and affected all branches of the 
industry of the country, and caused severe 
suffering from loss of employment and 
lowering of wages to the working classes. 

The panic showed the extent to which 
railroad gambling had demoralized the busi- 
ness and the people of the country. It 
showed that some of the 
strongest and most trusted 
firms in the Union had lent 
themselves to the task of 
inducing people to invest 
their money in the secur- 
ities of enterprises the suc- 
cess of which was, to say the 
least, doubtful. It showed 
that the banks, the deposi- 
tories of the people's money, 
had to an alarming extent 
crippled themselves by neg- 
lecting their legitimate 
business and making ad- 
vances on securities which 
in the hour of trial proved 
worthless in many cases, 
uncertain in most. The 
money needed for the use 
of the legitimate business 
of the country had been 
placed at the mercy of the railroad gamblers 
and had been used by them. The funds of 
helpless and dependent persons, of widows 
and orphan children, had been used to pay 
fictitious dividends and advance schemes 
which had been stamped with the disapproval 
of the public. 

An amount of recklessness and demoral- 
ization was revealed in the management of 
the financial interests of the country that 
startled even the most hardened. The lesson 



was severe, but it was needed. The panic 
was followed by a better and more healthful 
state of affairs. The business of the country 
slowly settled down within proper channels. 
Recklessness was succeeded by prudence ; 
extravagance by economy in all quarters. 
The American people took their severe les- 
son to heart, and resolutely set to work to 
secure the good results that came to them 
from this harvest of misfortune. 

During the year 1874, sixty persons were 




SCENE ON THE COLORADO RIVER. 

murdered at different times in Texas by 
raider Indians from the Fort Sill reservation, 
where they were fed by the government and 
treated as friends. In addition to these atroc- 
ities, they also ran off with a large number 
of horses and mules belonging to settlers on 
the frontier and to freighters. 

In July, the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, 
in turning over the savages to the military, 
directed that " friendly Indians, not partici- 
pating in late outrages, coming into agencies. 



8i6 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



will be protected. All professing to be loyal 
must enter immediately and be enrolled, 
and each one capable of bearing arms must 
answer to daily roll-call. No additional 
Indians must be received amongst them with- 
out permission." The result of this announce- 
ment was the enrollment of one hundred and 
seventy-three Kiowas, present at the time of 
the receipt of the commissioner's dispatch, 
and who, the agent was positive, had not 
been at war; one hundred and eight Apaches, 
likewise present; and eighty-three Caman- 
ches, either there at the time or arriving by 
August third, the day appointed by Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel Davidson as the last upon which 
the enrollment could take place. 

Some time after August third, the follow- 
ing Camanche chiefs asked permission to 
•come in : Big Red Food, Tobermanca, Assan- 
onica. Little Crow and Black Duck. Word 
was sent to Assanonica that he would be 
admitted on condition of yielding up his 
.arms. The rest were forbidden to come, 
since it was well known that they had been 
•engaged in several massacres. Big Red 
Food, however, defied the prohibition, and 
drawing near to the Wichita agency with his 
band, formed a point around which the dis- 
affected began to gather. 

The Kiowas Open Fire. 

On the twenty-first of August, Lieutenant- 
Colonel Davidson received word from the 
officer commanding at the agency that trouble 
was anticipated there. He at once marched 
with four companies of cavalry, and imme- 
diately upon his arrival effected the arrest of 
Red Food, chief of the Nocanees, and told 
him that he and his band must submit. He 
appeared to consent, but presently escaped 
from his guard. 

At the same time the troops were fired 
upon from the rear by Kiowas, many of whom 
liad just been enrolled at Fort Sill as friendly. 



The troops were much perplexed in the 
endeavor to distinguish the amicable from 
the hostile Indians ; but by the aid of inter- 
preters this was accomplished; the inimical 
band was scattered and its lodges and prop- 
erty were destroyed. It had undoubtedly 
been their design to implicate those of their 
band who were disposed to peace, but their 
purpose was entirely frustrated, and the affil- 
iated tribes belonging to the agency were set- 
tled in their allegiance more firmly than ever. 
In April, 1875, an engagement occurred at 
the north fork of Sappa Creek. On the 
morning of the nineteenth of April Lieuten- 
ant Austin Henely, of Fort Wallace, Kansas, 
started to find the trail of a party of Indians 
reported to be at Punished Woman's Fork. 
With him were forty men of Company H, 
Sixth Cavalry, Lieutenant C. C. Hewitt, Sur- 
geon F. H. Atkins, and Mr. Homer Wheeler, 
post-trader of Fort Wallace, as guide. He 
also had fifteen days' rations, ten days' forage 
and two six-mule teams. 

On the Trail. 

On the second day he directed that his 
wagons, with a guard under the command of 
Sergeant Kitchin, should proceed directly to 
Hackberry Creek while he scouted Twin 
Butte and Hackberry to find a trail. About 
noon Corporal Morris, commanding the ad- 
vance, discovered traces of twelve lodges. 
Lieutenant Henely at once collected his 
wagons, abandoned one of them, as well as 
half his forage, rations and camp equipage, 
notified the commanding officer at Fort Wal- 
lace of the fact, in order that they might be 
recovered, and started on the trail at the 
rate of nearly five miles an hour, reaching 
Smoky Hill River that night. A heavy rain 
during the night rendered it difficult to fol- 
low the tracks the next day. At the Kansas 
Pacific Railroad the trail was scattered and 
lost. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



817 



After considerable deliberation it was de- 
cided to take a northeast course to the North 
Beaver and follow it to its source, upon the 
supposition that the Indians would collect 
there and pass down for the purpose of hunt- 
ing. Shortly after daylight a party of hunt- 
ers was met, who informed Lieutenant Henely 
that the Indians he was in search of were on 
the north fork of Sappa Creek, and had 
robbed their camp during their absence the 
day before. Three of the hunters volunteered 
to guide the party to the Indian encamp- 
ment. 

In the gray dawn of the morning the squad 
arrived at the creek, about three-quarters of 
a mile above the camp, being attracted to the 
spot by the sight of a number of ponies graz- 
ing. Presently Mr. Wheeler came back, 
galloping with furious speed, swinging his 
hat and shouting in a loud voice. As the 
force came up with him the Indian camp was 
displayed to view. 

Plan of Attack. 

The plan for the attack had been arranged 
as follows : Sergeant Kitchin was detailed to 
kill the herders, round up the herd as near 
as possible to the main command and take 
charge of it with half of his men. Corporal 
Sharpies, with five men, was left with the 
wagon and instructed to keep as near as pos- 
sible to Lieutenant Henely, the rest of the 
command were to attack the savages. 

The north fork of Sappa Creek at this 
point is very crooked, is bordered by high 
and precipitous bluffs, and flows sluggishly 
through a marshy bottom, making it ex- 
tremely difficult to cross. As the men 
charged down the sides ten or twelve of the 
Indians ran rapidly up the bluff to a small 
herd of ponies ; others escaped down the 
creek to another herd ; while the remainder, 
the last to be awakened, probably seeing that 
flight was impossible, prepared for a des- 
52 



perate defence. By this time the men had 
reached the creek, which looked alarmingly 
deep and marshy. 

Lieutenant Henely, realizing that no time 
was to be lost in searching for a crossing, 
plunged in with his horse, followed by Mr. 
Wheeler. By extraordinary efforts their 
horses struggled through. A corporal who 
followed became mired ; but at length, by 
strenuous endeavors, all succeeded in cross- 
ing just as a number of dusky figures with 
long rifles confronted them, their heads ap- 
pearing over a bank made by the creek in 
highwater. 

The Battle-ground. 

This bank, with the portion of the creek 
and bluffs in the immediate vicinity, possessed 
the rather remarkable feature of a large num- 
ber of curious holes or pits, for what purpose 
constructed did not appear. Some of the 
Indians took refuge in these hollows ; others 
lined the bank, with their rifles resting on the 
crest. Lieutenant Henely rapidly formed 
his men in line and signalled to the savages 
to surrender, as did likewise Mr. Wheeler. 
One, who appeared to be a chief, made some 
rapid gesticulations which seemed to be 
motions for a parley ; but it was soon obvious 
that they were meant for Indians in the rear. 

The lieutenant now ordered his men to 
dismount and fight on foot, and as they did 
so the enemy fired, but in so excited a 
manner that no one was hurt. The troops, 
posted around in a skirmish-line, were com- 
manded to fire. If the reader will imagine 
the dress circle of a theatre lowered to within 
about five feet of the pit, the men to be 
deployed about the edge, and the Indians 
down among the orchestra-chairs, they will 
have some idea of the relative positions of 
the parties. The most exposed portion was 
near the centre of the arc. Here Sergeant 
Theodore Papier and Private Robert Theims, 



8i8 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



of Company H, Sixth Cavalry, were instantly 
killed while fighting with great valor. 

After some twenty minutes of firing the 




VIEW IN TH"E GRAND CANYON OF THE COLORADO RIVER. 

Indians ceased to return the attack, and the 
lieutenant prepared to draw off his men in 
pursuit of those who had fled. Scarcely had 



they mounted when two savages ran up to 
the two bodies in the endeavor to gain pos- 
session of them; but three or four men 
^ charged them at a gal- 
lop and rendered their 
efforts useless. At 
this moment an In- 
dian, gaudily dressed, 
jumped from a hole 
and,with peculiar side- 
long leaps, attempted 
to escape, but was shot 
down. Lieutenant 
Henely then posted 
his men at the ends of 
the crest and resumed 
the attack, the savages 
returning it from their 
pits, but without doing 
any damage. 

The firing having 
ceased, it was inferred 
thatall were killed, and 
the command moved 
in the direction of the 
ponies, driving off the 
Indian guard and 
bringing in a herd of 
the animals. As they 
returned a solitary 
shot was fired from 
the holes, piercing 
the horse of one of 
the officers entirely 
through the body. 
Lieutenant Henely 
then determined to 
make a termination, 
and ordered the men 
to advance on all sides, 
keeping up a steady 
fire. The only response was a few shots from 
the pits, which did no damage. 

Nineteen dead warriors were counted, in 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



819 



addition to eight squaws and children acci- 
dentally killed. From the war-bonnets and 
rich ornaments, two were judged to be 
chiefs, and one whose bonnet was sur- 
mounted by two horns was thought to be a 
medicine-man. 

The Indian camp was burned and the cap- 
tured stock, amounting to one hundred and 
thirty-four animals, driven off. On the re- 
turn march to Fort Wallace the command 
was overtaken by a terrible snow-storm and 
forced to encamp under a bank. It was im- 
possible to herd the captured stock, the en- 
tire attention of the men being required to 
save themselves and their horses from freez- 
ing to death. Having no tents and but one 
blanket each, the men passed a night of in- 
tense suffering. Some of them were frozen ; 
others, who had dug holes in the banks for 
shelter, had to be extricated in the morning 
by their comrades. On the following day 
the men disbanded into small squads to 
search for the captured stock, and succeeded 
in recapturing about one hundred head. 

In January, 1875, Congress passed an act 
providing for the resumption of specie pay- 
ments, and requiring that on and after Janu- 
ary I, 1879, the legal tender notes of the 
Government shall be redeemed in specie. In 
the meantime silver coin is to be substituted 
for the fractional paper currency. 

On the fourth of March, 1875, the Terri- 
tory of Colorado was admitted into the Union 
as a State, making the thirty-eighth member 
of the confederacy. 

Centennial Celebration. 

The political troubles in Louisiana and 
Arkansas assumed a most serious character 
during the year 1873, amounting to civil war 
in both States. The President, in view of 
the serious nature of the disturbances, inter- 
vened with force in each State, and compelled 
the rival parties to refrain from additional 



hostilities, and the quarrels were settled in 
the course of the year without further blood- 
shed. 

The year 1875 completed the period of 
one hundred years from the opening of the 
revolution, and the events of 1775 were cele- 
brated with appropriate commemorative cere- 
monies in the places where they occurred. 
The centennial anniversary of the battles at 
Lexington and Concord was celebrated at 
those places on the nineteenth of April with 
great rejoicings. On the seventeenth 01 
June the centennial of Bunker Hill was cele- 
brated at Charlestown. Vast crowds were 
present from all parts of the country. One 
of the most gratifying features of the cele- 
bration was the presence and hearty partici- 
pation in the ceremonies of a large number 
of troops from the Southern States. Nearly 
all of these had served in the Confederate 
army, and their presence in the metropolis 
of New England was an emphatic proof that 
the Union has indeed been restored. The 
memory of the common glory won by the 
fathers of the republic has already done 
much to heal the wounds and obliterate the 
scars of the civil war. May the good work 
go on. 

Imposing Ceremonies. 

As early as 1872 measures were set on 
foot for the proper observance of the one 
hundredth anniversary of the independence 
of the United States. It was resolved to 
commemorate the close of the first century 
of the republic by an International Exhibi- 
tion, to be held at Philadelphia in 1876, in 
which all the nations of the world were in- 
vited to participate. Preparations were at 
once set on foot for the great celebration. 

The European governments with great 
cordiality responded to the invitations ex- 
tended to them by the government of the 
United States, and on the tenth of May, 



820 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



1876, the International Centennial Exhibi- 
tion was opened with the most imposing 
ceremonies, in the presence of an immense 
concourse of citizens from all parts of the 
Union, and of the President of the United 
States and the Emperor of Brazil. The ex- 
hibition remained open from May loth to 
November loth, 1876, and was visited by 
several million people from the various 
States of the Union, from Canada, South 
America and Europe. It was one of the 
grandest and most notable events of the cen- 
tury, and illustrated our country's progress. 




MEMORIAL HALL, FAIRMOUNT PARK, 

On the fourth day of July, 1876, the United 
States of America completed the one hun- 
dredth year of their existence as an inde- 
pendent nation. The day was celebrated 
with imposing ceremonies and with the most 
patriotic enthusiasm in all parts of the Union. 
The celebrations began on the night of the 
third of July, and were kept up until near 
rrudnight on the fourth. Each of the great 
cities of the Union vied with the others in 
the splendor and completeness of its rejoic- 
ings; but the most interesting of all the 
celebrations was naturally that which was 



held at Philadelphia, in which city the De- 
claration of Independence was adopted. 

The arrangements for the proper observ- 
ance of the day were confided to the United 
States Centennial Commission, and extensive 
preparations were made to conduct them on 
a scale of splendor worthy of the glorious 
occasion. The city of Philadelphia and the 
State of Pennsylvania lent their cordial co- 
operation to the effort to have all things in 
readiness for the Fourth, and the work went 
forward with a heartiness and vigor that 
could not fail of complete success. 

It was wisely re- 
solved by the Com- 
mission that as the 
Declaration of In- 
dependence was 
signed in Independ- 
ence Hall and pro- 
claimed to the peo- 
ple in Independence 
Square, the com- 
memorative cere- 
monies should be 
so conducted as to 
make the venerable 
building the grand 
central figure of all 
the demonstrations. 
The city authorities 
caused the building to be handsomely draped 
in the national colors, and enormous stands, 
covered with canvas awnings and orna- 
mented with flags and streamers, were 
erected in Independence Square for the 
accommodation of the singers and invited 
guests who were to take part in the rejoic- 
ings. A new bell of vast proportions — the 
gift of a patriotic and public-spirited citizen 
— was hung in the State House tower, 
ready to join its deep tones to the shouts 
of the multitude when the moment of rejoic- 
ing" should arrive. 



PHILADELPHIA. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



821 



Being anxious that the Centennial celebra- 
tion should do its share in cementing the 
reunion of the Northern and Southern States, 
the Commission began, at least a year before 
the occasion, the formation of a " Centen- 
nial Legion," consisting of a detachment of 
troops from each of the thirteen original 
States. The command of this splendid body 
of picked troops was conferred upon General 
Ambrose E. Burnside, of Rhode Island, and 
General Henry Heth, of Virginia, was chosen 
Lieutenant-Colonel. Both were veterans of 
the late civil war. The Legion was readily 
made up, the best volunteer commands of 
the original States being eager to serve in it. 
For a week previous to the fourth of July 
crowds of people began to pour steadily into 
Philadelphia. Volunteer organizations from 
the variou s States were constantly arriving and 
were either encamped at various points in 
and around the Exhibition grounds or were 
quartered at the various hotels. 

Gay Decorations. 

The city was gayly decorated with flags 
and streamers, and the view down any of the 
principal streets w^as brilliant by reason of 
the clouds of bunting with which it was 
decorated. The principal buildings were 
almost hidden by the flags which adorned 
them, or were ornamented with patriotic 
inscriptions, and at various points on Chestnut 
street triumphal arches were erected. By 
the night of the third of July it was estimated 
that at least two hundred and fifty thousand 
strangers were assembled in Philadelphia. 

The Centennial ceremonies were begun on 
the morning of Saturday, the first of July. 
The leading writers of the Union had been 
invited to prepare memoirs of the great men 
of our revolutionary period, which were to 
be deposited among the archives of the State 
House, and all who were able to accept the 
invitation assembled in Independence Hall at 



eleven o'clock on the morning of July i, 
1876, where they were joined by a number 
of invited guests. The ceremonies were 
opened by an address from Colonel Frank 
M, Etting, the Chairman of the Committee 
on the Restoration of Independence Hall, and 
a prayer by the Rev. William White Bronson. 
Whittier's Centennial Hymn was then sung 
by a chorus of fifty voices. The names of 
the authors were then called, to which each 
responded in person or by proxy, and laid 
his memoir on the table in the hall. The 
exercises were then brought to a close, and 
the company repaired to the stand in Inde- 
pendence Square, where a large crowd had 
assembled. 

Odes, Speeches and Orations. 

The ceremonies in the square were begun 
at half-past twelve o'clock with Helfrich's 
Centennial Triumphal March, performed by 
the Centennial Musical Association. Mr. 
John William Wallace, the president of the 
day, then delivered a short address, after 
which Whittier's Centennial Hymn was sung 
by a chorus of one hundred and fifty voices, 
and Mr. William V. McKean reviewed at 
some length the great historical event in 
commemoration of which the ceremonies 
were held. 

After the band had played " God Save 
America," the Hon. Leverett Saltonstall, of 
Massachusetts, delivered an address, which 
elicited warm applause. " The Voice of the 
Old Bell," a Centennial ode, was then sunfr, 
and Governor Henry Lippitt, of Rhode 
Island, made a short speech. The band 
followed with a number of patriotic airs, and 
Mr. Wallace announced the unavoidable 
absence of General John A. Dix, and intro- 
duced in his place Frederick De Peyster, 
President of the New York Historical Society, 
who made a few remarks. After a Cen- 
tennial Ode, by S. C. Upham, had been sung 




822 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



823 



by the chorus, the Hon. Benjamin Harris 
Brewster delivered an eloquent address, at 
the close of which another Centennial Hymn, 
by William Fennimore, was sung. Senator 
Frank P. Stevens, of Maryland, then said a 
few words, after which the " Star Spangled 
Banner" was sung, and the exercises were 
brought to a close by a prayer from Bishop 
Stevens. 

All through Sunday , the second, the crowds 
continued to pour into the city, and on Mon- 
day, third, the streets were almost impassable. 
Business was generally suspended from the 
iirst to the fifth of July. 

Brilliant Illuminations. 

The celebration ushering in the F'ourth of 
July was begun on the night of the third. A 
grand civic and torchlight procession paraded 
the streets, which were brilliantly illuminated 
along the whole line of march. The proces- 
sion began to move about half-past 8 o'clock 
at night, and consisted of deputations repre- 
sentative of the various trades of the city, the 
Centennial Commissioners from the various 
foreign countries taking part in the Exhibi- 
tion, the Governors of a number of the States 
of the Union, officers of the army and navy 
of the United States, civic and political asso- 
ciations and officers of foreign men-of-war 
visiting the city. Some of the deputations 
bore torches, and these added to the bril- 
liancy of the scene. All along the line fire- 
works were ascending into the air, and cheer 
after cheer went up from the dense masses of 
enthusiastic spectators which filled the side- 
walks. 

The illumination of the streets along the 
route of the procession was superb. Chest- 
nut and Broad streets flashed resplendently 
in lines of fire and colored lanterns. The 
dense masses which thronged these streets 
stood out boldly in the clear light of the illu- 
mination, and the long, slow-moving line of 



the procession flowed through them like a 
vast river. 

Crowds had collected around Independence 
Hall, filling the street before it and the square 
in the rear of it. An orchestra and chorus 
were stationed on the stands in the square to 
hail the opening of the Fourth with music. 
The movements of the procession were so 
timed that the head of the column arrived in 
front of Independence Hall precisely at mid- 
night. 

Grand Military Parade. 

The crowd, which had been noisy but good 
natured, was hushed into silence as the hands 
of the clock in the tower approached the 
midnight hour, and one hundred thousand 
people waited in breathless eagerness the 
strokes which were to usher in the glorious 
day. As the minute-hand swept slowly past 
the hour there was a profound silence, and 
then came rolling out of the lofty steeple the 
deep, liquid tones of the new liberty bell, 
sounding wonderfully solemn and sweet as 
they floated down to the crowd below. Thir- 
teen peals were struck, and the first tone had 
hardly died away when there went up from 
the crowd such a shout as had never been 
heard in Philadelphia before. It was caught 
up and re-echoed all over the city, and at the 
same time the musicians and singers in the 
square broke into the grand strains of the 
" Star Spangled Banner." All the bells and 
steam whistles in the city joined in the sounds 
of rejoicing, and fireworks and firearms made 
the noise tenfold louder. When the " Star 
Spangled Banner " was ended the chorus in 
Independence Square sang the " Doxology," 
in which the crowd joined heartily, and the 
band then played national airs. 

The festivities were kept up until after two 
o'clock, and it was not until the first streaks 
of the dawn began to tinge the sky that the 
streets of the city resumed their wonted 
appearance. 



824 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



The lull in the festivities was not of long 
duration. The day was at hand, and it threat- 
ened to be mercilessly hot, as indeed it was. 
As the sun arose in his full-orbed splendor, 
the thunder of cannon from the Navy Yard, 
from the heights of Fairmount Park, and from 
the Swedish, Brazilian, and American war 
vessels in the Delaware, and the clanging of 
bells from every steeple in the city, roused 
the few who had managed to snatch an hour 
or two of sleep after the fatigues of the night. 




GENERAL J. R. HAWLEY. 

and by six o'clock the streets were again 
thronged. 

In view of the extreme heat of the weather, 
the military parade had been ordered for an 
early hour of the day. The troops numbered 
about ten thousand men, rank and file, and 
the whole column was under the chief com- 
mand of General Hartranft, Governor of Penn- 
sylvania, and a gallant veteran of the civil 
war. The command was made up of troops, 
who during that bloody struggle had fought 
each other gallantly, and who had now come 
to testify their devotion to their common 



country, and to show to the world that in 
trusting its defence to its well-regulated mil- 
itia, the American republic is stronger than 
the most powerful monarchies of the old 
world. 

At half-past eight, the column began to 
move down Chestnut street towards Indepen- 
dence Hall, in front of which the troops were 
reviewed by General W. T. Sherman, the 
Commanding General of the armies of the 
United States; the Secretary of War; Prince 
Oscar of Sweden ; Lieutenant-General Saigo, 
of the Imperial army of Japan ; the officers 
of the Swedish men-of-war in the harbor; the 
governors of several of the States ; and Gen- 
eral Hawley, the President of the Centennial 
Commission. 

As the troops passed along they were 
greeted with enthusiastic cheers by the 
crowds on the street. The Centennial Legion 
and the troops from the Southern States were 
the objects of an especially hearty demon- 
stration. The route chosen was a short one, 
the extreme heat forbidding an extended 
parade, and by ten o'clock, the military cere- 
*monies were over. 

Huzzahs in Independence Square. 

As soon as the parade was ended the crowd 
turned into Independence Square, which was 
soon hlled. The approaches to the building 
by way of Chestnut and Sansom streets were 
kept clear by the police, in order that those 
who were entitled to seats on the stand might 
reach their places. Four thousand persons 
were given seats on the stand, and a vast 
crowd filled the square. As the invited guests 
appeared and took their seats on the platform, 
the prominent personages were cheered by 
the crowd. The Emporer of Brazil received 
a welcome that was especially noticeable for 
its heartiness. 

It was hoped that the President of the 
United States would be present and preside. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



825 



over the ceremonies ; but General Grant 
declined the invitation to do so, which it was 
at once his privilege and his duty to accept, 
and remained in Washington, preferring his 
selfish ease to a little patriotic exertion and 
exposure to the heat on this grandest of his 
country's festivals. His absence was gen- 
erally remarked and severely condemned by 
his countrymen. 

At a few minutes after ten o'clock, Gen- 
eral Hawley, the President of the United 
States Centennial Commission, appeared at 
the speaker's stand and signalled to the 
orchestra to begin. The opening piece, 
which was an overture entitled " The Great 
Republic," based on the national air, " Hail 
Columbia," and arranged for the occasion 
by Professor George F. Bristow, of New 
York, was rendered in fine style by the 
orchestra under the leadership of Mr. P. 
Gilmore. As the music ceased General 
Hawley again came forward and introduced 
as the presiding officer of the day the Hon. 
Thomas W. Ferry, Vice-President of the 
United States, who was received with loud 
cheers. 

Great Enthusiasm Over the Declaration. 

After a few remarks appropriate to the 
occasion Vice President Ferry presented to 
the audience Right Reverend William Bacon 
Stevens, D. D., the Protestant Episcopal 
Bishop of Pennsylvania, whom he introduced 
as the ecclesiastical successor of the first 
chaplain of the Continental Congress. The 
bishop was in his canonical robes, with prayer 
book in hand. He delivered a solemn and 
impressive prayer, during the utterance of 
which the whole audience stood v.ith un- 
covered heads, silent and attentive, unmind- 
ful of the blazing sun which poured down 
upon them. 

When the prayer was ended the " Hymn, 
* Welcome to All Nations,' words by Oliver 



Wendell Holmes, music, ' Keller's Hymn,' " 
was sung. The Vice-President then an- 
nounced that Richard Henry Lee, of Vir- 
ginia, a grandson of the patriot of the 
Revolution who offered the resolution in 
Congress that " these United Colonies are 
and of right ought to be free and independ- 
ent States," would read the Declaration of 
Independence from the original manuscript, 
which the President had entrusted to the 
Mayor of Philadelphia. The faded and 
crumbling manuscript, held together by a 
simple frame, was then exhibited to the 
crowd and was greeted with cheer after cheer. 
Richard Henry Lee, a soldierly-looking Vir- 
ginian, then came forward and read the 
Declaration ; but the enthusiasm of the 
crowd was too great to permit them to listen 
to it quietly. 

At the close of the reading the orchestra 
performed a musical composition entitled 
"A Greeting from Brazil," a hymn for the 
first Centennial of American Independence, 
composed by A. Carlos Gomez, of Brazil, at 
the request of His Majesty Dom Pedro II, 
Emperor of Brazil. It was received with 
cheers by the crowd, which were repeated 
for the Brazilian Emperor, whose hearty 
interest in the Centennial celebrations and 
the Exhibition had made him a favorite in 
Philadelphia. 

The Hallelujah Chorus 

Mr. John Welsh, Chairman of the Centen- 
nial Board of Finance, then, at the sugges- 
tion of Vice-President Ferry, introduced 
Bayard Taylor, the poet of the day, who 
recited a noble ode, which was listened to 
with deep attention, the audience occasionally 
breaking out into applause. When the poem 
was ended, the chorus sang "Our National 
Banner," the words by Dexter Smith, of 
Massachusetts, the music by Sir Julius Bene- 
dict, of England- 




S26 INTERSECTION OF NINTH AND CHESTNUT STS., PHILADELPHIA. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



827 



As the music died away the Vice-Presi- 
dent introduced the Hon. William ]\I. Evarts, 
of New York, the orator of the day. Mr. 
Evarts was greeted with hearty cheers, after 
which he proceeded to deliver an eloquent 
and able address, reviewing the lessons of 
the past century, and dwelling upon the great 
work America had performed for the world. 

When Mr. Evarts retired from the speak- 
er's stand. General Hawley gave the signal 
to the leader of the orchestra, and the " Hal- 
lelujah Chorus," from " The Messiah," was 
sung ; after which the vast audience, at the 
request of the Vice-President, joined in the 
One Hundredth Psalm, with which the 
memorable ceremonies came to an end. 

At night the city was brilliantly illumin- 
ated, and a magnificent display of fireworks 
was given by the municipal authorities at old 
Fairmount. 

"War with the Sioux. 

The year 1876, however, was not destined 
to be entirely a period of peace. In 1867 
the Government of the United States made 
a treaty with the Sioux Indians, by which 
the latter agreed to relinquish to the United 
States all the territory south of the Niobrara 
River, west of the one hundred and fourth 
meridian of longitude and north of the forty- 
sixth parallel of latitude. This treaty secured 
to the Sioux a large reservation in the south- 
western part of Dakota, and they agreed to 
withdraw to this reservation by the first of 
January, 1876. A few years later gold was 
discovered in the Black Hills country, a very 
desirable region situated in southwestern 
Dakota, and lying within the Sioux reser- 
vation. 

The announcement of this discovery pro- 
duced great excitement among the mining 
class. In the summer of 1874 an expedition 
under General Custer was sent by the War 
Department to explore the Black Hills 



region, partly for the purpose of ascertaining 
the character of the country, and partly to 
discover practicable military routes between 
Fort Lincoln, in the Department of Dakota, 
opposite the terminus of the Union Pacific 
Railway, and Fort Laramie, in the Depart- 
ment of the Platte. The report of this expe- 




OBVERSE OF CENTENNIAL MEDAL. 




REVERSE OF CENTENNIAL MEDAL. 

dition confirmed the stories of the discovery 
of gold, and immediate preparations were 
made by parties of miners to proceed to the 
favored lands for the purpose of working the 
gold mines. These expeditions being re- 
ported to the Government, measures were 
taken by the W^ar Department to prevent 



828 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



any intrusion into the Indian reservation. 
Notwithstanding this prohibition, private 
expeditions were fitted out and started for 
the Black Hills. Some of these were driven 
back by the Indians, with loss of life and 
property, but others succeeded in reaching 
the Black Hills. 

It was now evident that a systematic and 
determined effort would be made to settle 
the Black Hills, in. spite of the opposition of 



to retire to the reservation to which the 
treaty of 1867 confirmed them, and now took 
advantage of the intrusions of the whites into 
their territory to gratify their long-cherished 
wish for war. They broke away from their 
reservation, and made repeated forays into 
Wyoming and Montana, laid the country 
waste, carried off the horses and cattle, and 
murdered such settlers as ventured to oppose 
them. 




SHOSHONEE FALLS, IDAHO. 



the army; and the government decided to 
endeavor to purchase the region from the 
Sioux and throw it open to emigration 
Efforts were made during the year 1875 to 
induce the Sioux to sell their lands, but the 
weak and vacillating course pursued by the 
government simply disgusted the Indians, 
and they refused to make the desired ar- 
rangement. 

The Sioux had never been really willing 



This brought matters to a crisis, and early 
in 1876 the government resolved to drive 
the Sioux back upon their reservation. A 
force of regular troops, under Generals Terry 
and Crook, was sent into the difficult moun- 
tainous region of the Upper Yellowstone, 
and an active campaign was begun against 
the Indians. The force Avas too small, how- 
ever, for the work required of it. 

In spite of the smallness of its numbers, 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



829 



the army on the frontier succeeded in forc- 
ing the savages, who were led by Sitting 
Bull, their most famous chief, and who num- 
bered several thousand fighting men, back to 
the Big Horn mountains. The Indians now 
took up a strong position in the mountains, 
and on the twenty-fifth of June, 1876, the 
Seventh Cavalry, under Generals Custer and 
Reno, were sent forward to ascertain the 
whereabouts of the enemy. They found the 
savages encamped on the left bank of the 
Little Horn River, and occupying a large 
village some three miles in length. General 
Custer, with his little command, at once 
made a gallant attack upon the Indian vil- 
lage, hoping that General Reno would be 
able to come up in time to support him. 
Reno was unable to advance, however, Cus- 
ter's little band was soon surrounded by sev- 
eral thousand of the bravest Sioux warriors. 
The conflict which ensued was one of the 
most heroic in the annals of the American 
army, and one of the most disastrous. Cus- 
ter was slain, together with every man who 
accompanied him into the fight, but not 
until they had exacted a fearful price for 
their lives at the hands of the savages. 

The Indians Defeated. 

General Reno, in the meantime, had be- 
come engaged at the opposite end of the 
town, and was so hard pressed by the Indians 
that he was unable to go to Custer's assist- 
ance. He succeeded in drawing off his men 
and in retiring to the bluffs of the Little Horn, 
where he held his position until the arrival 
of General Gibbon with reinforcements com- 
pelled the savages to retreat, and saved the 
remnant of the Seventh Cavalry from destruc- 
tion. The disaster of the Little Horn was 
the most terrible defeat ever inflicted upon 
the United States army by the savages, and 
was directly due to the criminal folly of the 
administration in sending- a mere handful of 



troops to meet a strong body of the bravest 
Indian warriors on the continent. 

The disaster aroused such a storm of indig- 
nation throughout the country that the Gov- 
ernment hastily forwarded reinforcements to 
the frontier, and Generals Terry and Crook 
were able to conduct their campaign with 
more vigor. The Indians were beaten in a 
number of engagements, and on the twenty- 
fourth of November suffered a decisive defeat 
in a battle with the Fourth Cavalry, under 
Colonel McKenzie, at one of the passes of 




GENERAL GEORGE CROOK. 

the Big Horn Mountains. Negotiations were 
in progress during the summer and autumn 
for the removal of the Sioux to the Indian 
Territory, and by the beginning of the winter 
the greater part of the savages had surren- 
dered. 

A few bands under Sitting Bull and Crazy- 
Horse continued in the field. They were not 
allowed to remain in security during the win- 
ter, and on the eighth of January, 1877, a 
decisive victory was won over the band of 
Crazy Horse at Wolfe Mountains, in Mon- 
tana Territory, by General Miles, with a force 



830 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



of infantry and artillery. This victory led to 
the surrender of other bands of Indians, and 




INDIANS SURPRISED AND DEFEATED 



early in 1877 the operations against Sitting 
Bull obliged that chief to take refuge in the 



territory of British America. By the spring 
of 1877 the war had been practically brought 
to a close. 

The question of the re- 
construction of the South- 
ern States was one of the 
legacies which President 
Grant received at the hands 
of his predecessor. It was 
fondly hoped by the coun- 
try at large that under the 
new administration " the 
work of reconstruction 
would be accomplished and 
the wounds of civil war 
healed." The utterances of 
President Grant upon en- 
tering upon his new duties 
justified these expectations, 
as it was not believed that 
he cherished extreme views, 
or that he harbored vindict- 
ive feelings. 

" Nor is it probable," says 
a distinguished Northern 
writer,* "that those who 
relied upon the President's 
disposition to deal fairly 
and even liberally with the 
Southern States, were at all 
mistaken in that regard;, 
but his ignorance in civil 
affairs, which in some cases 
was conspicuous and mor- 
tifying, seems very early to 
have thrown him into the 
hands of managing politi- 
cians, and these were mainly 
of the extreme type, who 
made up in bitterness what 
they lacked in breadth. The 
politicians from the South 
who were most about him were generally 



* Charles Francis Adams, Jr. 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



835 



adventurers, who found the power of the 
government a convenient instrument for 
the furtherance of personal schemes, and 
who did not scruple to make use of their 
influence with the President to that end. 
Among these was one of the President's 
brothers-in-law, who amazed the country 
by his daring disregard of the rights of the 



judicial fairness ? Republican leaders who' 
were disposed to amnesty and a real oblivion 
for past offences, were elbowed out of place, 
and at last driven to the rear." 

The labors of reconstruction were nomi- 
nally completed in 1S70. " Had the course 
of the managing men of the party r 

been wise and conciliatory, had it been actu- 












HORSESHOE BEND ON THE PENNSYLVANIA NEAR ALTOONA. 




State which he had chosen as the scene 
of his operations. The Northern politicians 
who surrounded the President were largely 

of a similar stripe Was it to 

be expected of such men that they would 
deal generously with a fallen foe, or was it 
within the compass of partisanship like theirs 
that their opponents should be treated with 



ated by high motives and statesmanlike 
views, and had the men who represented the 
party in the Southern States been men who 
were laboring for the good of their section, 
rather than for the advancement of their own 
personal interests, it is not to be doubted that 
the administration would have been able to 
attach to itself th-e support of a majority of 



832 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



the Southern people. The colored people 
were naturally its friends. 

" The patronage of the administration was 







CANYON OF THE LODORE AND GREENE 

large, and it would have drawn a strong 
support to the party had it been distributed 
Avisely and from an evident desire to accom- 



plish only the purposes for which offices are 
created. Moreover, the Southern people 
needed peace and quiet to recuperate their 

exhausted interests; 
and while many 
hot-heads were sup- 
posed to be violent 
and troublesome, 
the best and most 
influential of them, 
of whom the late 
Vice-President of 
the Confederacy 
was an example, 
were disposed to 
accept with grati- 
tude such advances 
oftheir late enemies 
as promised to 
render peace pos- 
sible and perma- 
nent. But as, un- 
fortunately, all 
were not of this 
class, the persons 
who had the Presi- 
dent's ear, and who 
assumed to speak 
for the party in 
Congress, found it 
convenient for their 
purpose to present 
the impracticable 
and violent as the 
proper representa- 
tives of Southern 
sentiment, and to 
speak of and deal 
with the Southern 
people as unrepent- 

RIVERS, WYOMING. *. u i u 

' ant rebels,who were 

to be held down by the strong hand. 

" That the white people of the South were 
alienated from the Republican party was not 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



833 



surprising. It was almost a matter of course 
that the control of the Southern States should 
pass to the Democratic party, for it was quite 
impossible to retain all the freedmen in one 
party, while their late masters, the persons 
upon whom they now relied for employment, 
were mainly to be found in the other. The 
'color line' was drawn when the narrow pol- 
icy of extreme partisans among the Repub- 
lican leaders arrayed against them Southern 
whites ; the drawing of it indeed left some 
white leaders among the freedmen, but it did 
not prevent a still greater number of the lat- 
ter following the political fortunes of those 
with whose material interests their own were 
so closely identified ; and the political ascen- 
dency of the Republican party in the South- 
ern States was lost permanently."* 

Trouble in Louisiana. 

This interference of the President in the 
affairs of a State was brought to a crisis in 
the winter of 1874-75, in the State of Louisi- 
ana. At the election for members of the 
Legislature, held during the fall of 1874, both 
the Republican and Conservative parties 
claimed the victory. The Legislature met 
in New Orleans, on the fourth of January, 
1875, and a struggle ensued for the control 
of the organization of the lower House. By 
their superior strategy the Democrats, or 
Conservatives, were successful, and proceeded 
to organize the House and seat five members 
of their own party, who had contested as 
many Republican seats in the House. The 
Democratic triumph was of short duration, 
however, for in a few moments. General De 
Trobriand, of the United States army, entered 
the hall and announced that he had orders to 
remove the five members sworn in. 

The Democratic Speaker, and the five 
members themselves, protested against this 



* Charles Francis Adams, Jr. 
53 



interference on the part of the Federal troops, 
and declared that they would not leave their 
seats until forced from them. General De 
Trobriand immediately summoned a file of 
soldiers, and the five members were removed 
from their seats and expelled from the hall, 
the Democratic Speaker and members at 
once withdrew from the hall, and the House 
was organized by the Republicans. 

This strange and inexcusable spectacle of 
the interference of the Federal troops in the 
domestic affairs of a State had no parallel in 
American history. It aroused a feeling of 




SAMUEL J IILDEN. 

general indignation throughout the North 
and the President was sharply denounced, 
even by men of his own party, for his inter- 
ference with the organization of a State 
Legislature. Several Governors addressed 
special messages on the subject to the Legis- 
latures of their respective States, and legisla- 
lative resolutions were passed denouncing 
the course pursued by the Federal govern- 
ment. 

The indignation which thus expressed 
itself was greatly increased by a dispatch 
from General Sheridan, commanding at New 



834 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



Orleans, to the War Department, dated fifth 
of January, 1875, advising the general govern- 
ment to declare the people of Louisiana 
banditti, and to turn them over to him and to 
his troops for punishment. This savage sug- 
gestion was deeply resented by the people of 
the whole country, who had by this time 
good cause to deplore any interference of 
the military in civil affairs. 

There is reason to believe that the public 
indignation was felt by even the President, 
for, in a message to Congress upon the sub- 
ject, he made this admission, while defending 




THOMAS A. HENDRICKS. 

the course of the administration : " I am 
well aware that any military interference by 
the officers or troops of the United States 
with the organization of a State Legislature 
or any of its proceedings, or with any civil 
department of the government, is repugnant 
to our ideas of government. I can conceive 
of no case not involving rebellion or insur- 
rection where such interference by authority 
of the general government ought to be per- 
mitted, or can be justified.'' 

In the summer of 1876 the various poiliti- 
cal parties of the Union met in their respective 



conventions to the nominate candidates for 
the Presidency and Vice-Presidency of the 
United States, which officers were to be 
chosen at the general election in November. 
The Republican Convention assembled at 
Cincinnati, Ohio, on the fourteenth of June, 
and resulted in the nomination of Governor 
Rutherford B. Hayes, of Ohio, for Presideiit of 
the United States, and of William A. Wheeler, 
of New York, for Vice-President. The 
Democratic Convention was held at St. Louis 
on the twenty-seventh of June, and nomi- 
nated Governor Samuel J. Tilden, of New* 
York, for the Presidency, and Governor 
Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana, for the 
Vice-Presidency. A third convention, repre- 
senting the Independent Greenback party, 
met at Indianapolis, on the eighteenth of 
May, and nominated Peter Cooper, of New 
York, for President, and Samuel F. Cary, of 
Ohio, for Vice-President. 

Result of the Campaign. 

The campaign which followed these nomi- 
nations was one of intense bitterness, and was 
in many respects the most remarkable the 
country has ever witnessed. A most dis- 
creditable feature of it was the appearance 
of Mr. Chandler, the Secretary of the Interior, 
as the chief manager of the Republican party. 
It was the first time in the history of the 
country that a member of the President's 
Cabinet had ever held so questionable a 
position ; the first time that the patronage 
of the government had ever been used 
so openly in behalf of a political party. 
Under the leadership of Secretary Chandler, 
the manly and conciliatory letter of accept- 
ance of Governor Hayes was ignored, and 
a campaign of great bitterness was inaugur- 
ated. 

The election was held on the seventh of/ 
November. The popular vote was as 
follows : 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



835 



For Samuel J. Tilden, 4,284,265 

" Rutherford B. Hayes, 4,033,295 
" Peter Cooper, 81, 737 

Tilden thus received a popular majority of 
250,970 votes over Hayes, and a majority of 
169,233 votes over both Hayes and Cooper. 
In the Electoral Colleges, one hundred and 
eighty-five votes were necessary to a choice. 



Carolina to Governor Hayes, Mr. Tilden had 
fairly carried both Florida and Louisiana, and 
was entitled to one hundred and ninety-six 
electoral votes. The revision of the vote in 
Florida and Louisiana had been confided, 
since the reorganization of those States, to 
Returning Boards. 

It was evident from the first that each of 




POINT PLEASANT, OHIO, THE BIRTHPLACE OF PRESIDENT GRANT. 



Of this number. Governor Tilden received 
one hundred and eighty-four, and Governor 
Hayes one hundred and sixty-three undis- 
puted votes. The votes of the States of 
Florida, Louisiana, Oregon and South Car- 
olina, twenty-two in number, were claimed 
by both parties for their respective candidates. 
It was declared by the Democrats that, even 
concedincr the votes of Oregon and South 



these boards would return the vote of its 
respective State for the Republican candidate, 
and it was feared that this would be produc- 
tive of trouble, as the Democrats claimed a 
majority in these States. Immediately after 
the election, therefore, President Grant 
appointed a number of prominent Republi- 
cans to proceed to F'lorida and Louisiana to 
watch the countinof of the votes of those 



836 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRx\NT. 



States; and a number of prominent Dem- 
ocrats repaired to Tallahassee and New 
Orleans for the same purpose. These gen- 
tlemen had no official character, and were 
without power to interfere in any way with 
the counting of the vote. It was hoped, how- 
ever, that their presence as witnesses would 
act as a check upon the boards, and thus a 
fair count be secured. Both States were 
returned for Hayes. 

Investigations showed that the electoral 
vote of South Carolina had been fairly cast 
for Hayes, and it was generally conceded to 




SAMUEL J. RANDALL 

him by both parties. The Democratic Gov- 
ernor of Oregon attempted by a transparent 
fraud to give the electoral vote of that State 
to Tilden, and thus elect him ; but it came to 
be the general sentiment of the country that 
the electoral vote of Oregon should right- 
fully be cast for Hayes. 

This confined the real struggle to the votes 
of Florida and Louisiana. It was the general 
conviction of the country that both of those 
States had been fairly carried by the Demo- 
cratic party, and many earnest Republicans 
gave open expression to this belief. The 



action of the Return Boards, however, was 
still within the letter of the laws under which 
they had acted. The Republican party, there- 
fore, claimed that as such action was not con- 
trary to the laws of Florida and Louisiana it 
must stand ; that neither Congress nor any 
other body had power to go behind the cer- 
tificate of the electoral vote of a State, prop- 
erly signed and authenticated by the State 
officials ; and that when such certificates were 
presented to the two Houses of Congress, at 
the counting of the electoral votes of the 
States, they must be accepted without ques- 
tion, and the electoral votes of Florida and 
Louisiana be counted for Hayes. They 
declared that the States had power to make any 
laws they might see fit for the counting of their 
popular vote, and that for Congress to seek to 
interfere with such laws would be to illegally 
trespass upon the reserved rights of the 
States. They held, therefore, that as the 
action of the Return Boards was within the 
letter of the laws of their respective States, 
Florida and Louisiana must be counted for 
Hayes. 

The Country Agitated. 

The Democrats, on the other hand, main- 
tained that the popular majority for Tilden in 
Florida and Louisiana was too evident to be 
doubted, being simply overwhelming in the 
latter State, and that the Return Boards had 
overcome these majorities only by a fraudu- 
lent use of their powers in throwing out 
Democratic votes to an extent sufficient to 
give Florida and Louisiana to the Republi- 
cans. They declared, moreover, that, as the 
Louisiana Board had refused to appoint a 
Democratic member to the vacancy in that 
body, as required by the law under which 
they acted, their action was necessarily ille- 
gal. They held that, as both Florida and 
Louisiana had been wrongfully and fraudu- 
lently given to the Republicans by the Return 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



837 



Boards in defiance of the will of the people of 
those States as expressed at the polls, the 
electoral votes of both of those States should 
not be counted by Congress, 

Such action on the part of Congress would 
have resulted in a declaration by that body 
that there had been no popular choice of a 
President and Vice-President, and the elec- 



Boards; and the Republicans announced 
their decision to insist upon the counting of 
the votes of those States as certified by the 
State officials. Each party denounced the 
other with great bitterness ; the country was 
deeply agitated, and threats of armed resist- 
ance were freely indulged in by both parties. 
The crisis was the most alarming that had 




THE NEW DEPARTMENT OF STATE, WASHINGTON, D. C. 



tion of the President would have devolved 
upon the House of Representatives, and the 
choice of the Vice-President upon the Senate, 
in accordance with the provisions of the Con- 
stitution. The Democrats, therefore, declared 
that they would insist upon the rejection of 
the votes of Florida and Louisiana upon the 
ground of fraud on the part of the Return 



threatened the country since the outbreak of 
the civil war, A feeling of general uneasiness 
prevailed throughout the Union, which 
showed itself in the depression of business in 
all sections. 

Congress met on the fourth of December, 
1876. The House of Representatives was 
organized by the Democratic majority by the 



838 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



election of Samuel J. Randall, of Pennsyl- 
vania, as Speaker. Immediately upon the 
organization of Congress the question of the 
manner of counting the electoral votes of the 
States came up in that body. The Repub- 
lican majority in the Senate claimed that, by 
the terms of the Constitution, the Vice-Pre- 
sident was compelled to open the certificates 
of the States in the presence of the two 
Houses of Congress, in joint convention, 
and declare the result, the two Houses 
being present merely as witnesses of the 




GEORGE F. EDMUNDS. 

count by the Vice-President. With this 
view the Republicans in the lower House 
agreed. 

The Democrats in both Houses maintained 
that while the Constitution required the Vice- 
President to open the certificates and count 
the electoral votes, the two Houses of Con- 
gress were made the judges of the legality 
of those certificates, and that, in the case of 
the presentation of two certificates from the 
same State, the two Houses were the rightful 
judges of which was the proper one; and 
that, in the event of a faillue of the two 



Houses to agree in such a decision, the vote 
of such State must be rejected. 

In support of this view, they brought for- 
ward the Twenty-second Joint Rule of Con- 
gress, adopted February sixth, 1865, by a 
Republican Congress, and under which the 
counting of the electoral vote in 1865, 1869 
and T873 had been conducted. In January, 
1876, the Senate, still Republican, passed a 
concurrent resolution adopting the joint rules 
of the previous session of Congress, as the 
joint rules for that session, " excepting the 
Twenty-second Joint Rule." The House 
failed to act upon the resolutions. At the 
opening of the session in December, 1876, 
the President of the Senate ruled that there 
were no joint rules in operation. The Speaker 
of the House, on the other hand, ruled that the 
joint rules previously existing, still existed. 

Angry Speeches and Threats. 

Thus the issue between the two Houses 
was distinctly made. The House declared 
its intention of insisting upon the right 
secured to it by the Twenty-second Joint Rule 
of objecting to the vote of a State, and that 
it would vi'ithdraw from the joint convention 
if this right were denied it by the Senate. The 
Senate declared that, in case of such with- 
drawal by the House, the count would be 
continued by the Senate, and the result pro- 
claimed by the Vice-President. The House, 
on the other hand, announced its intention 
of acting in such a case if there had been no 
choice by the electoral vote; it would at 
once proceed to elect the President as re- 
quired by the Constitution. 

Each House was firm in its resolution, and 
the breach between them widened daily. 
Angry speeches and threats were made by 
members of Congress, and the general alarm 
and uneasiness deepened throughout the 
country. The time appointed by the Con- 
stitution for counting the electoral vottf was 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



839 



rapidly drawing nigh, and it seemed likely 
that an era of anarchy was about to ensue. 
Each House would act for itself; two Presi- 
dents would be declared elected. There 
was no doubt that President Grant would 
sustain the choice of the Senate with the 
army. In such an event civil war was inevi- 
table. 

The danger was so great that patriotic men 
of both parties in Congress set to work to 
devise some means of settlement. It was 
plain that this could be accomplished only 
by a compromise. A conference committee 
was appointed by each House, which com- 
mittee, after a long deliberation, reported to 
the two Houses of Congress a bill providing 
for the appointment of a commission, to 
consist of fifteen members. Five of these 
were to be appointed by the Senate, and five 
by the House of Representatives. The re- 
maining five were to be chosen from the 
Justices of the Supreme Court. Four of the 
justices were designated by the bill ; the fifth 
was to be chosen by the justices named in 
the bill. 

The Joint Convention. 

The bill provided for the meeting of the 
two Houses of Congress in joint convention 
on the first Thursday in February. The 
votes were to be opened by the Vice-Presi- 
dent, and counted by tellers appointed for 
the purpose. Each House was to have the 
right to object to the vote of a State, but in 
cases where only one certificate was pre- 
sented the objection must be sustained by the 
affirmative vote of both Houses. If not so 
sustained, the objection must fall and the 
vote be counted. Section II. of the bill pro- 
vided : " That, if more than one return, or 
paper purporting to be a return from a State, 
shall have been received by the President of 
the Senate, purporting to be the certificates 
of electoral votes given at the last preceding 



election for President and Vice-President in 
such State (unless they shall be duplicates 
of the same return), all such returns and 
papers shall be opened by him in the pre- 
sence of the two Houses when met as afore- 
said, and read by the tellers, and all such 
returns and papers shall thereupon be submit- 
ted to the judgment and decision as to which 
is the true and lawful electoral vote of such 
State," of the commission appointed by the 
bill. 

The decision of the commission, with the 




THOMAS F. BAYARD. 

reasons therefor, was to be submitted to the 
two Houses of Congress. Should objection 
be made by five senators and five representa- 
tives to the report of the commission, the two 
Houses were to separate and discuss the said 
objections, the time allowed for debate being 
limited by the bill ; but unless both Houses 
should agree to sustain the objections, the 
decision of the commission should stand. 

This plan met with considerable favor from 
the conservative element of both Houses, but 
was strongly opposed by the more ultra of 
both parties. It was debated at length and 



84C 



ADMINISTRATION OF ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



with great victor. It passed the Senate on 
the twenty-fifth of January, 1877, by a vote 
of forty-seven yeas and seventeen nays ; ten 
senators not voting. The vote in the House 
was taken the next day, and stood, yeas, one 
hundred and ninety-one ; nays, eighty-six ; 
fourteen representatives not voting. The 
vote in the Senate was divided as follows '■ 
Yeas — Republicans, twenty-one; Democrats' 
forty-six. Nays — Republicans, sixteen; Dem- 
ocrats, one. In the House it stood : Yeas — 
Democrats, one hundred and fifty-nine : 
Republicans, thirty-two. Nays — Democrats, 
eighteen; Republicans, sixty-eight. The bill 
was immediately signed by President Grant, 
who had from the first given it his warm 
encouragement. 

Counting the Electoral Vote. 

The members of the commission were 
promptly appointed. They were as follows ; 
Justices Clifford, Strong, Miller, Field and 
Bradley, of the Supreme Court ; Senators 
Edmunds, Morton, Frelinghuysen, Thurman 
and Bayard ; and Representatives Payne, 
Hunton, Abbott, Garfield and Hoar. 

The two Houses of Congress met in joint 
convention on the first of February, 1877, 
and began the counting of the electoral vote. 
When the vote of Florida was reached, three 
certificates were presented and were referred 
to the Electoral Commission. This body, 
upon hearing the arguments of the counsel 
of the Democratic and Republican parties 
decided that it had no power to go behind 
the action of the Return Board, and that the 
certificate of that body giving the vote of that 
State to Hayes, must be accepted by the two 



Houses of Congress. The vote by which- 
this decision was reached stood eight all 
Republicans) in favor of it, and seven (all 
Democrats) against it. The party line appear- 
ing thus so sharply in the commission mor- 
tified and disgusted the whole country, which 
had looked to the commission for a decision 
that should be beyond question. 

A similar conclusion was come to in the 
case of Louisiana. Objections were made 
to the reception of the votes of Oregon and 
South Carolina. In the Oregon case the 
decision was unanimously in favor of counting 
the votes of the Hayes electors. In the 
South Carolina case the commission decided 
that the Democratic electors were not law- 
fully chosen ; but on the motion to give the 
State to Hayes, the vote stood eight yeas to 
seven nays. So South Carolina was counted 
for Hayes. Objection was made, on the 
ground of ineligibility, to certain electors 
from Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Rhode 
Island, Vermont and Wisconsin, but the 
objections were not sustained by the two 
Houses. 

The final result was reached at ten' minutes 
after four o'clock on the morning of the 
second of March, 1877. The counting of 
the votes of the States having been con- 
cluded, Mr. Allison, one of the tellers on the 
part of the Senate, announced the result of 
the footings ; whereupon the presiding officer 
of the two Houses declared Rutherford B, 
Hayes, of Ohio, the duly elected President, 
and William A. Wheeler, of New York, the 
duly elected Vice-President, for the term of 
four years, commencing on the fourth of 
March, 1877. 



CHAPTER XLV 



The Administration of Rutherford B. Hayes 

Inauguration of President Hayes— Slcetch of the New President— Civil Service Reform— Troops in South Carolina- 
Two Legislatures in Session— Investigation by President Hayes— Prompt Action— Settlement of the Troubles in South 
Carolina and Louisiana— General Grant's Tour Around the World— Enthusiastic Reception by the Crowned Heads of 
other Nations— Tenth Census of the United States— Election of General Garfield as President— Artie Expedition of 
Lieutenant De Long — Hardy Adventurers- Two Winters in the Ice-Pack — Destruction of the " Jeannette" — Rehef 
Expeditions — Death from Starvation. 



RUTHERFORD B. HAYES, the 
nineteenth President of the United 
States, was pubHcly inaugurated at 
Washington on Monday, March 5, 
1877. As the fourth of March fell on Sun- 
day, the President-elect simply took the oath 
of office on that day. The inaugural cere- 
monies were carried out on the fifth at the 
Capitol with the usual pomp and parade, and 
in the presence of an enormous multitude of 
citizens and visiting military organizations 
from all parts of the country. After the cus- 
tomary reception by the Senate, the new 
President was escorted ta the eastern portico 
of the Capitol, where he delivered his inaug- 
ural address to the assembled multitude, after 
which the oath of office was publicly admin- 
istered to him by Chief Justice Waite. 

The new President was a native of Ohio, 
having been born at Delaware, in that State, 
on the fourth of October, 1822. He graduated 
at Kenyon College, Gambier, Ohio, and 
obtained his professional education at the 
Cambridge Law School. He began the prac- 
tice of the law at Cincinnati in 1856. He was 
shortly afterwards made Cit^ Solicitor, which 
office he held until the beginning of the civil 
war in 1861. Soon after the opening of the 
war he enlisted in the Twenty-third Ohio 
Volunteers, with which regiment he served 
as major, lieutenant-colonel and colonel. He 
led his regiment, which formed a part of 



General Reno's division, at the battle of 
South Mountain, in September, 1862, and 
was severely wounded in the arm in that 
engagement. 

In the fall of 1862 he was made colonel of 
the regiment, and in 1864 was promoted to 
the rank of brigadier-general of volunteers 
" for gallant and meritorious services in the 
battles of Winchester, Fisher's Hill and Cedar 
Creek," and was brevetted major-general " for 
gallant and distinguished services during the 
campaigns of 1864 in West Virginia, and par- 
ticularly in the battles of Fisher's Hill and 
Cedar Cre'?k." At the time of this last pro- 
motion he was in command of a division. 
He served until the close of the war, receiv- 
ing four wounds and having five horses shot 
under him during his military career. In the 
fall of 1864 he was elected to Congress, and 
was returned a second time in 1 866. In 1 867, 
before the expiration of his Congressional 
term, he was elected Governor of Ohio, and 
was re-elected to that office in 1869, being 
each time the candidate of the Republican 
party. In 1870 General Hayes was again 
elected to Congress, and in 1874 was nomi- 
nated for a third term as Governor of Ohio. 
His opponent was Governor William Allen, 
one of the most popular of the Democratic 
leaders of Ohio. General Hayes was elected 
by a handsome majority. He resigned this 
office in March, 1877, to enter upon his 

841 



842 



ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 



new duties as President of the United States. 
President Hayes, in his letter accepting 
the nomination of his party for the Presi- 
dency, declared that if elected he would 




RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 

earnestly and faithfully seek to do justice to 
the States of the South, and reform the civil 
service of the country by ridding it of cor- 
rupt men, and requiring a faithful discharge 
of duty at the hands of every public officer. 



Immediately upon his inauguration he set to 
work to make good his promises. He 
selected his Cabinet from among the ablest 
men in the country, making ability, and not 
•partisan service, the 
test of the fitness of 
the persons selected. 
William M. Evarts, of 
New York, was made 
Secretary of State, and 
the existence of the 
Southern States as 
members of the Union 
was recognized by the 
appointment, as Post- 
master-General, of Mr. 
Key, of Tennessee, 
who had sustained the 
Democratic ticket in 
the canvass of 1876. 
Except to the extreme 
partisans who had 
done the country so 
much harm under the 
last administration, 
the appointments of 
the new President 
gave great satisfaction 
to the entire nation. 

Measures were 
promptly set on foot 
for the inauguration 
of a better civil service 
system. The most im- 
portant matter which 
presented itself to the 
new President for set- 
« tlement was the con- 

dition of the States of 
Louisiana and South Carolina. In the fall 
of 1876 an election for Governor and other 
State officers was held in each of these 
States. The result at the polls appeared to 
be in favor of the Democratic or Conservative 



ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 



843 



candidates. In each State the revision of 
the vote was controlled by Republicans, 
some of whom were candidates for re-elec- 
tion. The Returning Boards announced the 
triumph of the Republican tickets in Louis- 
iana and South Carolina. 



Lower House, which they found guarded also 
by troops. The doorkeeper, backed by the 
military force, refused to admit certain of the 
delegates whose credentials he declared were 
nvill and void. The entire body of Demo- 
cratic members then withdrew, after protest- 



In South Carolina the Conservatives re- ! ing against the interference of the military 



solved to inaugurate General Wade Hamp- 
ton, their candidate, as Governor. The 
Governor of the State was Mr. Daniel H. 
Chamberlain, who had been th'e Republican 
candidate for re-election. Upon 
learning the intention of the De- 
mocrats to inaugurate their Gov- 
ernor, Mr. Chamberlain applied to 
President Grant for military aid. 
His application to President Grant 
was promptly responded to, and 
General Ruger, commanding the 
Department of the South, was or- 
dered to place the troops stationed 
in Columbia at Governor Chamber- 
lain's disposal. Having secured the 
aid of the troops, Governor Cham- 
berlain now proceeded to take the 
first step in his plan. On the night 
of the twenty-seventh of November 
the State House was occupied by a 
detachment of troops, which was 
posted so as to command all the 
approaches to the halls of the 
Legislature. 

The twenty-eighth of November, 
i876,was the day appointed for the meeting of 
the Legislature. The Democratic members 
met in caucus at ten o'clock in the morning, 
and proceeded in a body to the State House. 
Arriving there, they found the building occu- 
pied by the troops, and were compelled to 
submit their credentials to the officers of the 
guard, who admitted such as had papers 
which he pronounced satisfactory. Passing 
through the troops the members of the Legis- 
lature reached the door of the hall of the 



Under the protection of the troops the 
Republicans organized the Legislature. 

The interference of the troops aroused the 
most intense excitement in Columbia, and it 




WILLIAM A. WHEELER. 

was with difficulty that an outbreak was pre- 
vented, mainly through the influence of 
General Hampton. The Democrats, on the 
twenty-ninth of November, succeeded in 
gaining admission to the State House, where 
they organized the House of Representatives. 
After a struggle of a week with the Repub- 
licans, they withdrew to South Carolina Hall, 
and conducted the sessions of the Legisla- 
ture there, gaining members by degrees from 
Chamberlain's Leorislature at the State House. 



844 



ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 



The Republican Legislature declared the 
election of Governor Chamberlain, and on 
the seventh of December he was sworn into 
office, under the protection of the Federal 
troops. 

The Conservative Legislature continued its 
sessions at South Carolina Hall, and on the 
fourteenth of December Governor Hampton 



tion of the taxes to enable him to carry on 
the government were cordially and promptly 
responded to. The authority of Governor 
Chamberlain was not recognized beyond the 
limits of the State House in which the 
Federal troops were quartered ; the people 
refused to pay their taxes to his government, 
and his governorship was a mere name. In 




ARRIVAL OF GENERAL GRANT AT SAN FRANCISCO IN THE STEAMER CITY OF TOKIO 



was publicly inaugurated amid the greatest 
enthusiasm. He at once set to work, with 
his associates, to administer the government 
of the State. He was recognized by the vast 
majority of the people of South Carolina, by 
many even who had voted against him. His 
authority was everywhere respected ; and 
his calls upon the people to advance a por- 



view of this state of affairs President Grant 
was repeatedly urged to withdraw the troops 
from the State buildings to their barracks, 
but persistently refused to do so. 

Such was the state of affairs in South Car- 
olina at the inauguration of President Hayes.. 
The new President, with characteristic cau- 
tion, proceeded to investigate the matter.. 



ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 



845 



After a patient and thorough inquiry he 
found that the Federal troops were quartered 
in the State House of South Carolina in an 
unlawful manner ; that the Constitution gave 
to the Federal government no authority to 
interfere in the domestic concerns of a State, 
leaving the decision of disputed elections to 
the State courts for settlement ; and that no 
such state of lawlessness or insurrection as 
would justify Federal interference existed in 
South Carolina. 

In view of these facts, his duty in the case 
was plain. It was to restore the proper rela- 
tions between the Federal government and 
the State of South Carolina, and to put an 
end to the unlawful and unjustifiable interfer- 
ence with the affairs of that State. The mat- 
ter was laid before the Cabinet, and on the 
second of April, 1877, it was resolved to 
order the troops to withdraw from the State 
House to their barracks at Columbia. The 
order was at once issued, and was carried 
into effect on the sixth of April. The troops 
were withdrawn, and South Carolina was left 
to settle her own affairs. This step was fol- 
lowed by the speedy withdrawal of Governor 
Chamberlain from the contest. The Hamp- 
ton government was soon installed in the 
State House, and its authority was firmly 
established in all parts of the State, to the 
great joy of its people. 

The Trouble in Louisiana. 

The State buildings of Louisiana had been 
held by the Federal troops ever since the 
expulsion of the members of the Legislature 
by General De Trobriand, in 1873. At the 
election, in 1876, Mr. Stephen B. Packard 
was the Republican candidate for Governor, 
and Mr. H. T. Nicholls was the candidate of 
the Democratic party for the same office. 
The Republicans claimed that there was 
intimidation of Republican voters through- 
out the State, and the Returning Board 



declared that Mr. Packard had been chosen 
Governor. 

The substitution of Mr. Packard for Mr. 
Kellogg as Governor of Louisiana did not 
touch the evils from which the people of that 
State had been suffering for so many years. 
Their patience was exhausted, and they 
resolved to sustain the government which 
they claimed had been chosen. The Conser- 
vative Legislature was accordingly organized, 
and on the eighth of January, 1877, Governor 
Nicholls was publicly inaugurated. On the 
same day Mr. Packard was sworn into office 
under the protection of the troops. 




WILLIAM H. ENGLISH, 

The Nicholls government got to work as 
soon as possible ; its authority was recognized 
throughout the State by the courts and peo- 
ple; taxes were paid to it and it was indorsed 
and supported by a vast majority of the peo- 
ple of Louisiana. President Grant was urged 
to remove the troops from the State House 
and other buildings belonging to Louisiana, 
and was assured that the Packard govern- 
ment would fall to pieces for lack of support 
as soon as he should take the troops away. 
He refused to do so, however. 

President Hayes found Louisiana in this 
condition when he entered upon his duties as 




846 



ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 



S47 



Chief Magistrate. He selected a commission 
consisting of four Republicans and one Dem- 
ocrat, and these gentlemen, at his request, 
proceeded to New Orleans to investigate and 
report to him the real state of affairs in Louis- 
iana. They made an investigation of the 
affairs of the State, and found Packard a gov- 



reported to the President on the nineteenth 
of April, and the next day he issued the order 
to withdraw the United States troops in New 
Orleans from the State buildings to their 
barracks. The troops were withdrawn at 
noon on the twent\'-fourth of April, amid the 
rejoicings of the people, (jovernor Packard 




THE MIRAGE AS SEEN IN THE ARCTIC REGION. 



ernor in name only, while the authority of 
the Nicholls government extended through- 
out the State. They found also that the con- 
dition of affairs in Louisiana was not such as 
to justify the further interference of the Fed- 
eral government in the domestic concerns of 
the State. 

The conclusions of the commission were 



at once abandoned the contest. The members 
of his Legislature joined the Nicholls Legis- 
lature, and the affairs of the State were once 
more placed in her own hands. 

The action of the President in withdraw- 
ing the troops from South Carolina and 
Louisiana gave great satisfaction to the 
country at large. A small class of extreme 



.-848 



ADMINISTRATION OF RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 



politicians were disposed to denounce it, but 
their partisan outcries were silenced by the 
general voice of approval which came from 
all parts of the Union, The nation was sick 
■of civil war and partisan strife, and hailed 
the action of the President as the beginning 
of the long-hoped-for, long-delayed era of 
peace and good will. 

General Grant's Tour Around the World. 

On May 17, 1878, ex-President Grant 
sailed from Philadelphia in the steamer 
Indiana for a tour around the world. He 
had achieved the highest distinction in his 
native land, and was welcomed with every 
demonstration of respect by all the nations 
he visited. The rulers and nobility of Europe 
and Asia accorded him an enthusiastic recep- 
tion. On his return trip he arrived at San 
Francisco September 20, 1879, and was 
warmly greeted by his fellow-countrymen in 
every place where he made his appearance. 
His tour called out the friendly feeling of 
other countries toward America, and was not 
without political significance. 

In the year 1880 the tenth census of the 
United States was taken, and showed the 
population of the country to be 50,152,- 

559- 

In the summer of 1880 the various politi- 
cal parties of the country met in convention 
to nominate candidates for the Presidency and 
Vice-Presidency of the United States. The 
Republican Convention met at Chicago on 
the second of June, and nominnted James A. 
Garfield, of Ohio, for President, and Chester 
A. Arthur, of New York, for Vice-President. 
The Democratic Convention met at Cincin- 
nati, on the twenty-second of June, and nomi- 
nated Winfield Scott Hancock, of Pennsyl- 
vania, for President, and William H. English, 
of Indiana, for Vice-President. The Green- 
back Convention met at Chicago, on the 



ninth of June, and nominated James A. 
Weaver, of Iowa, for President, and B. J. 
Chambers, of Texas, for Vice-President. 

The election was held on the second of 
November, and resulted in the choice of 
General James A. Garfield, who received 214 
electoral votes to 155 electoral votes cast for 
General Hancock. The popular vote was as 
follows : Garfield, 4,437,345 ; Hancock, 
4,435,015 ; Weaver, 305,931. 

The year 1879 was memorable in Arctic 
exploration by the expedition of Lieutenant 
George W. DeLong, of the United States 
Navy. The expedition was projected by 
James Gordon Bennett, proprietor of the 
New York Hcj^ald, with the object of reach- 
ing the North Pole, if possible, by way of 
Behring Straits. Lieutenant DeLong sailed 
in the steamship " Jeannette" from San Fran- 
cisco, July 8, 1879. All of the crew were 
volunteers, selected with great care from 
many applicants. 

The outcome of the expedition was disas- 
trous, and it shared the unhappy fate which 
has attended many other heroic attempts to 
explore the polar world. After spending two 
winters in the ice-pack the hardy adventurers 
lost their ship and attempted to make their 
way southward in the hope of reaching a 
place of safety in the three boats belonging 
to the ship. 

The boats were separated during a strong 
gale ; the provisions were at length exhausted, 
and in the heroic effort to save their lives 
Lieutenant DeLong and the men in his boat 
perished of starvation. Several relief expe- 
ditions were sent out in search of the "Jean- 
nette," but these were too late to rescue all 
the party. The last records of DeLong were 
found, and also sufficient evidence of the 
hardships and perils through which he and 
his men had passed in their endeavor to 
escape from their perilous situation. 



CHAPTER XLVI 
The Administration of James A. Garfield. 

General Garfield Declared President — Inaugural Ceremonies — Sketch of the New President — Contest with the Stal- 
warts — The Star Route Cases — Assassination of President Garfield — His Illness — Removal to Long Branch — Death 
of President Garfield — Removal of the Remains to Washington and Cleveland — Interment at Cleveland — Inauguration 
of President Arthur — Indictment of Guiteau for Murder — Trial and Execution of Garfield's Assassin — Remarkable 
Scene upon the Scaffold — The Greeley Artie Expedition — Reaching a point beyond the Eighty-first Parallel — 
Lieutenant Lockwood's Heroic Exploit — Return of the Exploring Party — Valuable Records — Three Relief Expedi- 
tions — Terrible Sufferings and Privations — A Crew Charged with Cannibalism — Celebration of the Landing of 
William Penn — Great Suspension Bridge between New York and Brooklyn — Dimensions of the Bridge and Cost. 



ON the second Wednesday in Feb- 
ruary, 1 88 1, the two Houses of 
Congress met in joint-session in 
the hall of the House of Re- 
presentatives, for the purpose of counting 
the electoral vote. The certificates of the 
electoral colleges of the various States hav- 
ing been opened and read, with the result 
mentioned above, the Vice-President an- 
nounced that James A. Garfield had been 
duly elected President of the United States, 
and Chester A. Arthur Vice-President, for the 
term of four years, from the fourth of March, 
1881. 

The result of the election was cordially ac- 
cepted by the country, and the nation began 
to look forward to a new era of prosperity 
and happiness. 

On Friday, March 4, 1S81, the inaugura- 
tion ceremonies took place upon a scale of 
unusual magnificence, and were participated 
in by numerous military and civic organiza- 
tions, and by thousands of citizens from all 
parts of the country. After the new Vice- 
President had taken the oath of office, Presi- 
dent-elect Garfield was formally received by 
the Senate, and escorted to the eastern portico 
of the capitol, where, in the presence of an 
immense multitude of citizens and soldiery, 
he delivered an able and eloquent inaugural 
54 



address, and took the oath of office at the 
hands of Chief-Justice Waite. 

The new President had been long and 
favorably known to his countrymen. He 
was in his fiftieth year, and in vigorous 
health. A man of commanding presence, 
he was dignified and courteous in his de- 
meanor, accessible to the humblest citizen, 
and deservedly popular with men of all 
parties. Born a poor boy, without influen- 
tial friends, he had by his own efforts secured 
a thorough collegiate education, and had 
carefully fitted himself for the arduous duties 
he was now called upon to discharge. En- 
tering the army at the outbreak of the civil 
war, he had won a brilliant reputation as a 
soldier, and had been promoted to the rank 
of major-general of volunteers. Elected to 
Congress from Ohio, in 1862, he had entered 
the House of Representatives in December, 
1863, and had seen almost eighteen years of 
constant service in that body, in which he 
had long ranked as one of the most brilliant 
and trusted leaders of the Republican party. 
Early in 1880 he had been chosen a United 
States Senator from Ohio, but had been 
prevented from taking his seat in the Senate 
by his election to the Presidency. Imme- 
diately after his inauguration he sent to the 
Senate for confirmation the names of the 

849 



8so 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 



members of his Cabinet. They were chosen 
from among the leading members of the 
conservative portion of the Republican party, 
and were headed by James G. Blaine, of 
Maine, as Secretary of State. They were at 
once confirmed by the Senate, and the new 
administration embarked upon its short-lived 
career. 

Very soon after entering upon his duties, 
President Garfield found that the Executive 




JAMES A. GARFIELD. 

chair was by no means a bed of roses. The 
Republican party soon divided into two sec- 
tions, one, known as the " Conservative," 
supporting the administration, and the other, 
known as the " Stalwarts," opposing it. A 
bitter partisan quarrel sprang up between 
these two wings of the party, and prolonged 
the Executive session of the Senate until late 
in June. The quarrel was the fiercest over 
the appointment of a new collector for the 



port of New York, and culminated in the 
resignation of their seats in the Senate by 
Senators Conkling and Piatt of New York, 
on the sixteenth of May. 

The resignation of these gentlemen was 
based upon the ground that the President 
had nominated Judge Robertson to be col- 
lector of the port of New York, without con- 
sulting or yielding to the wishes of the 
senators from that State, the said senators in. 
effect claiming the right to determine 
what appointments should or should 
not be made by the President in their 
State. The President, on his part, 
insisted upon his right to nominate to 
office any man whom he should deem 
worthy of the trust. 

The struggle was in reality a contest 
for the independence of the Executive 
in the matter of public appointments^ 
and President Garfield was warmly 
supported by the great mass of the 
nation without regard to party. He, 
therefore, pursued with unshaken firm- 
ness the policy he had determined 
„ upon. After the resignation of Sen- 
ators Conkling and Piatt, the nomina- 
tion of Judge Robertson was con- 
firmed by the Senate. 

As the time wore on. President 
Garfield gained steadily in the esteem 
of his countrymen. His purpose to 
give to the nation a fair and just 
administration of the government was 
every day more apparent, and his high 
and noble qualities became more conspicu- 
ous. Men began to feel that the Exec- 
utive chair was occupied by a President 
capable of conceiving a pure and noble stand- 
ard of duty, and possessed of the firmness 
and strength of will necessary to carry it 
into execution. The country was prosperous, 
and there was every reason to expect a con- 
tinuance of the general happiness. 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 



851 



Soon after the opening of President Gar- 
field's administration, the Postmaster-General 
discovered that certain contracts for carrying 
the mails on what are known as " The Star 
Routes," were fraudulent, and that the per- 
sons interested in them were defrauding 
the government of large sums of money. 
The President, Postmaster-General and At- 
torney-General, sustained by the 
other members of the Cabinet, 
without exception, thereupon re- 
solved to bring the guilty parties 
to justice. 

The latter being men of wealth 
and position, bitterly resented the 
course of the government, and 
violently denounced it. Never- 
theless the President caused mea- 
sures looking to the punishment 
of the accused parties to be 
begun, and only the unexpected ., ■ 

adjournment of the grand jury j^^ 

and court prevented a formal 
indictment from being brought 
against them. Before other mea- 
sures could be taken, the atten- 
tion of the entire nation was 
occupied by an event of graver 
importance. 

While these matters were still 
in progress, President Garfield 
began preparations for a brief 
pleasure trip to Long Branch, 
where Mrs. Garfield was recover- 
ing from a severe illness; in- 
tending from that point to visit 
New England, and be present at the com- 
mencement exercises of his aluia mater, 
Williams' College, in Massachusetts. He 
was to be accompanied by a distinguished 
party, including several members of the 
Cabinet. On the morning of the second of 
July, the party proceeded to the Baltimore 
and Potomac depot, where they were to take 



the cars, in advance of the President, who 
arrived soon after in company with Secretary 
Blaine, who came simply to see him off and 
say good-bye. They left the President's car- 
riafje tofrether, and sauntered arm-in-arm 
through the depot towards the cars. 

In passing through the ladies' waiting- 
room, the President was fired at twice by a 




MRS. LUCRETIA R. GARFIELD, 

man named Charles J. Guiteau. The first 
shot inflicted a slight wound in the President's 
right arm, and the second a terrible wound 
in the right side of his back, between the hip 
and the kidney. The President fell heavily 
to the floor, and the assassin was secured as 
he was seeking to make his escape from 
the building and was conveyed to a police 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 



852 

station, from which he was subsequently 
taken to prison. 

The President lay helpless upon the floor 
of the waiting-room, the blood flowing 
copiously from both his wounds. As soon as 




JAMES G. BLAINE. 

those near him recovered from the dismay 
into which the tragedy had thrown them, he 
was placed upon a mattrass, physicians were 
summoned and he was conveyed to an upper 
room in the depot. He bore his sufferings 



with great firmness, and from the first dis- 
played a cool courage that won the warm 
admiration of the country. The surgeons 
summoned were soon at hand, and found 
that the President's injuries were very critical. 

It was decided to 
remove him to the 
Executive Man- 
sion, and he was 
carried down the 
stairs, placed in an 
army ambulance 
and driven rapid- 
ly to the White 
House. Arriving 
there he was con- 
veyed to his wife's 
chamber, overlook- 
ing the Potomac, 
and placed in bed. 
Two attempts were 
made by the sur- 
geons to find the 
ball — one at the 
depot, and one at 
the White House 
after his arrival 
there — but both 
were unsuccessful. 
Grave fears were 
entertained by the 
surgeons for the 
President's life, and 
Mrs. Garfield was 
summoned by tele- 
graph from Long 
Branch. She ar- 
rived during the 
evening. 
The news of the attempt upon the Presi- 
dent's life spread rapidly throughout the 
Union, and was everywhere received with 
horror and indignation. During the after- 
noon his condition became more alarming, 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 



853 



and bulletins were issued by the surgeons 
in charge at frequent intervals, giving the 
latest news of the state of the illustrious 
sufferer. These were telegraphed to all parts 
of the country, and were watched with eager 
impatience by vast crowds of citizens wherever 
they were posted. The sympathy of the 
whole nation went out warmly towards the 
wounded President and his afflicted family, 
and from the governments and nations of 



fulness that astonished his attendants, and 
encouraged them to hope for a favorable 
result. 

The afternoon of the second of July wore 
anxiously away, no signs of a reaction being 
manifested, but after the arrival of Mrs. Gar- 
field, in the evening, the President began to 
rally slightly. The night was passed in 
anxious suspense. On the morning of the 
third, the President was calm and cheerful, 




THE ASSASSINATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 



Europe messages of inquiry and sympathy 
were constantly received through the Atlantic 
cable. During the entire period of the Presi- 
dent's illness the official bulletins were issued 
three times each day, and the nation was 
thus kept informed of his condition. 

The best medical and surgical skill of the 
country was employed in the effort to save 
the President's life, and throughout the whole 
period of his illness he never lost his calm 
courage, but displayed a firmness and cheer- 



though he fully realized the gravity ot his 
situation. He told Dr. Bliss, the surgeon in 
charge of his case, that he wished to know 
exactly what his chances for life were ; that 
while he desired to live, he was prepared to 
die, and did not fear to learn the worst. 
Dr. Bliss replied that though his injuries 
were formidable, he had, in his judgment, a 
chance for his life. "Well, Doctor," ex- 
claimed the sufferer, with a cheerful smile, 
" we'll take that chance." 



854 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 



The day passed away without any event of 
importance, and the anxious nation, as well 
as the President's attendants, drew some hope 
from the fact he continued " to hold his own." 
The popular anxiety and sympathy were 
strikingly manifested on the Fourth of July, 
the anniversary of the National Independ- 
ence, in the listless and careless manner in 



was kept all the while in a most painful 
suspense. The surgeons in charge, however, 
recognized the true character of the wound 
from the first, and while they hoped for a 
recovery, could not conceal from themselves 
the fact that such a result would be almost 
miraculous. 

The President's sufferings were very great 




DEATH-BED OF JAMES A. GARFIELD, 



which the day was celebrated. The people 
were too much engrossed with their anxiety 
to take part in any demonstration of joy. 

The two months following the wounding 
of President Garfield dragged wearily away, 
the patient at times showing symptoms of 
marked improvement, and at others expe- 
riencing dangerous relapses. The nation 
alternated between hope and despair, and 



during this period, and were increased by 
the intense heat of the season and the 
unhealthy suroundings of the White House. 
Yet he bore them all with unshaken 
firmness and unalterable cheerfulness. Dr. 
Bliss, his chief surgeon, writes of him during 
this period ; — " The time which passed until 
the twenty-third of July, when the first rigor 
occurred, was chiefly remarkable for the 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 



855 



■quiet, cool determination of the sufferer. 

'Quite ready for, and evidently expecting the 

worst, his demeanor was that of the man 

whose great intellect and 

wonderful will enabled 

liim to give the most 

intelligent aid to the 

physician. Apparently 

indifferent as to result, so 

far as it should affect him 

alone, he still watched 

every symptom, even 

making inquiry after 

each examination as to 

the temperature, pulse 

and respiration, and 

every measure of relief 

adopted, with evidently 

firm determination to 

live for others if pos- 
sible." 

Towards the last of 
August, the surgeons in 
attendance upon the 

President resolved to 
remove him from the 
White House to a more 
healthful locality. The 
removal was a risk, but 
not so great a risk as to 
permit him to remain in 
the malarious atmos- 
phere which surrounded 
the Executive Mansion, 
and which was rapidly 
destroying the little 
strength left him. It was 
decided to convey him 
to Long Branch, in the 
hope that the pure and 
bracing air of the sea 
would enable him to regain some of his lost 
vitality. 

Accordingly, on the sixth of September, 



the President, accompanied by his family, 
his surgeons and attendants, was conveyed 
to Long Branch in a train specially prepared 




THE CATAFALQUE AT CLEVELAND, OHIO. 

for the purpose. The journey was made 
quickly and successfully, and after reaching 
Long Branch the President seemed to rally. 



856 



ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES A. GARFIELD. 



For the first few days after his arrival at the 
seashore, his symptoms were so much better 
that renewed hope sprang up in the hearts 
of his countrymen. It was only for a brief 
period, however. On the sixteenth of Sep- 
tember there was a marked change for the 
worse, with unmistakable evidences of in- 
creasing weakness in mind and body. On 



passed away appeared more comfortable, and' 
his attendants were hopeful of a quiet night 
for him. 

Towards nine o'clock in the evening he 
fell into a quiet sleep, from which he awak- 
ened, shortly after ten o'clock, in great pain. 
General Swaim, who was watching by him, 
alarmed by the President's symptoms, hastily 




JAMES A. GARFIELD LYING IN STATE IN THE ROTUNDA OF THE CAPITOL AT WASHINGTON. 



the seventeenth the President sank still lower, 
and in the forenoon was seized with a severe 
rigor. On the evening of the eighteenth 
another alarming rigor occurred, followed by 
other grave symptoms. From this time the 
President continued to grow worse. On the 
morning of the nineteenth he was attacked 
with another severe rigor, but after that had 



summoned the family and the surgeons. The 
President was unconscious when they arrived, 
and continued to sink rapidly. Efforts were 
made to revive him with stimulants, but in 
vain, and at thirty-five minutes after ten 
o'clock, the brave struggle was brought to 
an end, and the soul of James A. Garfield 
passed into eternity. 



ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 



857 



The sad news of the death of President 
Garfield was at once telegraphed to New 
York, and by eleven o'clock the whole coun- 
try was aware that its Chief Magistrate was 
dead. Bells were tolled in every city, town 
and village of the Union, and everywhere 
citizens draped their houses in mourning. 
Such a display of national sorrow had never 
been witnessed before. 

The news of the death of Presi- 
dent Garfield was at once trans- 
mitted by telegraph to Vice-Presi- 
dent Arthur by the members of the 
Cabinet present at Long Branch, 
and he was advised by them to take 
the oath of office as President with- 
out delay. Accordingly, Justices 
Brady and Donahoe of the Supreme 
Court of New York were at once 
summoned by the Vice-President, 
and at a little after two o'clock on 
the morning of the twentieth of 
September, he took the oath of 
office as President of the United 
States before them at his private 
residence in New York. 

On the twentieth of September, 
arrangements were made for remov- 
ing the body of the late President 
to Washington City, and on the 
same day an autopsy was held 
upon the body by the surgeons 
who had been in attendance upon 
the President, assisted by several 
others. The autopsy revealed the fact 
that the wound had been fatal from the 
first. On the morning of the twenty-first, 
funeral ceremonies were held in the cottage 
at Long Branch in which the President died, 
and at ten o'clock the remains were placed 
on board of a special train, and conveyed to 
Washington, and accompanied by the family 
and friends of the dead President, and by 
President Arthur and a number of distin- 



guished personages. Washington was 
reached at 4.35 in the afternoon, and the 
body was escorted by a detachment of mil- 
itary and Knights Templar to the Capitol, 
where it was laid in state until the twenty- 
third. 

During the twenty-second and twenty- 
third it was visited by over one hundred 
thousand persons. On the afternoon of the 




CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 

twenty-third, the public funeral services were 
held in the rotunda of the Capitol, after which 
the body was escorted to the Baltimore and 
Potomac depot, and conveyed to Cleveland, 
Ohio, by a special train. Cleveland was 
reached the next day, and the remains were 
laid in state in a structure especially prepared 
for them, until the morning of the twenty- 
sixth, when they were buried with the most 
imposing ceremonies in Lake View Cemetery 



■858 



ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 



in the suburbs of that city. Business was 
suspended and memorial services were held 
during the day in all parts of the United 
States. 

On the twenty-second of September, Pres- 
ident Arthur again took the oath of office, 
this time at the hands of the Chief-Justice of 
the United States, and was quietly inaugura- 
ted in the- Vice-President's room, in the Cap- 
itol, delivering upon this occasion, a brief 
inaugural address. 

Soon after the attempt upon the life of 
President Garfield, a popular subscription was 
.set on foot to provide a fund for the support 




JOHN A. LOGAN. 

of his family in the event of his death. The 
movement was successful, and over ^330,000 
were raised, and invested in United States 
bonds for the benefit of the widow and chil- 
dren of the " Martyred President." 

President Arthur entered quietly upon the 
duties of his administration, and his first acts 
were satisfactory to a majority of his country- 
men. As he had been the leader of " the 
Stalwart," section of the P^epublican party, 
it was felt by the members of the Cabinet of 
the late President that he should be free to 
choose his own advisers. Therefore, imme- 
diately upon his accession to the Executive 



chair, Mr. Blaine and his colleagues ten> 
dered him their resignations. They were 
requested, however, by the new President to 
retain their offices until he could find suitable 
successors to them. To this they agreed, 
but before the year was out several import- 
ant changes had been made in the Cabinet. 
The principal of these were the substitution 
of Frederick T. Frelinghuysen, of New Jer- 
sey, for Mr. Blaine, as Secretary of State, 
and the appointment of Judge Charles J. 
Folger to the Treasury Department. 

Indictment of Garfield's Assassin. 

One of the first acts of the new adminis- 
tration was to causethe indictment of Charles 
J. Guiteau for the murder of President Gar- 
field. The grand jury of the District of 
Columbia met on the third of October, 1881, 
and promptly found a true bill against 
Guiteau, who was arraigned in the Criminal 
Court of the District on the fourteenth of 
October. After some delay the trial of the 
assassin began on the fourteenth of Novem- 
ber. The first three days were consumed in 
selecting a jury, and then the trial began in 
earnest. It ended on the twenty-fifth of 
January, 1882, in the conviction of Guiteau 
for the murder of the late President. The 
prisoner was defended by able counsel, and 
was allowed many privileges never before 
granted to persons on trial for so grave an 
offence. 

The plea upon which the defence was 
based was insanity, but the evidence entirely 
destroyed this assumption, and the verdict of 
the jury was received throughout the country 
as just and proper. An effort was made by 
Guiteau's counsel to obtain a new trial for 
him, but this was denied by the court, and 
on the fourth of February Guiteau was sen- 
tenced to be hanged on the thirtieth of June, 
1882. The counsel for the prisoner still 
continued his efforts to secure a new trial. 



ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 



859 



but these being unsuccessful in each and 
every instance, his only resource was an 
appeal to the clemency of the Executive. 
The President declined, however, to interfere 
with the sentence. 

Execution of Guiteau. 

During the interval between his sentence 
and his execution, Guiteau was confined in 
the jail of the District of Columbia, at Wash- 
ington. His conduct during this interval 
was in keeping with that which had marked 
his trial — vain, egotistical, and blasphemous. 
To the last the prisoner was confident that 
President Arthur would interfere in his 
behalf, but the result proved this to be a vain 
hope. • 

The execution took place in the District 
jail on the thirtieth of June, 1882, and was 
witnessed by about two hundred people, 
nearly all representatives of the press. Guiteau 
displayed more firmness than had been 
expected of him. He walked to the gallows 
without making the violent scene which had 
been anticipated by many, and ascended it 
with a firm step. Upon the scaffold, how- 
ever, he displayed considerable emotion, 
which he quickly subdued. His religious 
adviser. Rev. Dr. Hicks, offered a short 
prayer, and Guiteau read a selection from 
the Holy Scriptures. 

Then he read a prayer, strangely at vari- 
ance with his religious professions, in which 
he called down the curse of the Almighty 
upon all who had been engaged in his trial 
and execution, and upon the nation at large, 
and denounced President Arthur as a coward 
and an ingrate. Finally he chanted a poem 
which he had written during the morning. 
At the close of this singular recital the trap 
fell, precisely at forty-three minutes past twelve 
o'clock, and the great crime against the 
American people was avenged. Guiteau' s 
neck was broken by the fall, and his death 



was painless. He died without a struggle, 
and with scarce a tremor. 

At the opening of Congress in 1883, John 
G. Carlisle, of Kentucky, was chosen speaker 
of the House. 

In 1 88 1 an attempt was made to establish 
a signal station at a point north of the eighty- 
first parallel, and Lieutenant A. W. Greeley, 
of the United States Navy, was selected as 
the officer to take charge of the expedition. 
He received his instructions from the chief 




JOHN G. CARLISLE. 

signal officer, General Hazen. The steamer 
" Proteus," which was to convey the party 
to its destination sailed from St. John's, New- 
foundland, on the seventh of July, and imme- 
diately encountered rough weather. 

The adventurers pressed forward and, 
notwithstanding almost insurmountable ob- 
stacles succeeded in reaching a point beyond 
the eighty-first parallel, where they estab- 
lished a post and named it Fort Conger. 
After landing the party the " Proteus " had 
returned. 



86o 



ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A ARTHUR. 



As is usual with all polar expeditions 
anxiety began to be felt for the safety of the 
party, and attempts were made in 1882 and 
1883 to send relief. The colonists were not 
found, and at length, on accouilt of their 
provisions being exhausted, they were 
reduced to terrible straits. 

The expedition of Greeley is especially 
memorable for having reached the highest 



the northern sky; the Arctic moon wore a 
strange appearance ; the air was sharp with 
penetrating frost ; and the long night of the 
Arctic winter was attended with a loneliness 
impossible to describe. 

The brave company at length retreated 
from their post. Few pages in the history 
of polar exploration record such terrible 
hardships and sufferings as fell to the lot of 




PH 








Sanderson's hope, upernavik, Baffin bay. 



point ever gained in Arctic exploration. 
This achievement was due to Lieutenant 
Lockwood, who approached nearer the 
North Pole than any other explorer either 
before or since. The records of the expedi- 
tion are replete with valuable information 
concerning the meteorology of that latitude, 
and with descriptions of very remarkable 
natural phenomena. Brilliant auroras lighted 



the Greeley expedition. Three relief ships, 
the " Thetis," " Bear " and " Alert," were 
sent to Lady Franklin Bay. The survivors 
were at last found when they were in dire 
distress and must soon have perished from 
starvation, except for the timely relief which 
reached them. 

The officers of the expedition were charged 
with cannibalism and inhuman cruelty. One 



ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 



86i 



of their number who was accMsed of steaHng 
rations was shot, and if half suppressed 
reports are to be credited, his body furnished 
food for his famishing comrades. All who 
were left of Greeley's command were found 
on the twenty-second of June, 1884, three 
years after the party started on its perilous 
voyage. The heroism of the brave explorers 
excited the admiration of the world, and uni- 



trating events in the early history of Penn- 
sylvania. It was estimated that upwards of 
four hundred thousand persons attended the 
celebration. 

One of the notable events of 1883, was the 
opening of the great Suspension Bridge over 
the East River, between New York City and 
Brooklyn. Work commenced January 3, 
1870, and the bridge was opened to the 




ARCTIC REGION — BEECHEY HEAD. 



versal interest was felt in the thrilling story 
of their sufferings. 

On the twenty-seventh of October, 1882, 
the two-hundredth anniversary of the landing 
of William Penn was celebrated at Phila- 
delphia. The exercises included public 
addresses, a military display, and an indus- 
trial parade. In addition to these there were 
(various historic devices and tableaux, illus- 



public May 24, 1883. The total cost was 
;^i 5,500,000 The total length from New 
York to Brooklyn is 5,989 feet, and the 
length of the main span is 1,595^ feet. The 
height of the towers is 2767^ feet. The 
height of the floor of the bridge at the cen- 
tre, above high water mark is 135 feet. The 
height of the floor of the bridge at the piers 
is II 8 feet. 






^■* 




862 



SCENE IN THE ARCTIC REGIONS— AMONG THE ICEBERGS. 



ADMINISTRATION OF CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 



The caisson for the New York pier was 
sunk yS feet, and that for the Brooklyn pier 
45 >^ feet below the bed of the river. Each 
cable is 15^ inches in diameter and is 
made up of 5,000 wires, each % inch in diam- 



863 

In the campaign of 1884, James G. Blaine^ 
of Maine, and John A. Logan, of Illinois, 
were the nominees of the Republican party 
for the offices of President and Vice-Pres 
ident. Grover Cleveland, of New York, and 




THE BROOKLYN SUSPENSION BRIDGE. 



eter. The anchorages are 930 feet from the 
towers and weigh 120,000,000 pounds each. 
The cables are capable of sustaining 49,200 
tons. The weight of the central span is 
6,742 tons. 



Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana, were the 
nominees of the Democratic party. The 
campaign resulted in the election of Cleve- 
land and Hendricks, the vote in the Elec- 
toral College being 219 to 182. 



CHAPTER XLVII 
The Administration of Grover Cleveland. 

Mr. Cleveland's Early Life — Governor of New York — Elected President — Inauguration Ceremonies — Civil Service and 
Revenue Reform — The New Cabinet — Death of General Grant — Imposing Obsequies — Honors to the Illustrious 
Dead — Death of General George B. McClellan — Free Trade Conference at Chicago — Death of Vice-President Thomas 
B. Hendricks — Pension Granted to the Widow of President Grant — President Cleveland's Message — Bill Regulating 
the Presidential Succession — Labor Agitations — Riot at Chicago Instigated by " Anarchists" — Statue of Liberty En- 
lightening the World — President Cleveland's Marriage — Soldiers' Pensions — Capital and Labor — Centennial Anni- 
versary of the Adoption of the Constitution — Nomination of President Cleveland — Nomination of Benjamin Harrison 
— Harrison's Election. 



THE twenty-second President of the 
United States was Hon. Grover 
Cleveland. Mr, Cleveland was a 
native of New Jersey, and was born 
in Caldwell, Essex County, March i8, 1837, 
He came from sturdy New England stock, 
many of his ancestors having held honor- 
able positions in their respective localties. 

President Cleveland, after teaching two 
or three years, studied law in Buffalo, was 
admitted to the bar, became sheriff of the 
county, mayor of the city, and, having 
received the nomination for governor of 
New York, was elected by a large majority. 
This was followed by his nomination in the 
Democratic Convention of 1884, and his 
election in the following November to the 
Presidency. 

Naturally the departure of the Republican 
administration and the return of the Demo- 
cratic party to power after twenty-four years 
of exile from the highest seats in the coun- 
cils of the Republic awakened a profound 
interest. As the fourth of March, 1885, 
approached, eyes were turned toward Wash- 
ington, and multitudes went up to the Capital 
as to a Mecca. Washington itself, accus- 
tomed to civic displays, exciting events and 
magnificent parades, was more than usually 
awakened, and an interest was exhibited in 
864 



the inauguration which overshadowed all 
other concerns. The representatives of the 
press throughout the country were there in 
full force to record the event and depict the 
scene in its imposing aspects. 

The ceremonies incident upon the inaugu- 
ration presented a pageant exceeding in civic 
and military display any such preceding 
occasion in the history of the government. 
There were in attendance more than one 
hundred thousand visitors, and the city in its 
profuse decorations was a bewildering maze 
of bright colors. Among the significant 
allegorical designs was a great floral ladder 
reaching to the roof of a business house on 
Pennsylvania Avenue, which bore upon its 
rungs the words, "Sheriff," "Mayor," "Gov- 
ernor," " President," thus graphically sym- 
bolizing the life-work of the President elect. 

The inaugural of President Cleveland 
began as follows: 

"In the presence of this vast assemblage 
of my countrymen I am about to supplement 
and seal by the oath which I shall take the 
manifestation of the will of a great and free 
people. In the exercise of their power and 
right of self-government they have committed 
to one of their fellow-citizens a supreme and 
sacred trust, and he here consecrates himself 
to their service. 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



865 



" This impressive ceremony adds little to 
the solemn sense of responsibility with which 
I contemplate the duty I owe to all the people 
of the land. Nothing can relieve me from 
-anxiety lest by any act of mine their in- 
terests may suffer, and nothing is needed to 



purpose by which he would be guided in the 
administration of the affairs of the government: 
" In the discharge of my official duty I 
shall endeavor to be guided by a just and 
unstrained construction of the Constitution, a 
careful observance of the distinction between 




GROVER CLEVELAND. 



strengthen my resolution to engage every 
faculty and effort in the promotion of their 
welfare." 

Having stated his sense of the importance 
and sacredness of the trust confided in him, 
President Cleveland gave expiession to the 
55 



the powers granted to the Federal govern- 
ment and those reserved to the States or to 
the people, and by a cautious appreciation of 
those functions which, by the Constitution 
and laws, have been especially assigned to 
the executive branch of the government." 



866 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



Upon the question of civil service reform 
President Cleveland expressed himself in 
accordance with the sentiments enunciated in 
the platform of his party, adopted at the con- 
vention of 1884: 

" The people demand reform in the 
administration of the government and the 



influence of those who promise and the 
vicious methods of those who expect such 
rewards. And those who worthily seek 
public employment have the right to insist 
that merit and competency shall be recog- 
nized instead of party subserviency, or the 
surrender of honest political belief" 




CHIEF-JUSTICE WAITE ADMINISTERING THE OATH OF OFFICE TO PRESIDENT CLEVELAND. 



application of business principles to public 
affairs. As a means to this end civil service 
reform should be in good faith enforced. 
Our citizens have the right to protection 
from the incompetency of public employees 
who hold their places solely as the reward of 
partisan service, and from the corrupting 



Revenue reform was another topic referred 
to in President Cleveland's inaugural address. 
Thus early in his administration he presented 
a matter which was very fully discussed in 
his subsequent messages to Congress, and 
became the subject of contention between the 
two great parties. 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



867 



"A due regard," he says, " for the interests 
and prosperity of all the people demand that 
our finances shall be established upon such a 
sound and sensible basis as shall secure the 
safety and confidence of business interests and 
make the wage of labor sure and steady, and 
that our system of re venue shall be so adjusted 
as to relieve the people from unnecessary 
taxation, having a due regard to the interests 



Interior; Augustus H. Garland, of Arkansas, 
Attorney-General ; William Crowninshield 
Endicott, of Massachusetts, Secretary of 
War; William F. Vilas, of Wisconsin, Post- 
master-General ; William Collins Whitney, 
of New York, Secretary of the Navy. 

On the fourth of March, the day of Presi- 
dent Cleveland's inauguration, ex-President 
Grant was placed on the retired list of the 




DEATH OF GENERAL GRANT. 



of capital invested and vvorkingmen employed 
in American industries, and preventing the 
accumulation of a surplus in the treasury to 
tempt extravagance and waste." 

The new cabinet was composed as follows : 
Thomas Francis Bayard, of Delaware, Secre- 
tary of State; Daniel Manning, of New 
York, Secretary of the Treasury ; Lucius Q. 
C. Lamar, of Mississippi, Secretary of the 



army. For some months previous to this 
there were ominous rumors respecting the 
state of his health. The great general who 
had led the Federal forces in the last part of 
the civil war, and who had gained a military 
reputation second to that of no commander 
of modern times ; who had also been lifted 
to the highest position in the gift of a grate- 
ful people, and had served eight years in the 



868 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



White House as our chief executive, was 
reported to be in his last illness. 

The sympathy of the entire country was 
profoundly stirred by this announcement. 
Medical skill of the highest order was sum- 
moned ; daily bulletins of the condition of 
the illustrious patient were issued ; hope was 
expressed that his life might be spared for 
many years, a hope which soon proved to be 
unfounded ; and although his labors in the 
preparation of his " Memoirs " continued, it 
became evident that he was sustained more 
by will-power than by any increasing 




THE COTTAGE IN WHICH GRANT DIED AT MT. McGREGOR. 

strength, and that very soon he would be 
compelled to lay down his pen as he had 
already laid down his sword. 

In the summer of 1865 he was removed 
to Mount McGregor, in the northern part of 
the State of New York, in the hope that he 
would be invigorated by the mountain air. 
Disease, however, had progressed so far that 
his death became inevitable, and this occurred 
on the twenty-third of July, at 8 o'clock A. 
M. Demonstrations of sorrow attended his 
obsequies. A special train bore his remains 
from Mount McGregor to the city of New 
York, where the funeral services and the 



interment were to take place. On the sixth 
of August he was laid in state in the City 
Hall, and vast crowds of people came to take 
their last look. On August eighth the 
funeral took place, which was an extraordi- 
nary pageantry. It was attended by celeb- 
rities from all parts of the land. All that 
statesmen, members of Congress, Governors 
of States, Judges of Supreme Courts and per- 
sons in the highest walks of professional and 
mercantile life could do to give honor to the 
illustrious dead was rendered on this ocasion. 
The Grand Army, of which General Grant 
had been the leader, was fully 
represented. A procession num- 
bering from fifty to sixty thou- 
sand men followed the hearse 
from the City Hall to the mau- 
soleum erected on the banks of 
the Hudson, which was to con- 
tain the remains of the illustrious 
dead. The closing scenes of the 
life of General Grant were as im- 
pressive as his previous illness 
had been painful, and fitted to 
awaken public sympathy. Thus 
was laid in the tomb another of 
the renowned sons of the Re- 
public who had done much to 
add to her fame and brighten 
her glory. 

It was not long after this that another 
death occurred which added to the affliction 
caused by that of ex-President Grant. On 
the 29th of October General George B. 
McClellan died at his residence at Orange 
Mountain, N. J. General McClellan's name 
comes out conspicuously in the history of 
our country since i860. In the early part of 
the war he was commander of the Army of 
the Potomac. Having been displaced, the 
part that he occupied in the war was not 
afterward prominent. He was widely known, 
however, in political life, and was invested 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



869 



with several offices, one of which was the 
governorship of New Jersey. His funeral 
took place in the city of New York on the 
second of November. 

The public agitation of the question of 
free trade and revenue reform took definite 
shape in the latter part of this year. At 
Chicago on the eleventh of November there 



more and more prominent, entering more 
largely into public discussion, and was des- 
tined to be the leading issue in the next presi- 
dential campaign. 

On the twenty-fifth of November Vice- 
President Thomas B. Hendricks died sud- 
denly at Indianapolis, and his obsequies 
were attended December first. Thus passed 




GENERAL GRANT'S TEMPORARY TOMB, RIVERSIDE PARK, NEW YORK. 



was a national conference of free-traders and 
revenue reformers. This was preliminary to 
political action which, it was understood, 
wouldbe taken afterward. The conference was 
attended by representative men, views were 
freely exchanged, and it was thought that 
by this action the cause of free trade would 
be materially promoted. Thus it may be 
seen that the tariff question was becoming 



away another of the prominent figures whose 
removal made the year 1885 conspicuous as 
a year of death in high places. 

In December both houses of Congress 
passed a bill granting a pension to President 
Grant's widow. This was thought to be an 
act of justice in consideration of the services 
rendered to the nation by her distinguished 
husband — a measure which was heartily 



370 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



approved by the people at large, and which 
was another evidence of the fact that, not- 
withstanding the old saying that " Repub- 
lics are ungrateful," ours is not to be classed 
in that number. 

In the early part of December, Congress 
reassembled at Washington, and President 
Cleveland submitted his annual message. In 
this message the matter of silver coinage was 
given a prominent place, and in connection 
with it the existing condition of the laboring 
classes throughout the country was dis- 
cussed. The president expressed the gravest 
anxiety for the prosperity of the country, 
unless measures should be taken by Con- 
gress to remedy the existing evils. Another 
important recommendation had reference to 
the Indians. It was maintained that the pres- 
ent laws and regulations for their control 
should be prudently administered, while at 
the same time it was stated that there was a 
lack of fixed purpose or policy on this subject. 

The Presidential Succession. 

The president took the ground that the 
Indians were within the care of the govern- 
ment, and their rights should be protected 
from invasion by the most solemn obliga- 
tions. It was stated that there was a general 
concurrence in the proposition that the ulti- 
mate object of their treatment should be their 
civilization and citizenship, and it was urged 
that measures to this end should be pressed 
forward as speedily as possible. The pass- 
age of a law was recommended which should 
authorize the appointment of six commis- 
sicners to carry out the preceding recom- 
mendations. These were the most important 
matters which were submitted by President 
Cleveland in this message, 

A bill stating the terms of the presidential 
succession was passed by Congress on the 
fifteenth of January, 1886. The opinion had 
long been held by members of Congress, and 



had been discussed by the journals through- 
out the country, that the statutes regulating 
the succession in the office of president were 
not sufficiently adequate. The intention was, 
by this bill, to set up such safeguards as 
would prevent any revolutionary act in the 
event of the death of the chief executive, the 
vice-president, or both, during a single pres- 
idential term. 

Agitations upon the labor question con- 
tinued throughout the country; organiza- 
tions were rapidly formed, conventions were 
held, leading agitators inflamed the laboring 
classes, and the subject assumed such grave 
proportions that on the twenty-second of 
April, 1886, President Cleveland sent a spec- 
ial message to Congress. The object was to 
recommend such measures as would tend to 
quiet the labor agitation, and at the same 
time guard the interests of capital. 

Anarchists Sentenced to be Executed. 

The next event of importance, although 
occurring in Chicago, very soon assumed a 
national aspect. On the fourth of May a 
riot occurred in that city, instigated by a 
company of revolutionary spirits who have 
been denominated " Anarchists." After 
having held secret and public meetings for a 
long time, which were promoted and reported 
by one or two journals edited by the leaders 
in the movement, an open outbreak occur- 
red on the above date. While a public meet- 
ing was being held and speeches were being 
made of a revolutionary description, the 
police attempted to disperse the crowd. At 
that instant dynamite bombs were thrown, 
and seven policemen were killed, and eighty- 
three officers and citizens were wounded. 

A number of arrests followed, and on the 
twentieth of August, after a protracted trial, 
seven anarchists were convicted of murder 
and sentenced to be executed. Able coun- 
sel defended them, and managed their trial 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



871 



in such a way as to indicate that they were 
as much in sympathy with the measures 
proposed by the anarchists as they were 
with the maintenance of law and order. On 
the seventh of October a new trial was 
refused, and on the ninth formal sentence of 
execution w^as pronounced. Four were exe- 
cuted on November 11, 1887, one committed 
suicide in prison, two were sentenced to 
imprisonment for lile and one to fifteen years 
in the penitentiary. 

Earthquake at Charleston. 

On the thirty-first of August, 1886, the 
city of Charleston, South Carolina, was 
visited by a severe earthquake. Nearly seven 
thousand buildings were totally destroyed or 
seriously injured. About one hundred lives 
were lost, and so great was the work of 
destruction that more than one-half of the 
city had to be rebuilt. This calamity threw 
a gloom over the entire country ; prompt aid 
was offered the sufferers, and the people of 
the stricken city began at once to repair their 
.desolated homes. 

On Thursday, October 28, 1886, the great 
statue of Liberty Enlightening the World 
was unveiled on Bedlow's Island, in New 
York Harbor. This massive work was con- 
ceived and executed by M. Auguste F. Bar- 
tholdi, of Paris, France, and was presented 
by the French nation to the people of the 
United States. The first steps toward its 
construction were taken in I874, when the 
French-American Union was established, a 
banquet given, and an appeal made to the 
people of France. In 1876 M. Bartholdi 
had begun his great work, and with extended 
right arm of the statue — the first part that 
was completed — came to America and 
placed it with the torch in the Centennial 
Exhibition at Philadelphia, whence it was 
subsequently removed to Madison Square, 
New York. In February, 1877, Congress 



set apart Bedloe's Island for the statue, and 
a committee was chosen, with William M. 
Evarts at its head, to make preparations for 
receiving the great work. 

The statue weighs 450,000 pounds, or 225 
tons. The bronze alone weighs 200,000 
pounds. Forty persons can stand comfort- 
ably in the head, and the torch will hold 
twelve people. 

The total number of steps in the tempor- 
ary staircase, which leads from the base of 
the foundation to the top of the torch is 403. 
From the ground to the top of the pedestal, 
195 steps. The number of steps in thestatue 
from the pedestal to the head is 154, and the 
ladder leading up through the extended 
right arm to the torch has 54 rounds. The 
cost of the statue was estimated at $250,000; 
the cost of the pedestal and the erection of 
the statue, $350,000. Total cost of the work 
completed and in place, $600,000. 

President Cleveland's Marriage. 

A social event of great interest during the 
administration of President Cleveland was 
his marriage at the White House, on the 
second of June, 1886, to Miss Frances Fol- 
som, of Buffalo, New York, who was educated 
at Well's College, and who, just previously to 
her marriage, had made the tour of Europe. 
At seven o'clock in the evening the wedding 
guests assembled in the Blue Room. Owing 
to the President's desire that the affair should 
be as private as possible, the Diplomatic 
Corps had not been invited. 

The guests placed themselves in the form 
of a semicircle, Mr. Bayard being at the 
extreme left and Rev. Mr. Cleveland at the 
extreme right. 

The Marine Band, which was stationed in 
the ante-room, gave forth the dulcet strains 
of the perennial wedding-march of Men- 
delssohn as the Rev. Dr. Sunderland took 
his position at the south end of the room, 



8/2 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



and immediately after the bridal party 
entered. The bearing of the couple was 
dignified and impressive. They were fol- 
lowed by the few guests who were closely 
related to the contracting parties. 

The reverend doctor then performed the 
marriage ceremony in a manner at once 




MRS. FRANCES FOLSOM-CLEVELAND. 

solemn and impressive, the bride and groom 
making their responses in clear tones. The 
ring was then passed and placed upon bride's 
finger, and the two were pronounced man 
and wife. The following benediction was 
spoken by the Rev. Mr. Cleveland, brother of 
the President : 



" God the Father, God the Son, and God' 
the Holy Ghost, bless, preserve and keep- 
you; the Lord mercifully fill you with all 
temporal and all spiritual blessings, and 
grant that you may so live together in this 
world that in the world to come you may 
have life everlasting. Amen." 

Ex-President Chester A. Ar- 
thur died November i8, 1886, 
aged fifty-six years. 

In his message of December, 
1886, President Cleveland made 
special reference to the statutes 
granting and regulating pensions. 
This was done, doubtless, in part 
to answer criticisms upon his 
many vetoes of bills passed which 
granted pensions to disabled sol- 
diers and their families. He says : 
"The usefulness and the jus- 
tice of any system for the distri- 
bution of pensions depend upon 
the equality and uniformity of its 
operation. It will be seen from 
the report of the Commissioner 
that there are now paid by the 
government one hundred and 
thirty-one different rates of pen- 
sion. 

" He estimates from the best 
information he can obtain that 
nine thousand of those who have 
served in the army and navy of 
the United States are now sup- 
ported, in whole or in part, from 
public funds or by organized 
charities, exclusive of those in 
soldiers' homes under the direction and con- 
trol of the government. Only thirteen per 
cent, of these are pensioners, while of the 
entire number of men furnished for the late 
war something like twenty per cent, includ- 
ing their widows and relatives, have been or 
are now in the receipt of pensions. 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



873 



" The American people, with a patriotic 
and grateful regard for our ex-soldiers — too 
broad and too sacred to be monopolized by 
any special advocates — are not only willing 
but anxious that equal and exact justice 
should be done to all honest claimants for 
pensions. In their sight the friendless and 
destitute soldier, dependent on public charity, 
if otherwise entitled, has precisely the same 



work an injustice to the brave and crippled, 
but poor and friendless soldier, who is entirely 
neglected or who must be content with the 
smallest sum allowed under general laws." 

In the same message occurred a further 
discussion of the labor question as fol- 
lows : 

" The relations of labor to capital and of 
laboring men to their employers, are of the 




THE NEW POST OFFICE BUILDING, PHILADELPHIA. 



right to share in the provision made for those 
who fought their country's battles as those 
better able, through friends and influence, to 
push their claims. 

" Every pension that is granted under our 
present plan upon any other grounds than 
actual service and injury or disease incurred 
in such service, and every instance of the 
many in which pensions are increased on 
other grounds than the merits of the claim, 



utmost concern to every patriotic citizen. 
When these are strained and distorted, unjus- 
tifiable claims are apt to be insisted upon by 
both interests, and in the controversy which 
results, the welfare of all and the prosperity 
of the country are jeopardized. Any inter- 
vention of the General Government, within 
the limits of its constitutional authority, to 
avert such a condition, should be willingly 
accorded. 



874 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



" In a special message transmitted to the 
Congress at its last session, 1 suggested the 
enlargement of our present Labor Bureau, 
and adding to its present functions the power 
of arbitration in cases where differences arise 
between employer and employed. When 
these differences reach such a stage as to 
result in the interruption of commerce be- 
tween the States, the application of this 
remedy by the General Government might 
be regarded as entirely within its constitu- 
tional powers. 




THE NEW CITY HALL, PHILADELPHIA 

" And I think we might reasonably hope 
that such arbitrators, if carefully selected 
and if entitled to the confidence of the parties 
to be affected, would be voluntarily called to 
the settlement of controversies of less extent 
and not necessarily within the domain of 
Federal regulation. 

"I am of the opinion that this suggestion 
is worthy the attention of the Congress. 

" But after all has been done by the pas- 
sage of laws either Federal or State to relieve 
a situation full of solicitude, much more 
remains to be accomplished by the reinstate- 



ment and cultivation of a true American sen- 
timent which recognizes the equality of 
•American citizenship. This, in the light of 
our traditions and in loyalty to the spirit of 
our institutions, would teach that a hearty 
co-operation on the part of all interests is 
the surest path to national greatness and the 
happiness of all our people, that capital 
should, in recognition of the brotherhood of 
our citizenship and in a spirit of American 
fairness, generously accord to labor its just 
compensation and consideration, and that 
contented labor is capital's 
best protection and faithful 
ally. It would teach, too, 
that the diverse situations 
of our people are insepar- 
able from our civilization, 
that every citizen should, 
in his sphere, be a contrib- 
utor to the general good, 
that capital does not neces- 
sarily tend to the oppression 
of labor, and that violent 
disturbances and disorders 
alienate from their pro- 
moters true American sym- 
pathy and kindly feeling." 
In September, of 1887, 
the centennial anniversary 
of the adoption and promul- 
gation of the United States Constitution was 
celebrated in Philadelphia. The celebration 
occupied the three days — Thursday, Friday 
and Saturday, September fifteenth, sixteenth 
and seventeenth. On the fifteenth there was 
a grand industrial display under the general 
direction of Colonel A. Louden Snowden, 
which was seven hours in passing a given 
point, and was by far the largest exhibition 
of the sort ever made in America. 

On Friday, the sixteenth, there was a mili- 
tary parade, composed of United States 
regular troops, United States marines, Girard 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



875 



College cadets and companies of State militia 
from over half the States in the Union. Fif- 
teen thousand men were in line, the gov- 
ernors of States riding at the head of their 
several State troops, the whole under the 
command of Lieutenant-General Phillip H. 
Sheridan. It was reviewed by the President 



in Independence Square, at which President 
Cleveland presided, the opening and closing 
prayers being made by Bishop Potter of New 
York and Cardinal Gibbons of Baltimore, 
respectively. There were addresses by Presi- 
dent Cleveland and President Kasson, of the 
Constitutional Celebration Committee, and 




STEAMSHIP DOCKS ON THE DELAWARE RIVER. PHILADELPHIA. 



of the United States. Stands had been 
erect d along Broad street from Wharton to 
Daunhin streets, and on Market and Chestnut 
streets from Broad to Fifth streets, and they 
were filled with tier upon tier of enthusiastic 
thousands, the whole forming one of the 
grandest military spectacles of the century. 
On Saturday there were public exercises 



the oration was given by Associate Justice 
Samuel F. Miller, of the United States 
Supreme Court. 

Hon. Roscoe ConkHng, ex-United States 
Senator of New York, died April 1 8, 1 888, aged 
fifty-nine. Hon. Morrison R. Waite, Chief 
Justice of the United States Supreme Court, 
died March 23, 1888, aged seventy-two years. 



Zjd 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



At St. Louis, June 5, 1888, the Democratic 
National Convention was held for the pur- 
pose of nominating candidates for the offices 
of President and Vice-President. When the 
convention was called to order the scene was 
an inspiring one. Back of the delegates rose 
tier after tier of spectators, a vast, undulating 
sea of heads and faces. In the galleries the 
bright ribbons of the ladies and the highly- 
colored fans fluttered among the red, white 
and blue, the silver stars and the graceful 
folds of bunting. The morning was close 
and muggy and threatened rain, but when 




ALLEN G. THURMAN. 

Chairman Barnum, of the Democratic Na- 
tional Committee, and Secretary Frederick 
O. Prince came upon the platform the sun 
burst through the clouds, and through the 
windows of the convention hall as well. 

President Grover Cleveland, of New York, 
was unanimously nominated for the office of 
President of the United States, and Allen G. 
Thurman, of Ohio, for the office of Vice- 
President; after which the convention ad- 
journed on June 7. The meetings of the 
convention were attended by scenes of excite- 
ment and enthusiasm, which indicated com- 
plete harmony in the Democratic party, 



resolute determination to make the ap- 
proching campaign one of great vigor, and 
hope of success at the general election to be 
held in November. 

The Republican National Convention, held 
at Chicago from the nineteenth to the 
twenty-fifth of June, 1888, nominated the 
Hon. Benjamin Harrison, of Indiana, for the 
office of President. 

Previous to the assembling of the con- 
vention, and even during its early sessions, 
Mr. Harrison was not so prominently named 
for the nomination as several others. Sher- 
man, of Ohio; Gresham, of Illinois; Alger, 
of Michigan, and that distinguished leader of 
the Republican party, James G. Blaine, had 
their respective enthusiactic following. The 
nomination was given to Mr. Harrison after 
a long and patient effort to secure the best 
man for the high honor of leading the Repub- 
lican hosts. 

Nomination of Benjamin Harrison. 

When the convention, on the eighth ballot, 
declared in favor of Harrison, the decision 
was hailed with universal delight. Although 
the friends of other candidates had worked 
with great zeal to secure the prize for their 
favorites, there was a hearty acquiesence in 
the final decision, the choice was made 
unanimous, the building shook with hearty 
plaudits, great waves of excitement swept 
over the vast audience, and the scene was 
one never to be forgotten by those who wit- 
nessed it. At once all differences among the 
delegates were harmonized, and they pre- 
pared to push the canvass with vigor up to 
the day of decision in November. 

Hon. Levi P. Morton, of New York, was 
nominated for the office of Vice President. 

On the twentieth of July, 1888, the nomi- 
nation of Melville W. Fuller, of Illinois, as 
Chief Justice of the United States Supreme 
Court, was confirmed by the Senate, and on 



ADMINISTRATION OF GROVER CLEVELAND. 



877 



the fourteenth of August General John M. 
Scofield was appointed to command the army 
of the United States. 

General Philip H. Sheridan, the distin- 
guished cavalry commander, died August 5, 
1888, aged fifty-seven years. 

In October occurred an incident which 
resulted in the recall by the British Govern- 
ment of its Minister at Washington. On the 
thirtieth Lord Sackville-West was notified by 
Secretary Bayard that his presence in this 
country in adiplomatic capacity was nolonger 
desired by the United States. This action 
was taken because of the publication of a 
letter from Minister West to a mythical per- 
sonage named Murchison, in which he advised 
support of Cleveland for President because 
he was favorable to British interests. 

Result of the Election. 

On the sixth of November the election was 
held, which resulted in a victory for the 
Republican party, the States voting as they 
did at the election four years before, with the 
exception of New York and Indiana, which 
gave their votes to Benjamin Harrison. 

The first session of the Fiftieth Congress 
was the longest continuous session ever held, 
having lasted 321 days, ending October twen- 
tieth. In the Senate 3,641 bills and 1 16 joint 
resolutions were introduced ; in the House, 
11,598 bills and 230 joint resolutions — a 
grand total of 15,585 measures. President 
Cleveland's message calling attention to the 
surplus and recommending a revision of the 



tariff forced a discussion of that economic 
question which extended through and pro- 
longed the session. 

What became known as the Mills bill was 
reported to the House, and passed July 
twenty-first. A substitute measure known as 
the Senate bill was report d to the Senate 




LEVI p. MORTON. 

October fourth and debated, but no action 
was taken thereon. So much time was occu- 
pied by the tariff debate and other discus- 
sions brought about for effect on the Presi- 
dential election that there was very little 
important legislation. About 1,200 bills 
were passed, of which 800 were private pen- 
sion bills. 



CHAPTER XLVIII 
The Administration of Benjamin Harrison 

Inauguration of Pi'esident Harrison — Imposing Scene at Washington — Vast Assembly — Civic and Military Parade — 
President Harrison's Inaugural Address — Celebration of the Centennial Anniversary of Washington's Inauguration — 
Fine Naval Parade — Religious and Literary Exercises — Military Display — President Harrison at the Banquet — The 
President's Address — The New Cabinet — Terrible Calamity at Johnstown — Admission of New States — President's 
Message to the Fifty-first Congress — Legislation of the First Session of the Fifty-first Congress — The New Tariff Law — 
Indian War in the Northwest — Death of Sitting Bull — Restriction of Immigration — Mob Law in New Orleans — 
Trouble with Chile — Political Conventions of i8q2 — Labor Contest at Homestead — Defeat of the Bland Silver Bill. 



THERE was an imposing demonstra- 
tion at Washington on the occasion 
of President Harrison's inaugura- 
tion, March 4, 1889. A vast con- 
course of people assembled from all parts of 
the country, and the civic and military dis- 
play surpassed all pageantries ever before 
witnessed at the capital. 

President Harrison's inaugural address, 
while recommending some important meas- 
ures, was regarded as conservative in its tone, 
and served to inspire confidence in the new 
administration. 

The address traced the necessary growth 
of tariff legislation. This legislation was 
adopted in the early history of the nation. 

" Societies for the promotion of home 
manufactures and for encouraging the use of 
domestics in the dress of the people were 
organized in many of the States. The 
revival at the end of the century of 
the same patriotic interest in the preserva- 
tion and development of domestic industries, 
and the defence of our working people 
against injurious foreign competition, is an 
incident worthy of attention. It is not a 
departure, but a return that we have wit- 
nessed. The protective policy had then its 
opponents. The argument was made, as now, 
that its benefits inured to particular classes 
or sections." 
878 



Continuing, the President said : " I look 
hopefully to the continuance of our protec- 
tive system and to the consequent develop- 
ment of manufacturing and mining enter- 
prises in the States hitherto wholly given to 
agriculture, as a potent influence in the per- 
fect unification of our people. The men who 
have invested their capital in these enterprises, 
the farmers who have felt the benefit of their 
neighborhood, and the men who work in 
shop or field will not fail to find and to 
defend a community of interest." 

The President gave some timely sug- 
gestions respecting the formation of trusts 
and the evils which are likely to attend them. 
Among other things he said< " The evil 
example of permitting individuals, corpora- 
tions or communities to nullify the laws 
because they cross some selfish or local 
interest or prejudices is full of danger, not 
only to the nation at large, but much more 
to those who use this pernicious expedient 
to escape their just obligations or to obtain 
an unjust advantage over others. They will 
presently themselves be compelled to appeal 
to the law for protection and those who 
would use the law as a defense must not deny 
that use of it to others. 

" If our great corporations would more 
scrupulously observe their legal limitations 
and duties, they would have less cause to 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



879 



complain of the unlawful limitations of their 
rights or of violent interference with their 
operations. The community that by concert, 
open or secret, among its citizens denies to a 
portion of its members their plain rights 
under the law, has severed the only safe bond 
of social order and prosperity. The evil 
works, from a bad centre, both ways. It 
demoralizes those who prac- 
tice it, and destroys the faith 
of those who suffer by it in 
the efficiency of the law as 
a safe protector. The man 
in whose breast that faith 
has been darkened is natur- 
ally the subject of danger- 
ous uncanny suggestions. 
Those who use unlawful 
methods, if moved by no 
higher motive than the 
selfishness that prompted 
them, may well stop to in- 
quire what is to be the end 
of this." 

The President also recom- 
mended that our naturaliza- 
tion laws be so amended as 
to exclude the worst class 
of immigrants. "We should 
not cease to be hospitable to 
immigration, but we should 
cease to be careless as to 
the character of it." 

The address recommend- 
ed that care be exercised to 
maintain friendly relations with the other 
nations of the globe, but not at the expense 
of our own interests. 

A strong navy for the protection of the 
United States was urged as a prime consid- 
eration, with such appropriations as would 
be needed to build and equip a fleet of war 
vessels capable of defending our coasts and 
upholding the dignity of our flag. 



The reform of the civil service, the admis- 
sion of new States, the freedom of the ballot 
and the safeguards needed to give efficacy 
to our election laws, were topics discussed 
by the address in a timely, patriotic manner. 

The new cabinet was constituted as fol- 
lows : Secretary of State, James G. Blaine, 
Maine (resigned), succeeded by John W. 




BENJAMIN HARRISON. 

Foster, Indiana ; Secretary of the Treasury, 
William Windom, Minnesota (deceased), suc- 
ceeded by (3harles Foster, Ohio ; Secretary of 
War, Redfield Proctor, Vermont (resigned), 
succeeded by Stephen B. Elkins, West Vir- 
ginia ; Secretary of the Navy, Benjamin F. 
Tracy, New York ; Secretary of the Interior, 
John W. Noble, Missouri ; Post-master- 
General, John Wanamaker, Pennsylvania; 



^8o 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



Secretary of Agriculture, Jeremiah M. Rusk, 
Wisconsin ; Attorney-General, William H. 
H. Miller, Indiana. 

On the thirtieth of April, 1889, the Cen- 
tennial Anniversary of Washington's Inaug- 
uration was celebrated in New York city. 
On the morning of the twenty-ninth, Presi- 
dent Harrison was received in New York 
harbor with a naval parade, which comprised 



The religious exercises comprised a prayer 
by Rev. R. S. Storrs, D. D., LL. D., and a 
sermon by Bishop Potter, of New York. 
The literary exercises comprised a poem 
written for the occasion by John Greenleaf 
Whittier, and an oration by Hon. Chauncey 
Depew. 

At a banquet in the evening, President 
Harrison spoke as follows : 





BIRD S-EYE VIEW OF NEW YORK CITY 



ships of the navy, steamboats, and a large 
number of vessels belonging to the merchant 
marine. On the thirtieth, religious and liter- 
ary exercises were held, and these were fol- 
lowed by a fine military parade, comprising 
regiments from the regular army and militia 
from a number of States. On a stand erected 
at Madison Square, President Harrison and 
several cabinet officers reviewed the parade. 



" The occasion and all its incidents will be 
memorable, not only in the history of your 
city, but in the history of our country. New 
York did not succeed in retaining the seat of 
national government here, though she made 
liberal provision for the assembling of the 
first Congress in the expectation that Con- 
gress might find its permanent home here. 
But though you lost that which you coveted. 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



I think the representatives here of all 
the States will agree that it was fortunate 
that the first inauguration of Washington 
took place in the State and city of New York. 
" For where in our country could the cen- 
tennial of the event have been so worthily 
celebrated as here ? What seaboard offered 
so magnificent a bay, on which to display 
our merchant and naval marine ? What city 



your great exchanges have closed and your 
citizens given themselves up to the observ- 
ance of the celebration in which we are par- 
ticipating. 

" I believe that patriotism has been inten- 
sified in many hearts by what we have wit- 
nessed to-day. I believe that patriotism has 
been placed into a higher and holier fane in 
many hearts. The bunting with which you 




THE POST OFFICE, NEW YORK. 



offered thoroughfares so magnificent or a 
people so great or so generous as New York 
has poured out to-day to celebrate that 
event ? 

" I congratulate you to-day, as one of the 
instructive and interesting features of this 
occasion, that these great thoroughfares dedi- 
cated to trade have closed their doors and 
.covered up the insignia of commerce ; that 
56 



have covered your walls, these patriotic 
inscriptions, must go down, and the wage 
and trade be resumed agfain. 

" Here may I not ask you to carry those 
inscriptions that now hang on the walls into 
you homes, into the schools of your city, 
into all your great institutions where children 
are gathered, and teach them that the eye 
cf the young and old should look upon that 



882 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



flag as one of the familiar glories of every 
American. 

" Have we not learned that no stocks and 
bonds nor land is our country? It is a 
spiritual thought that is in our minds ; it is 
the fireside and the home ; it is the flag and 
what it stands for ; it is the thoughts that are 
in our hearts ; born of the inspiration which 
comes with the story of the flag of martyrs 



the inhabitants of Johnstown, Pennsylvania,, 
and the neighboring villages on the preced- 
ing day. Instantly the whole land was 
stirred by the startling news of this great 
disaster. Its appalling magnitude, its dread- 
ful suddenness, its scenes of terror and agony, 
the fate of thousands swept to instant death 
by a flood as frightful as that of the cataract 
of Niagara, awakened the profoundest horror. 




THE BATTERY AND CASTLE GARDEN, NEW YORK. 



to liberty ; it is the graveyard into which a 
common country has gathered the uncon- 
scious deeds of those who died that the thing 
might live which we love and call our coun- 
try, rather than anything that can be touched 
or seen." 

On the advent of summer, June first, the 
country was horror-stricken by the announce- 
ment that a terrible calamity had overtaken 



No calamity in the history of modern times 
so appalled the civilized world. 

The South Forks dam, situated a few miles 
above the city of Johnstown, suddenly gave 
way, precipitating an immense body of water 
into the valley below. The impetuous tor- 
rent swept downward with frightful velocity, 
overturning trees, carrying with it barns, 
houses, fences and vast accumulations of 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



883 



debris. People fled in terror to save their 
lives, but were overtaken by the rushing tor- 
rent. The destruction to hfe and property 
was appalling. 

The greatest damage occurred at Johns- 
town, a large part of the dwellings being 
swept away, transforming a flourishing manu- 
facturing town of twelve thousand persons 
into a scene of utter desolation. The story 
of this great disaster is replete with thrilling 
incidents, narrow escapes 
from death, the rending 
asunder of families, the loss 
of husbands, wives and chil- 
dren, and in many instances 
the obliteration of entire 
households. It was esti- 
mated that upwards of four 
thousand persons perished. 

Profound sympathy 
throughout the world was 
awakened for the surviving 
sufferers, and immense sums 
of money and contributions 
of clothing were sent to the 
scene of the disaster. 

On the twenty-second of 
February, 1 889, an act was 
passed by Congress admit- 
ting the following Terri- 
tories into the Union as 
States: North Dakota, 

South Dakota, Montana, 

and Washington. President 
Harrison issued his proclamations by which 
the admission of these Territories took effect 
during the same year, that of the two Dakotas 
on November 2, that of Montana on No- 
vember 8, and that of Washington on No- 
vember 1 1. The addition of so many States 
in one year was styled by the President " an 
event as unexampled as it is interesting." 

The message of the President, sent to the 
Fifty-first Congress at the beginning of its 



first session, made reference to the conference 
held during the year of the representatives 
of all the independent States of North and 
South America for the purpose of per- 
petuating and expanding the relations of 
mutual interest and friendliness existing 
among them. While it was hoped com- 
mercial results would follow, the crowning 
benefit would be found in the better secu- 
rities that would be devised for the mainten- 




HARBOR OF NEW YORK. 

ance of peace among all American nations, 
and the settlement of all contentions by the 
methods of Christian civilization. 

The message also called attention to the 
international conference at Washington to 
adopt a uniform system of marine signals and 
to amend the rules and regulations governing 
vessels at sea. The foregoing conferences 
brought together the accredited representa- 
tives of thirty-three nations. 



884 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON". 



The President then discussed the question 
of Chinese immigration. After calling 
attention to the fact that previous legislation 
had failed, he continued : " While our 
supreme interests demand the exclusion of a 
laboring element, which experience has 
shown to be incompatible with our social 
life, all steps to compass this imperative need 
should be accompanied with a recognition of 
the claim of those strangers now lawfully 
among us to humane and just treatment." 



cities against foreign attack, the improvement 
of rivers and harbors, how far " trusts " 
should be brought under Federal jurisdiction, 
the revision of our naturalization laws, the 
allotment of lands to the Indians and such 
legislation as was required for the protection 
of these wards of the nation in their lawful 
rights and of the white settlers on our fron- 
tiers. The message dealt largely with the 
subject of pensions for our ex-soldiers, and 
urged that, with due regard to the public 




THE BREAK IN THE SOUTH FORKS DAM, JOHNSTOWN, PA. 



The message took strong ground upon 
the question of protection to American 
industries. A new schedule of customs 
duties was recommended. " The inequalities 
of the law should be adjusted, but the pro- 
tective principle should be maintained and 
fairly applied to the products of our farms as 
well as of our shops." 

Other subjects discussed in the message 
were silver coinage, provision for our coast 



treasury, Congress should meet every just 
claim on the part of those who made heroic 
sacrifices in the hour of the nation's peril. 

The foregoing were the most important 
subjects treated by the President, all of which 
were discussed with marked ability and with 
a breadth of view which impressed the 
country with his statesmanlike sagacity. 

For many years the Louisiana State Lot- 
tery carried on its operations in defiance of 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



885 



the moral sentiment of the country. Both 
Houses of Congress finally passed, without 
a division, an act forbidding the use of the 
United States mails by any person or com- 
pany engaged in conducting any lottery, 
gift enterprise, or any scheme for obtaining 
money by false and fraudulent pretenses. 
The passage of this act resulted in the sup- 
pression of the Louisiana Lottery. 

An act was also passed declaring to be 
illegal every contract, combination in the 
form of trust or conspiracy in restraint of 
trade or commerce among the several States, 
or with foreicfn nations. This act passed 
both Houses of Congress without a division. 
Its aim was to check the growing evils of 
trusts and all combinations of capital whereby 
a restriction is put upon the manufacture and 
sale of commodities which constitute the 
necessaries of life. 

Increasing the Navy. 

President Harrison's administration was 
also signalized by important legislation affect- 
ing the Navy. Provision was made for the 
construction of three sea-going coast-line 
battle ships, to carry the heaviest armor and 
ordnance, the cost not to exceed ^4,000,000 
each ; one protected cruiser, to have a maxi- 
mum speed of 2 1 knots, and to cost not more 
than ;^2,750,ooo; one swift torpedo cruiser, 
to have a maximum speed of not less than 
23 knots ; and one torpedo boat. 

Acts were passed admitting the Territories 
of Idaho and Wyoming as States into the 
Union, the act admitting Idaho being ap- 
proved July 3, and that admitting Wyoming 
July 10, 1890. 

By a vote of 29 to 5 in the Senate, and a 
vote of 1 19 to 93 in the House of Represen- 
tatives, Congress passed an act providing 
that " All fermented, distilled or other intoxi- 
cating liquors or liquids transported into any 
State or Territory remaining therein for use, 



consumption, sale or storage therein, shall, 
upon arrival in such State or Territory, be 
subject to the operation and effect of the 
laws of such State or Territory enacted in 
the exercise of its police powers, to the same 
extent and in the same manner as though 
such liquids or liquors had been produced in 
such State or Territory, and shall not be ex- 
empt therefrom by reason of being introduced 
therein in original packages or otherwise." 
The act was approved August 8, 1890, 




WILLIAM Mckinley. 

and was occasioned by a decision of the 
United States Supreme Court (three judges 
dissenting) that brewers in Illinois had the 
right to import into Iowa beer, and to sell it 
in original packages without regard to the 
law of Iowa. Congress took up the matter 
promptly and provided ample legislation for 
the enforcement by the various States of 
their laws relating to the traffic in liquors. 

On the twenty fifth of April, 1890, Con- 
gress passed an act relating to the Colum- 
bian Exposition at Chicago. The act 
provides for an exhibition of arts, indus- 
tries, manufactures, products of the soil, mine 



S86 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



and sea, in 1893, in Chicago, Illinois, in cele- 
bration of the four hundredth anniversary of 
the discovery of America by Christopher 
Columbus. A commission of two persons 
from each State and Territory to be appointed 
by the President on the nomination of the 
Governors, and of eight commissioners at 
large and two from the District of Columbia, 
to be appointed by the President, in all which 
there shall be one from each of the two lead- 
ing political parties — with alternates — shall 
be the World's Columbian Commission, with 




CHARLES F. CRISP. 

power to accept the site, etc., on condition of 
their being satisfied that ;^ 10,000,000 are 
secured for the complete preparation for said 
Exposition. The Commission is required to 
appoint a board of lady managers, who may 
appoint one or more members of all com- 
mittees authorized to award prizes for 
exhibits which may be produced in whole or 
in part by female labor. 

A naval review is directed to be held in 
New York harbor in April. 1893, and the 
President is authorized to extend to foreign 
nations an invitation to send ships of war to 



join the United States navy in rendevous at 
Hampton Roads and proceed thence to said 
review. The buildings shall be dedicated 
October 12, 1892, and the Exposition open 
not later than May i, 1893, and closed not 
later than October 30, 1893. The Commis- 
sion shall exist no longer than January i, 
1898. A government building for ^400,000 
shall be erected, to contain the government 
exhibits. 

The United States shall not in any manner, 
nor under any circumstances, be liable for 
any of the acts, doings, proceedings or repre- 
sentations of the said corporation organized 
under the laws of the State of Illinois, its 
officers, agents, servants or employees, or 
any of them, or for the service, salaries, labor 
or wages of said officers, agents, servants, or 
employees, or any of them, or for any sub- 
scriptions to the capital stock, or for any cer- 
tificates of stock, bonds, mortgages, or obli- 
gations of any kind issued by said corpora- 
tion, or for any debts, liabilities or expenses 
of any kind whatever attending such cor- 
poration or accruing by reason of the 
same. 

The foregoing were the main provisions 
of the act. On December 24, 1890, Presi- 
dent Harrison issued a proclamation inviting 
the nations of the earth to take part in the 
Chicago Exposition of 1893. 

The New Tariff Law. 

One of the most important measures en- 
acted during President Harrison's admin- 
istration was the McKinley Tariff Bill. After 
a lengthy discussion the bill was passed by 
a party vote, the Republican party being 
pledged to the principle of protection. The 
act went into effect October i, 1890, and in 
its practical workings was closely watched 
and universally discussed. 

A remarkable political revolution swept 
over the country in the autumn of 1890, 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



which was considered largely due to the 
enactment of the McKinley Tariff Bill. In 
the Fifty-first Congress 
the House of Represen- 
tatives contained one 
hundred and seventy-six 
Republicans and one 
hundred and fifty-five 
Democrats. In the Fifty- 
second Congress there 
were eighty-eight Re- 
publicans and two hun- 
dred and thirty-five De- 
mocrats. The House 
was organized by elect- 
ing Charles F. Crisp, of 
Georgia, as Speaker. 

In the autumn of 1 890 
troubles broke out afresh 
at the Indian agencies. 
The several tribes were 
seized with a peculiar 
craze, and began to per- 
form the "ghost dance," 
which was supposed to 
•indicate their belief in 
a coming Messiah who 
was about to appear. 

It seems impossible to 
trace the exact origin of 
the Indian faith. An 
Indian from the upper 
Columbia River, named 
Smohalla, preached the 
doctrine of an Indian 
Messiah about the year 
1880. This Indian taught 
that there would be an 
upheaval of nature,which 
would destroy the white 
man and restore to the 
Indian his ancestral re- 
mains, and that the dust of countless dead In- 
dians would spring to life, and would surround 



887 

without one word of warning each pale face, 
who would be swept from the face of the 




SITTING-BULL IN HIS WAR-DRESS. 

earth. None of the deadly weapons of 
civilization or skill in their use would avail. 



888 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



and the blood of eighty millions of whites 
would atone for the wrongs done to the red 
race. 

Within a few months the belief in this new 
religion spread from tribe to tribe with 
marvellous rapidity. Runners traversed 
thousands of miles to reach distant tribes 
and bear the glad tidings. The Arrapahoes, 




CHIEF AMERICAN HORSE. 

the Shoshones, the great Sioux tribes, the 
Cheyennes, both north and south, and many 
other tribes, were taught the faith ; and the 
" ghost-dance," the religious ceremony of 
the creed, was danced by all these tribes. 

Possessed by these superstitious notions, 
these extraordinary beliefs, the powerful tribe 
of Sioux began and continued to perform 
their fantastic ghost-dances. Sitting-Bull, 



the old deadly foe of the white men, took 
advantage of the craze to inflame the anger 
of his people and prepare for deeds of blood. 
The disquietude among the Sioux Indians- 
resulting from Sitting-Bull's prophecy that a 
new Messiah was soon to appear to restore 
to the Indians the land taken from them by 
the pale-faces, and to bring back the buffalo, 
assumed such proportions that 
on the fourteenth of Novem- 
ber the Interior Department 
transferred the control of the 
Indians of North Dakota, un- 
der orders of the President, 
to the War Department, and 
General Miles, commanding 
the Department of the Mis- 
souri, was placed in control. 
Troops were ordered to be 
sent forward, and it was ex- 
pected that within a short time 
there would be three thousand 
regulars massed in North Da- 
kota. Sitting-Bull had about 
three thousand warriors, and 
it was the intention of the War 
Department to overawe the 
Indians by bringing against 
them an equal force of United 
States soldiers. 

The Indian hostility to 
those of their number who 
were friendly to the United 
States Government showed 
itself in the attempted assas- 
sination of American Horse. This In- 
dian was a prominent Sioux chief, and a 
friend of the United States. He was so 
regarded for years, and was always inclined 
to be peaceable and loyal. To nothing but 
the turbulent, hostile and disaffected spirit 
of the Indians can be attributed the attempt 
to murder him. They were seemingly 
angry because American Horse opposed 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



889 



the turbulent spirit manifested by the In- 
dians. 

On the seventh of December some of the 
hostile chiefs from the Bad Lands appeared 
at the Pine Ridge agency to hold a confer- 
ence with General Brooke. They came bear- 
ing a flag of truce and armed with Winchester 
and Springfield rifles. The entrance of the 
novel procession cre- 
ated great excitement. 
First came the chiefs, 
who were Turning 
Bear, Big Turkey, 
High Pine, Big Bad 
Horse and Bull Dog, 
who was one of the 
leaders in the Custer 
massacre. Next came 
Two Strike, the head 
chief, seated in a bug- 
gy with Father Jule, 
a priest who induced 
the chiefs to take this 
step. Surrounding 
these was a body 
guard of four young 
warriors. 

All the Indians were 
decorated with war 
paint and feathers, 
while many wore 
ghost-dance leggings 
and the ghost-dance 
shirt dangling at their 
saddles. The warlike 
cavalcade proceeded 

at once to General Brooke's spacious head- 
quarters in the agency residence. At a 
given signal all leaped to the ground, 
hitched their ponies and, guided by Father 
Jule, entered the General's apartments, where 
the council was held, lasting two hours. 

At the beginning of the pow-wow General 
Brooke explained that the Great Father, 



through him, asked them to come in and 
have a talk regarding the situation. A great 
deal of misunderstanding and trouble had 
arisen by the reports taken to and fro between 
the camps by irresponsible parties, and it was 
therefore considered very necessary that they 
have a talk face to face. Through him, he 
said, the Great Father wanted to tell them if 




GENERAL NELSON A. MILES. 

they would come in near the agency, where 
he (General Brooke) could see them often, 
and not be compelled to depend on hearsay, 
that he would give them plenty to eat and 
would employ many of their young men as 
scouts, etc. 

The soldiers did not come there to fight 
but to protect the settlers and keep peace. 



590 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



He hoped they, the Indians, were all in favor 
of peace, as the Great Father did not want 
war. As to the feeling over the change in 
the boundary line between Pine Ridge and 
Rosebud Agency, he said that and many 
other things would be settled satisfactorily 
after they had shown a disposition to come 
in, as asked by the Great Father. Wounded 
Knee was suggested as a place that would 



It would be a bad thing for them to come 
nearer the agency, because there was no water 
or grass for their horses here. He could not 
understand how their young men could be 
employed as scouts if there was no enemy to 
be watched. They would be glad to be 
employed and get paid for it. They might 
come in, but as the old men and old women 
have no horses, and as their people have 




CAPTAIN WALLACE FOUND AFTER THE WOUNDED KNEE FIGHT. 



prove satisfactory to the Great Father to have 
them live. 

The representatives of the hostiles listened 
with contracted brows, sidelong glances at 
one another and low grunts. When the 
General had concluded his remarks, Turning 
Bear came forward and spoke in reply. He 
proved a most entertaining person. Sim- 
mered down to a few words. Turning Bear 
gave expression to the following ideas : 



nothing generally to pull their wagons, it 
would take them a long time to come. If 
they should come they would want the Great 
Father to send horses and wagons to the 
Bad Lands camp and bring in great quanti- 
ties of beef, etc., they had there, and take it 
anywhere to a new camp that might be 
agreed on. In conclusion, the speaker hoped 
that they would be given something to eat 
before they started back. 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



891 



To this the general replied that they should 
be given food. As for horses and wagons 
being sent after the beef, the general said 
that and other things would be considered 
after they had acceded to the Great Father's 
request to move into the agency. Any 
reference whatever to the wholesale devasta- 
tion and depredation, thieving and burning 
of buildings, etc., was scudiously avoided on 
both sides. After the pow-wow was over 
the band was conducted to the quarter- 
master's department and there given a big 
feast. The squaws living at the agency came 
out in gala-day feathers and gave a squaw 
dance. 

The conference amounted to nothing, and 
the trouble was no nearer a settlement than 
before. 

Bloody Engagement with the Sioux. 

The next news received was of a startling 
character. It was known that General Miles 
considered Sitting-Bull the chief instigator of 
the hostilities on the part of the Indians, yet 
no public notice had been given of his inten- 
tion to have the crafty old warrior arrested. 
The Indian police, however, employed on the 
Pine Ridge reservation, were ordered to 
make the arrest. The chief was taken, and 
in the melee which followed an attempt to 
rescue him he was shot, together with his 
son and six braves, while four of his captors 
were slain. 

The following is the dispatch announcing 
the capture : 

Fort Yates, N, D., December 15, 1890. 

"At daybreak this morning there was a desperate 
fight at the camp of the hostile Indians, forty miles 
northwest of Standing-Rock Agency, and before it 
could be quelled Sitting-Bull, his son, Crow Foot, 
and six other Indians were killed, besides four of the 
Indian police, while quite a number on both sides 
were wounded. The fight was the result of an 
attempt to arrest Sitting-Bull in order to prevent his 
departure for the Bad Lands. 



" The Indian police were ordered early this morn- 
ing to proceed to the camp and arrest the wily old 
chief, who it was known had arranged to make an 
early start for the Bad Lands, where he would be 
almost absolutely safe from arrest. The police were 
followed by a troop of cavalry in command of Cap- 
tain Fechet and a company of infantry under Col- 
onel Drum. When the police reached Sitting-Bull's 
camp on the Grand River, they found arrangements 
being made for the departure of the band, and with- 
out waiting for the soldiers to come up, at once 
placed the old chief under arrest and started back 
with him to the agency. 

Efforts to Rescue the Chief. 

" Scarcely had the officers gotten under way when 
the friends of the old Indian rallied to his rescue. 
They announced their determination to retake him, 
and a terrible fight ensued. The police were sur- 
rounded, and, though greatly outnumbered, they 
fought like demons and succeeded in holding their 
own against the redskins until the cavalry, attracted 
by the firing, came up on a quick run and succeeded 
in compelling the Indians either to fly or surrender. 

"The fighting was of the hand-to-hand description, 
aud is said to have been exceedingly savage. One 
of the Indian police jumped on Sitting-Bull's horse 
as soon as he saw the old man fall and rode back for 
the infantry, which arrived on the scene shortly 
after the cavalry had relieved the overmatched 
police. Then the Indians began to break away, 
and probably one hundred of the braves deserted 
their families and fled west, up the Grand River. 

The Killed and Wounded. 

" When the smoke of battle had cleared away it 
was found that Sitting-Bull was dead, as also was his 
son, Crow Foot, and six braves. Four of the police- 
men, whose names could not be learned, were also 
dead, and three of them badly wounded. A num- 
ber of the Indians were badly injured, but managed 
to escape on their ponies. Captain Wallace, com- 
manding Troop K, of the Seventh Cavalry, was 
killed, and Lieutenant Garlington of the same regi- 
ment was shot in the arm." 

After the death of Sitting-Bull his warriors 
saw the hopelessness of continuing the strife 
and surrendered, December twenty-second, 
to the United States troops. 

General William Tecumseh Sherman died 
at New York City, February 14, 1891, 



892 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



aged seventy-one years. The interment took 
place at St. Louis, with mihtary honors. 
Important action was taken by the fifty- 




SCENE ON THE YELLOWSTONE RIVER. 



first Congress on the question of immigra- 
tion. 

The act of March 3, 1891, provides that 
the following, besides Chinese laborers, shall 



be excluded from admission into the United 
States, in accordance with the existing acts 
regulating immigration : "All idiots, insane 

persons, paupers, or 
persons likely to 
become a public 
charge, persons suf- 
fering from a loath- 
some disease or a 
dangerous conta- 
gious disease, those 
who have been con- 
victed of a felony 
or other infamous 
crime or misde- 
meanor involving 
moral turpitude, 
polygamists, and 
also any person 
whose ticket or 
passage is paid for 
with the money of 
another or who is 
assisted by others 
to come, unless it is 
affirmatively and 
satisfactorily shown 
on special inquiry 
that such person 
does not belong to 
one of the fore- 
going excluded 
classes, or to the 
class of contract la- 
borers excluded by 
the act of February 
26, 1885, but this 
section shall not 
be held to exclude 
persons living in 
the United States from sending for a relative 
or friend who is not of the excluded classes 
under such regulations as the Secretary of 
the Treasury may prescribe : Provided, that 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



89: 



nothing in this act shall be construed to 
apply to or exclude persons convicted of a 
political offense, notwithstanding said polit- 
ical offense may be designated as a felony, 
crime, infamous crime, or misdemeanor, 
involving moral turpitude, by the laws of 
the land whence he came or by the court 
convicting." 

Mob Law in New Orleans. 

• On March 14, 1891, elev^en Italians, v/ho 
had been accused of conspiracy and the 
murder of Chief of Police Hennessy, 
were lynched in New Orleans by an 
enormous mob, who broke open the 
jail. The Italian Government made a pro- 
test and demanded satisfaction from the 
United States. Dissatisfied with Mr. Blaine's 
reply, the Italian Minister to the United 
States was recalled. Our government finally 
paid indemnity for the lives lost at New 
Orleans, and referred all judicial action to the 
State Courts of Louisiana, thereby restoring 
peaceful relations with Italy. 

The steamer " Itata," loading at San Diego, 
California, with arms and ammunition for the 
Chilean insurgents, was seized on May 6, 
1 89 1 , by the United States Government. She 
sailed the following day with the United 
States deputy marshal on board. The war- 
ship " Charleston " was sent in pursuit, and 
the " Itata " was finally turned over to the 
United States officers in the harbor of Iquique, 
June fourth. 

An International Copyright Law went into 
effect July i, 1891, according to proclamation 
by President Harrison. The Governments of 
the United States, Great Britain, France, Bel- 
gium and Switzerland are parties to the same. 

The Hon. James Russell Lowell, the dis- 
tinguished author and plenipotentiary, died 
at Cambridge, Massachusetts, August 12, 
1 89 1 , aged seventy-two years. The necrology 
of the year also included the deaths of the 



two eminent historians, George Bancroft, who 
died at Washington, January seventeenth, 
aged ninety, and John Benson Lossing, who 
died at Chestnut Ridge, New York, June 
third, aged seventy-eight. 

The Chilean Affair. 

On October 26, 1891, the United States 
demanded of Chile an explanation and repara- 
tion for the attacks in the streets of Valpa- 
raiso on American seamen on the sixteenth 
instant, and the subsequent action of the 
Chilean police. The affair caused much 
excitement throughout the country, and also 
indignation at what was considered a wanton 
act of cruelty and an insult to the American 
flag. President Harrison and his Cabinet 
took prompt action, a special message detail- 
ing the outrage was sent to Congress, and 
soon a satisfactory explanation and apology 
by Chile ended the unfortunate affair. On 
July nineteenth the Secretary of State an- 
nounced that an entirely cordial and mutually 
satisfactory settlement had been reached 
between the government of the United States 
and Chile, respecting the indemnity to be 
paid by the latter on account of the assault 
upon the crew of the Baltimore. Seventy- 
five thousand dollars in gold were to be dis- 
tributed among families of the two men who 
lost their lives and to the surviving members 
of the crew who were wounded. 

On the seventh of June, 1892, the Repub- 
lican Convention met at Minneapolis. The 
nomination of President Harrison had been 
considered a foregone conclusion up to June 
fourth, when the country was startled by the 
news that Secretary Blaine had resigned from 
President Harrison's Cabinet. A letter writ- 
ten by Mr. Blaine in the preceding February 
announced that under no consideration would 
he consent to be a candidate for the Presi- 
dency. This letter was very generally ac- 
cepted in good faith, and there was a general 



894 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



conviction that Mr. Blaine was entirely 
out of the race. It was known, however, 
that for some time before the Convention 
assembled, persistent efforts had been made 
by enemies of the administration to induce 
Mr. Blaine to reconsider his letter of Feb- 
ruary, and allow his name to be used at Min- 
neapolis ; and when he suddenly resigned 
from the Cabinet by a curt letter, and his 
resignation was accepted by President Har- 
rison in a letter equally brief and barren of 
all complimentary expressions, it was com- 
monly believed that the " Plumed Knight " 
had decided to seek the nomination. 

President Harrison Renominated. 

There was consequently great excitement 
preceding the organization of the Conven- 
tion and during its progress. It became evi- 
dent at once that there would be a hard 
contest between the two leading candidates. 
The States at their Conventions had strongly 
indorsed the administration of Presid nt 
Harrison, and many of the delegates had 
been instructed to vote for his renomination 
in the National Convention. His friends, 
after they recovered from the first shock 
which followed the announcement of Mr. 
Blaine's resignation, rallied bravely, and 
remained firm to the end. 

Minneapolis was the scene of ^animated 
discussions and unique popular demonstra- 
tions. The loud huzzahs for Blaine showed 
that he had a strong hold upon the popular 
heart ; but the thoughtful mass of delegates 
who were to decide the question remained 
true to the President, and worked diligently 
and wisely to secure his nomination. 

The brilliant eloquence of Chauncey M. 
Depew, of New York, awakened an unpar- 
alleled scene of enthusiasm as he placed Mr. 
Harrison in nomination before the Conven- 
tion. Mr. Blaine was nominated by Senator 
Wolcott, of Colorado. 



When the vote was taken it was found to 
be as follows : Harrison, 5 35 J; Blaine, 182^; 
McKinley, 182; Reed, of Maine, 4; Robert 
Lincoln, of Illinois, i. On motion of Gov- 
ernor McKinley, of Ohio, who was chairman 
of the Convention, the nomination was made 
unanimous. The Hon. Whitelaw Reid, of 
New York, was nominated for the Vice- 
Presidency. 

The platform which was adopted by the 
Convention was highly commended as a 
sound exposition of the great principles of 
the Republican party. 

Ex-President Cleveland Nominated. 

The National Democratic Convention of 
1892 was held in Chicago June twenty-first to 
June twenty-third. It was conceded before 
the Convention assembled that ex-President 
Cleveland would again receive the nomina- 
tion for the Presidency, and the result on the 
first ballot proved the prediction to have been 
correct. 

The vote was as follows : For Mr. Cleve- 
land, 6161^ ; for Senator Hill, of New York, 
112; for Governor Boies, of Iowa, 103; for 
Senator Gorman, of Maryland, 36^ ; for 
Hon. A. E. Stevenson, of Illinois, 16^ ; for 
Senator Carlisle, of Kentucky, 15 ; for Wil- 
liam R. Morrison, of Illinois, 5 ; for ex-Gov- 
ernor Campbell, of Ohio, 2; f)r Governor 
Robert E. Pattison, of Pennylvania, i ; for 
Hon. William C. Whitney, of New York, i ; 
for Governor Russell, of Massachusetts, i. 

Ohio moved the rules be suspended and 
Mr. Cleveland made the nominee by acclama- 
tion. Governor Plower, of New York, sec- 
onded the motion to make the nomination 
unanimous. The motion to suspend rules 
and declare Mr. Cleveland nominee by accla- 
mation was carried. 

Hon. Adlai E. Stevenson, of Illinois, was 
nominated unanimously for the office of Vice- 
President. 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



89: 



" The People's Party of the United States" 
was formed at a convention at Cincinnati, 
May 4, 1 89 1. The first National Convention 
was held in Omaha, Nebraska, July i, 
1892. On July fourth the nominations were 
made, resulting in the choice of General 
James B Weaver as the nominee for Presi- 
dent, and George Field, of Virginia, for Vice- 
President. The platform adopted demanded 
the free and unlimited coinage of silver, a 
graduated income tax, the establishment of 
postal savings banks, the operation of the 
railroads, the telegraph and telephone by the 
government, and the election of senators by 
direct vote of the people. The convention 
also approved of the Sub-Treasury plan of 
the Farmers' Alliance, and adopted other 
resolutions demanding a free and fair ballot, 
and opposing the granting of subsides to any 
private corporation for any purpose. 

Prohibition Party. 

The National Convention of the Pro- 
hibition Party opened in Cincinnati, on the 
morning of June 29, 1892, and continued in 
session until July first. The platform declared 
that the liquor traffic is a foe of civilization, 
and the manufacture and sale of alcoholic 
liquors as a beverage should be suppressed; 
favored female suffrage ; declared that an 
increase of the volume of money is needed, 
and its volume should be fixed at a definite 
sum per capita, and made to increase with 
population ; favored the free and unlimited 
coinage of silver and gold ; declared that 
tariff should be levied only as a defence 
against foreign governments which levy tariff 
upon or bar out our products from their 
markets, revenue being incidental ; favored 
government control of railroads and tele- 
graphs, and stricter immigration laws; con- 
denmned alien ownership of land ; favored 
arbitration for settling national disputes, 
while speculation in margins, the cornering 



of grain, and the promotion of trusts and 
pools should be suppressed. The party 
pledged itself to grant just pensions, and 
affirmed that it was opposed to any appro- 
priation of public money for sectarian schools. 

Lockout at Homestead. 

On June 29, 1892, the managers of Car- 
negie & Co.'s steel works at Homestead, 
Pennsylvania, closed their establishment, and 
five thousand employes ceased work. An 
attempt was made by the company to intro- 
duce non-union laborers, and in order to 
protect them, as well as to retain possession 
of the plant, a Pihkerton force of three hun- 
dred armed men was sent by boat to Home- 
stead. They attempted to land on the morn- 
ing of July 6, when a sanguinary contest 
took place, resulting in the death of several 
men on each side and the wounding of many 
more. The next day the Pinkerton force 
was withdrawn, and the sheriff of Allegheny 
county telegraphed to Governor Pattison for 
a force of State militia sufficient to enable 
him to hold the company's property. 

After some delay the Governor ordered 
out the entire militia of the State, under com- 
mand of General Snowden. The troops 
arrived on the twelfth, and were quartered in 
and around the town, their presence having 
a restraining effect upon the strikers. On 
the fourteenth General Snowden placed the 
borough of Homestead under martial law. 
On July twenty-third an Anarchist named 
Berkman attempted to assassinate Mr. H. C. 
Frick, chairman of the Carnegie Steel Com- 
pany. Mr. Frick was shot twice, but not 
fatally. His assailant was captured and 
lodged in jail. Subsequent developments 
revealed a plot of the Anarchists to take the 
lives of leading capitalists. 

What was designated as the Bland Silver 
Bill was defeated in the House of Representa- 
tives at Washington on the thirteenth of July, 



896 



ADMINISTRATION OF BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



1892, by a vote of 154 to 136. The bill, 
which provided for the free coinage of silver, 
had previously passed the Senate by a small 
majority. 

Cyrus W. Field, the projector of the first 
Atlantic cable, died July 12, 1892, at the age 
of seventy-three. 

The monster United States cruiser " Co- 
lumbia," one of the largest and swiftest war- 
vessels afloat, was launched at the shipyards 
of William Cramp & Sons, on the Delaware, 
July 26, 1892. 

Canadian Tolls. 

On the twentieth of August President 
Harrison issued a proclamation intended to 
secure just commercial relations between the 
United States and Canada. The govern- 
ment of the Dominion had made a practice 
of discriminating against the citizens of the 
United States in the use of the Welland 
Canal, in violation of the treaty of Washing- 
ton, concluded May 8, 1871. The President 
maintained that this discriminating system 
was unjust and unreasonable. He therefore 
directed that from, and after September i, 
1892, until further notice, a toll of 20 cents 
per ton be levied, collected, and paid on all 
freight of whatever kind or description pass- 
ing through the St. Mary's Falls Canal in 
transit to any port of the Dominion of Canada, 
whether carried in vessels of the United States 
or of other nations ; and to that extent he 
suspended from and after said date the right 
of free passage through said St. Mary's Falls 
Canal of any and all cargoes or portions of 
cargoes in transit to Canadian ports. 



During August, 1892, alarming reports 
of the spread of cholera in Europe caused 
our government to take action intended to 
prevent the introduction of the pestilence 
into the United States. On September ist, 
President Harrison issued a proclamation 
subjecting all vessels from infected ports to 
a quarantine of twenty days. 

George W. Curtis, the eminent author, 
journalist, and orator, died August 31, 1892, 
aged sixty-eight years. 

The poet John G. Whittier died on Sep- 
tember 7, 1892, aged eighty-four years. 

The arrival of the steamer " Kite " at St. 
John, Newfoundland, September 12, 1892, 
ended one of the most successful Arctic 
expeditions ever made. The commander 
was Lieutenant Peary, of the United States 
Navy. On his arrival he telegraphed to the 
Navy Department at Washington as fol- 
lows : 

" United States Navy claims highest dis- 
coveries on Greenland, east coast, Independ- 
ence Bay, 82 degrees north latitude, 34 
degrees west longitude, discovered July 4, 
1892. Greenland ice cape ends south of 
Victoria Inlet. 

" The highest point heretofore attained on 
the east coast is about 75 or 'j'j degrees, and 
was made by Holdenby, a German. The 
highest point on the west coast was 83, made 
by Lockwood and Brainard, of the Greely 
expedition." 

Lieutenant Peary's expedition was rich in 
scientific treasures and geographical discov- 
eries. 




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SHOWING SITB OP 



World's Columbian Exposition, 

HICAGO. 





MASONIC TEMPLE, CHICAGO. 



CHAPTER XLIX 

The World's Columbian Exposition 

^Preparations for the Telebration — Rivalry Between Cities to Furnish the Site — Action of Congress— Chicago Fixed 
Upon as the Location — Organization of the Exposition Company — State and National Appropriations— Jackson Park 
— Government Exhibit Building — Administration Building— Mines and Mining Building— Electrical Building — 
Department of Agriculture— Machinery Hall— Fisheries Building — Magnificent Aquaria— Manufactures and Liberal 
Arts — Building for Fine Arts — Transportation Building — Horticultural Hall — Palace of Mechanic Arts. 



EARLY in 1891 active preparations 
were commenced for the appro- 
priate celebration of the four hun- 
dredth anniversary of the discovery 
of America by Columbus. As the centennial 
anniversary of American independence in' 
1876 had been commemorated by an Inter- 
national Exposition at Philadelphia, in which 
nearly all the civilized nations of the earth 
participated, it was resolved to celebrate the 
discovery of the New World by an exhibi- 
tion of grander proportions as the only 
suitable method of giving dignity to the 
great occasion. The whole country became 
interested in the project, and it was advo- 
cated with unanimity by the newspaper 
press. 

A hot rivalry at once sprang up between 
a number of cities, each of which was eager 
to obtain the honor of furnishing a site for 
the World's Fair. The friendly strife finally 
narrowed itself down to New York and 
Chicago, but the difficulty of obtaining a 
convenient site for the exhibition operated 
strongly as a barrier against the former 
city. 

The act of Congress, which definitely 
selected Chicago as the city in which the 
Exposition should be held and which fixed 
the dates of the celebration to be held in 
1892 and the formal opening and closing of 
■-the Exposition in 1893, was approved by the 



President of the United States April 25, 
1890. 

The act provides that : 

Whereas, It is fit and appropriate that the four 
hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America 
be commemorated by an exhibition of the resources 
of the United States of America, their development, 
and of the progress of civilization in the New World; 
and 

Whereas, Such an exhibition should be of a 
national and international character, so that not 
only the people of our Union and this continent, 
but those of all nations as well, can participate, 
and should therefore have the sanction of the 
Congress of the United States : Therefore 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre- 
sentatives of the United States of America in Con- 
gress assembled. That an exhibition of arts, indus> 
tries, manufactures, and products of the soil, mine, 
and sea shall be inaugurated in the year eighteen 
hundred and ninety-two, in the city of Chicago, in 
the State of Illinois, as hereinafter provided. 

The act provided : 

That the President is hereby empowered and 
directed to hold a naval review in New York har- 
bor, in April, eighteen hundred and ninety-three, 
and to extend to foreign nations an invitation to 
send ships of war to join the United States Navy in 
rendezvous at Hampton Roads and proceed thence 
to said review : 

That said commission shall provide for the dedi- 
cation of the buildings of the World's Columbia^ 
Exposition in said city of Chicago on the twelfth da) 
of October, eighteen hundred and ninety-two, with 
appropriate ceremonies, and said exposition shall b« 

897 



898 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



open to visitors not later than the first day of May, 
eighteen hundred and ninety-three, and shall be 
closed at such a time as the commission may deter- 
mine, but not later than the thirtieth day of October 
thereafter : 

That whenever the President of the United States 
shall be notified by the commission that provision 
has been made for the grounds and buildings for 
the uses herein provided for, and there has also 
been filed with him by the said corporation, known 
as "The World's Exposition of eighteen hun- 
dred and ninety-two," satisfactory proof that a sum 
not less than ten million dollars, to be used and 
expended for the purposes of the exposition herein 
authorized, has in fact been raised or provided for 
by subscription or other legally binding means, he 
shall be authorized, through the Department of State, 
to make proclamation of the same, setting forth the 
time at which the exposition will open and close, 
and the place at which it will be held ; and he shall 
communicate to the diplomatic representatives of 
foreign nations copies of the same, together with 
such regulations as may be adopted by the commis- 
sion, for publication in their respective countries, 
and he shall, on behalf of the government and 
people, invite foreign nations to take part in the 
said exposition and appoint representatives thereto : 

That all articles which shall be imported from 
foreign countries for the sole purpose of exhibition 
at said exposition, upon which there shall be a tariff 
or customs duty, shall be admitted free of payment 
of duty, customs fees, or charges under such regula- 
tions as the Secretary of the Treasury shall pre- 
scribe ; but it shall be lawful at any time during the 
exhibition to sell for delivery at the close of the 
exposition any goods or property imported for and 
actually on exhibition in the exposition buildings or 
on its grounds, subject to such regulations for the 
security of the revenue and the collection of the 
import duties as the Secretary of the Treasury shall 
prescribe : Provided, That all such articles when 
sold or withdrawn for consumption in the United 
States shall be subject to the duty, if any, imposed 
upon such articles by the revenue laws in force at 
the date of importation, and all penalties prescribed 
by law shall be applied and enforced against such 
articles, and against the persons who may be guilty 
of any illegal sale or withdrawal. 

In accordance with the provisions of the 
act, the task of raising the required |l5,ooo,- 
OCX) was proceeded with. Pending the action 



of Congress prominent citizens of Chicago 
had formed the Exposition Company and 
invited subscriptions at the rate of ^10 per 
share. The responses were quick and gen- 
erous, and 29,374 shareholders subscribed 
1^5.467,350. The Legislature of the State 
authorized the city of Chicago to bond itself 
for ;$5, 000,000 in aid of the Fair, the bonds to 
be available as soon as ^3,000,000 of the 
capital stock had been paid in. 

A Proclamation. 

In view of these facts the President of the 
United States issued the following procla- 
mation, December 24, 1890: 

By the President of the United States of Arnerica : 

Whereas, satisfactory proof has been presented 
to me that provision has been made for adequate 
grounds and buildings for the uses of the World's 
Columbian Exposition, and that a sum not less 
than $10,000,000, to be used and expended for the 
purposes of said Exposition, has been provided in 
accordance with the conditions and requirements of 
Section 10 of an Act entitled "An Act to provide 
for celebrating the four hundredth anniversary of 
the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus 
by holding an International, Exhibition of arts, 
industries, manufactures, and the products of the 
soil, mine, and sea, in the city of Chicago, in the 
State of Illinois," approved April 25, 1890 ; 

Now, Therefore, I, Benjamin Harrison, Presi- 
dent of the United States, by virtue of the authority 
vested in me by said Act, do hereby declare and 
proclaim that such International Exhibition will be 
opened on the first day of May, in the year eighteen, 
hundred and ninety-three, in the city of Chicago, in 
the State of Illinois, and will not be closed before 
the last Thursday in October of the same year. 

And in the name of the Government and of the 
People of the United States, I do hereby invite all 
the nations of the earth to take part in the com- 
memoration of an event that is pre-eminent in human 
history and of lasting interest to mankind by ap- 
pointing representatives thereto, and sending such 
exhibits to the World's Columbian Exposition as 
will most fitly and fully illustrate their resources, 
their industries, and their progress in civilization. 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



899 



In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my 
hand and caused the seal of the United States to be 
affixed. 

Done at the city of Washington this twenty-fourth 
day of December, in the year of our Lord one 
thousand eight hundred and ninety, and the Inde- 
pendence of the United States the one hundred 

and fifteenth. 

By the President : 

Benj. Harrison. 
James G. Blaine, 

Secretary of State. 

The Organization. 

The management of the World's Colum- 
bian Exposition was divided as follows : 

I. National Commission (authorized by Act of 
Congress). 2. World's Columbian Exposition ( or- 
ganized under laws of the State of Illinois). 3. Board 
of Lady Managers ( authorized by Act of Congress). 
4. World's Congress Auxiliary. 

The Director-General was made the chief 
executive officer of the exposition, and the 
work was divided into the following great 
departments : 

A — Agriculture, Food, and Food Products, Farm- 
ing Machinery and Appliances. 

B — Viticulture, Horticulture, and Floriculture. 

C — Live Stock, Domestic and Wild Animals. 

D — Fish, Fisheries, Fish Products, and Apparatus 
of Fishing. 

E — Mines, Mining, and Metallurgy. 

F — Machinery. 

G — Transportation Exhibits — Railways, Vessels, 
Vehicles. 

H — Manufactures. 

J — Electricity and Electrical Appliances. 

K — Fine Arts — Pictorial, Plastic, and Decorative. 

L — Liberal Arts, Education, Engineering, Public 
Works, Architecture, Music, and the Drama. 

M — Ethnology, Archaeology, Progress of Labor 
and Invention — Isolated and Collective Exhibits. 

N — Forestry and Forest Products. 

O — Publicity and Promotion. 

P — Foreign Affairs. 

Lyman J. Gage, of the First National 
Bank of Chicago, was president of the 
Exposition Company during its first year. 
In his report, made April i, 1891, he 



estimated the resources of the company at 
$21,000,000, and the expenditures at $17,- 
625,453. It was impossible at this time, 
however, to form an accurate estimate, as the 
various State appropriations had not been 
made, nor the national appropriation by 
Congress of $2,500,000. 

Site of the Exposition. 

Jackson and Washington parks were 
chosen as the location of the Fair, embracing 
an area of over a thousand acres. 

Jackson Park, where nearly all of the 
exposition buildings are located, is beauti- 
fully situated on Lake Michigan, having a 
lake frontage of two miles, and embraces 586 
acres. Washington Park has 371 acres and 
Midway Plaisance, connecting the parks, has 
80 acres. Upon these parks, previous to 
their selection as the World's Fair site, 
$4,000,000 was spent in laying out the 
grounds and beautifying them by lawns, 
flower-beds, etc. The contract for grading 
and for excavating lagoons alone was let for 
$397,000. These parks are connected with 
the center of the city and with the general 
park and boulevard system by more than 
thirty-five miles of boulevards from 100 to 
300 feet in width. 

The ground was prepared for a system of 
lagoons and canals from 100 to 300 feet wide, 
which, with the broad, grassy terraces leading 
down to them, pass the principal buildings, 
enclose a wooded island 1,800 feet long, and 
form a circuit of three miles, navigable by 
pleasure boats. 

These canals, which are crossed hy many 
bridges, connect with the lake at two points : 
one at the southern limit of the improved 
portion of the park and the other more than 
half a mile farther south, at the great main 
court of the exposition. At this point, 
extending eastward into the lake 1,200 feet, 
are piers which afford a landing-place for the 



900 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



lake steamers, and enclose a harbor for the 
picturesque little pleasure boats of all epochs 
and nations. 

This harbor is bounded on the east, far out 
in the lake, by the long columned fagade of 



object in this vista is the colossa. statue of 
Liberty rising out of the lagoon at the point 
where it enters the land, protected by moles, 
which carry sculptured columns emblematic 
of the thirteen oriijinal States of our Union. 







MAP OF JACKSON PARK SHOWING THE SITE OF THE WORLD S FAIR. 



the Casino, in whose free spaces crowds of 
men and women, protected by its ceiling of 
gay awnings, can look east to the lake and 
west to the long vista between the main 
edifices as far as the gilded dome of the 
Administration Building. The first notable 



Beyond this, beyond the first of many 
bridges, lies a broad basin from which grassy 
terraces and broad walks lead, on the north, 
to the south elevation of the enormous Main 
Building, and on the south to the structure 
dedicated to agriculture. 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



901 



The Main Building, extending northwest- 
ward a third of a mile, is devoted to 
manufactures and liberal arts, and receiving 
from all nations the rich products of modern 
workmanship. Recalling architecturally the 
period of the classic revival, it has the 
vivacity, the emphatic joyousness of that 
awakening epoch. The long, low lines of its 
sloping roof, supported by rows of arches, 
are relieved by a central dome over the great 
main entrance, and emblematic statuary and 
floating banners add to its festive character. 

A Classic Structure. 

The north elevation of the classic edifice 
devoted to agriculture shows a long arcade 
behind Corinthian columns supporting a series 
of triple arches and three low, graceful domes. 
Liberally adorned with sculpture and 
enriched with color, this building, by its 
simplicity, refinement, and grace, is idyllically 
expressive of pastoral serenity and peace. 
At its noble entrance a statue of Ceres 
offers hospitality to the fruits of the earth. 
Behind it, at the south, sixty-three acres of 
land are reserved for the live-stock exhibit. 

The lofty octagonal dome of the Adminis- 
tration Building forms the central point of 
the architectural scheme. Rising from the 
columned stories of its square base 250 feet 
into the air, it stands in the center of a 
spacious open plaza, adorned with statuary 
and fountains, with flower-beds and terraces, 
sloping at the east down to the main lagoon. 
North of the plaza are the two buildings 
devoted to mines and electricity, the latter 
bristling with points and pinnacles as if to 
entrap from the air the intangible element 
whose achievements it will display. 

South of the plaza is Machinery Hall, with 

its power-house at the southeast corner. A 

subway at the west passes under the 

terminal railway loop of the Illinois Central 

, road to the circular machinery annex within. 



The United States Government Exhibit 
Building was the first exposition structure 
to be planned. It occupies a delightful sight 
near the Lake Shore, south of the main 
lagoon and of the area reserved for foreign 
nations and the several States, and east of the 
Women's Building and of Midway Plaisance. 
Mexico's Building .stands just north ofthat of 
the United States, across the lagoon. The 
Government Building was designed by 
Architect Windrim, who was succeeded by 
W. J. Edbrooke. It is classical in style, and 
bears a strong resemblance to the National 
Museum and other government buildings at 
Washington. It covers an area of 350 by 
420 feet; is constructed of iron, brick, and 
glass, and cost ^400,000. Its leading 
architectural feature is a central octagonal 
dome, 120 feet in diameter and 150 feet high, 
the floor of which is kept free from exhibits. 
The building fronts to the west and connects 
on the north, by a bridge over the lagoon, 
with the building of the Fisheries Ex- 
hibit. 

The Government Exhibit Building. 

The south half of the Government Build- 
ing is devoted to the exhibits of the 
Post-Office Department, Treasury Depart- 
ment, War Department, and Department of 
Agriculture. The north half is devoted to 
the exhibits of the Fisheries Commission, 
Smithsonian Institute, and Interior Depart- 
ment. The State Department exhibit extends 
from the rotunda to the east end, and the 
Department of Justice from the rotunda to the 
west end of the building. The allotment of 
space for the several department exhibits is : 
War Department, 23,000 square feet ; Treas- 
ury, 10,500 square feet; Agriculture, 23,250 
square feet; Interior, 24,000 square feet; 
Post-Office, 9,000 square feet; Fishery, 
20,000 square feet, and Smithsonian Institu- 
tion, amount of space unsettled. 



902 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



The gem and crown of the Exposition 
Buildings is the Administration Building. 
It is located at the west end of the great 
court, in the southern part of the site, looking 
eastward, at the rear of which is the railroad 
loop and the great passenger depot. The 
first object which attracts visitors on reaching 
the grounds is the gilded dome of this great 
building. To the south of the Administra- 
tion Building is the Machinery Hall, and 
across the great court in front is the 
Agricultural Building to the south and the 
Manufacturers' Building to the northeast. 

The Administration Building. 

This great building, the Administration 
Building, is the only one beside the Electrical 
Building that cost as much as ;^650,ooo. 
The architect was Richard M. Hunt, of New 
York, president of the American Institute of 
Architects, to whose established reputation 
it will be a memorable addition. It covers 
an area of 250 square feet, and consists of 
four pavilions, 84 feet square, one at each 
end of the four angles of the square of the 
plan and connected by a great central dome 
120 feet in diameter and 220 feet in height, 
leaving at the center of each faqade a recess 
82 feet wide, within which is one of the grand 
entrances to the building. The general 
design is in the style of the French renais- 
sance, and it is a dignified and beautiful 
specimen of architecture, as befits its position 
and purpose among the various structures 
by which it is surrounded. 

At each angle of the octagonal base are 
large sculptured eagles, and among the 
springing lines are panels with rich garlands. 
This great dome is gilded, and, asserting 
itself grandly at the end of the long vistas 
which open up in every direction, across the 
lagoons and between the neighboring palatial 
buildings, forms a fitting crown to the first 
and second stag-es. 



The four great entrances, one on each side 
of the building, are 50 feet wide and 50 feet 
high, deeply recessed and covered by semi- 
circular arched vaults, richly covered. In 
the rear of these arches are the entrance 
doors, and above them great screens of 
glass, giving light to the central rotunda. 
Across the face of the screens, at the level 
of the office door, are galleries of communi- 
cation between the different pavilions. On 
each side of these entrances, and in the en- 
trant angles of the corner pavilions, groups 
of statuary, of an appropriate and emblematic 
character, are placed. 

The interior features of the building even 
exceed in beauty and splendor those of the 
exterior. Between every two of the grand 
entrances, and connecting the intervening 
pavilion with the great rotunda, is a hall, or 
loggia, 30 feet square, giving access to the 
offices and provided with broad, circular 
stairways and swift running elevators. Inter- 
nally, the rotunda is octagonal in form, the 
first story being composed of eight enormous 
arched openings corresponding in size to the 
arches of the great entrances. Above these 
arches is a frieze 27 feet in width, the panels 
of which are filled with tablets borne by 
figures carved in low relief and covered with 
commemorative inscriptions. The principal 
story of the rotunda is crowned with a richly 
decorated cornice, on the shelving top of 
which is a continuous balcony on the same 
level as the colonnade outside, and from 
which can be viewed the vast interior. 

Above the balcony is the second story, 
50 feet in height. The walls are embellished 
with plasters, between which a frieze of win- 
dows is placed, giving light to the rotunda 
from the rear wall of the surrounding colon- 
nade. From the top of the cornice of this 
story rises the interior dome, 200 feet from 
the floor, and in the center is an opening 50 
feet in diameter, transmitting light from the 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



903 



exterior dome overhead. The under side of 
the dome is enriched with deep panehngs, 
rich molded, and the panels are filled with 
sculpture, in low relief, and immense paint- 
ings, representing the arts and sciences. In 
size this rotunda rivals, if not surpasses, the 
celebrated domes of a similar character in 
J:he world. 

As to the uses of the Administration Build- 
ing, each of the corner pavilions, which are 
four stories in height, are divided into large 
and small offices for the various departments 
of the administration and lobbies and toilet- 
rooms. The ground floor contains, in one 
pavilion, the fire and police departments, 
with cells for the detention of prisoners; in 
a second pavilion the offices of ambulance 
service, the physician and pharmacy, the 
foreign department and the information 
bureau ; in the third pavilion the post-office 
and a bank, and in the fourth the offices of 
public comfort and a restaurant. The second, 
third, and fourth stories contain the Board 
rooms, the rooms of the Director-General, of 
the Department of Publicity and Promotion, 
and of the World's Columbian Commis- 
sion. 

The Mines and Mining Building. 

This building is French renaissance in 
design and cost 1^350,000. It was designed 
by S. S. Beman, the architect who built the 
celebrated town of Pullman. The building 
is northwest of the Administration and 
flanked on the east by the Electrical Building 
and on the west by the Transportation Build- 
ing. In many respects it is one of the 
handsomest of the central group. It is 
unquestionably the most ornamental. It is 
350 by 700 feet, its greatest length being 
north and south. For a single-story build- 
ing it is regarded as a model. From grade 
to the cornice line is 65 feet. Each of the 
four entrances is as elaborate as it could well 



be made. The main features of the north 
and south entrances are 88 feet wide, with 
openings 32 feet wide and 56 feet high. On 
either side great pillars 32 feet and 162 feet 
high give the building a massive and excep- 
tionally solid appearance. Great shields are 
wrought upon these pillars. Pavilions 68 
feet square and surmounted by domes and 
conservatories are on either corner of the 
building. 

All the openings are spanned by arches, 
which are filled with ornaments showing the 
different ways of mining and all of the pro- 
cesses of smelting and stamping. On the east 
and west sides minor entrances are arranged, 
the main features of which are 72 by 90 feet. 
Here, as on the other side, the panels are 
filled with suggestions of the mining indus- 
tries. The roof is entirely of glass. All of 
the ground floor, excepting a few rooms for 
offices and retiring rooms, is devoted to a 
display of mine products. Eight sets of stair- 
ways lead up to a balcony, 60 feet wide, that 
extends around the building and opens out 
to numerous loggias, from which a fine view 
of the exposition grounds c^n be had, 

The Electrical Building 

cost about ^0,000 and covers about five 
acres. The architects were Van Brunt & 
Howe, of Boston and Kansas City. The 
building has its major axis running north 
and south. The south front is on the great 
quadrangle or court ; the north faces the 
lagoon. The general scheme of the plan is 
based on a longitudinal nave of 1 15 feet wide 
and 1 14 feet high, crossed in the middle by 
a transept of the same width and height. 
The nave and transept have a pitched roof, 
with a range of skylights at the bottom of 
the pitch and clear story windows. The 
rest of the building is covered with a flat 
roof averaging 62 feet in height and provided 
with skylights. 



904 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



The second story is composed of a series 
of galleries connected across the nave by- 
two bridges, with access by four grand stair- 
cases. There are subordinate staircases in 
the four corners of the building. The area 
of the galleries in the second story is 118,543 
feet, or 2.7 acres, but there is capacity for an 
extension of this area if necessary. 

The exterior walls of this building are 
composed of a continuous Corinthian order 
of pilasters, 3 feet 6 inches wide and 42 feet 
high, supporting a full entablature and rest- 
ing upon a stylobate 8 feet and 6 inches high. 
Above is an attic story 8 feet high, the total 
height of the walls from the grade outside 
being 68 feet 6 inches. This order is divided 
into bays 23 feet wide, this dimension serving 
as the module of proportion for the plan of 
the whole building. 

In the center of each of the four sides is 
an entrance pavilion, against which the 
higher roof of the nave or transept abuts. 
The north pavilion is placed between the 
two great apsidal or semi-circular projections 
of the building. It is flanked by two towers 
195 feet high. The central feature is a great 
semi-circular window, above which, 102 feet 
from the grade, is a colonnade forming an 
open loggia or gallery, commanding a view 
over the lagoon and all the north parts of 
the grounds. Access to the loggia is 
ostained by elevators. 

At each of the four corners of the building 
there is a pavilion, above which rises a light, 
open spire or tower, 169 feet high. Inter- 
mediate between these corner pavilions and 
the central pavilion on the east and west 
sides, there is a subordinate pavilion bearing 
a low, square dome upon an open lantern. 
There are thus ten spires and four domes, 
which combine to give to the otherwise rigid 
horizontal lines of the building an effect of 
lightness and animation in accord with the 
purposes of the building. All these towers 



are composed of one or more orders of archi- 
tecture, with open arches, interior domes, 
and balustrades. The entablature of the 
great Corinthian order breaks around each 
of the pilasters of the four fronts, and above 
each pilaster in the Attic order is a pedestal 
bearing a lofty mast for the display of ban- 
ners by day and electric lights by night. Of 
these masts there are in all fifty-four. 

According to agreement among the archi- 
tects of the buildings around the quadrangle, 
the Electricity Building, like the rest, has an 
open portico extending along the whole of 
the south facade, the lower or Ionic order 
forming an open screen in front of it. The 
various subordinate pavilions are treated 
with windows and balconies. The details of 
the exterior orders are richly decorated, and 
the pediments, friezes, panels, and spandrils 
receive a decoration of figures in relief, with 
architectural motifs, the general tendency of 
which is to illustrate the purposes of the 
building. The friezes of the Ionic order bear 
in each bay the name of a discoverer or in- 
ventor associated with the development of 
the science of electricity, thus setting forth a 
biographical history of the science. 

The color of the exterior is marble, but 
the walls of the hemicycle and of the various 
porticoes and loggias are highly enriched 
with color, the pilasters in these places being 
decorated with scagliola and the capitals with 
metallic effects in bronze. 

The Agricultural Building. 

In the design of this building it was pro- 
posed by the architects to so devise its de- 
tails and general outlines that they might be 
capable of providing an electric illumination 
by night on a scale hitherto unknown, the 
flagstaffs, the open porticoes, and the towers, 
especially, being arranged with this in view. 

This is one of the most magnificent struct- 
ures raised for the exposition. The style of 




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THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



905 



architecture is classic renaissance. This 
building is put up very near the shore of 
Lake Michigan, and is almost surrounded by 
the lagoons that lead into the park from 
the lake. The building is 500 by 800 feet, 
its longest dimensions being north and south. 
The north line of the building is almost on 
a line with the south pier leading out into 
the lake, on which heroic columns emblem- 
atic of the thirteen original States are raised. 
A lagoon stretches out along this entire front 
of the building. The east front looks out 
into a harbor which sweeps around and ex- 
tends half-way down the south front of the 
building. The entire west exposure of the 



trance is had to the rotunda, 100 feet in 
diameter. This is surmounted by a mam- 
moth glass dome, 130 feet high. 

Under the center of the dome is a collos- 
sal statue of Ceres surrounded by other alle- 
goric groups of statuary. AH through the 
main vestibule is statuary illustrative of the 
agricultural industry. Similar designs are 
grouped about all of the grand entrances in 
the most elaborate manner. The corner 
pavilions are surmounted by domes 96 feet 
high, and above these tower groups of statu- 
ary. The design for these domes is that of 
three women of herculean proportions sup- 
porting a mammoth globe. At stated inter- 




THE ELECTRICAL BUILDING. 



building faces a continuation of the lagoon 
that extends along the north side. 

For a single-story building the design is 
bold and heroic. The general cornice line 
is 65 feet above grade. On either side of 
the main entrance are mammoth Corinthian 
pillars, 50 feet high and five feet in diameter. 
On each corner and from the center of the 
building pavilions are reared, the center one 
being 144 feet square, and those at the ends 
64 feet square. The corner pavilions are 
connected by curtains, forming a continuous 
arcade around the top of the building. The 
main entrance leads through an opening 64 
feet wide into a vestibule, from which en- 



vals other groups of statuary have been 
arranged around the building, principally 
near the eight minor entrances, each of which 
is 20 feet wide. The roof of the building is of 
glass, and the entire cornice is highly ornate. 
A broad colonnade connects this building 
and the Palace of Mechanic Arts. 

Machinery Hall has been pronounced by 
many architects second only to the Admin- 
istration Building in the magnificence of its 
proportions. This building is 850 by 500 
feet, and cost ^450,000. It is located at the 
extreme south end of the park, midway be- 
tween the shore of Lake Michigan and the 
west line of the park. It is just south of the 



9o6 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



Administration Building, and its northwest 
corner approaches within a few rods of the 
big transportation loop. 

The building is spanned by three arched 
trusses, and the interior presents the appear- 
ance of three railroad train-houses side by 
side, surrounded on all of the four exterior 
sides by a fifty-foot gallery. The trusses 
are to be built separately, so that they can be 
taken down and sold for use as railroad 
train-houses. In each of these long naves 
there is an elevated traveling crane running 
from end to end of the building for the pur- 
pose of moving machinery. From these 
platforms visitors may view the exhibitions 
beneath. Steam power for this building is 
supplied from a power-house adjoining the 
south side of the building. The two exte- 
rior sides adjoining the grand court are rich 
and palatial in appearance. 

The V^oman's Building. 

This building is 200 by 400 feet in its 
general dimensions, and is two stories high, 
with an attic containing committee rooms 
and general offices. It is located on the 
westerly side of Jackson Park, directly oppo- 
site to the ^lidway Plaisance. On the east 
and west fronts are spacious loggias 200 feet 
long and 20 feet wide, surmounted by open 
balconies, accessible from the second floor. 
In the center is the great hall, 80 by 200 
feet, and the full height of the building 
surrounded by corridors which open upon 
the central hall by a series of arches or 
colonnades, and giving access to the various 
exhibition-, committee-, and reception-rooms, 
ladies' parlors, etc. 

On the first floor are the general reception- 
rooms, kindergarten and halls of general 
exhibit for woman's work. On the second 
floor are the ladies' parlors and reception 
rooms en suite, and a large hall for con- 
gresses that will accommodate 1,500 



people. On the opposite end from the hall 
is a meeting-room for the Executive Com- 
mittee of the Board of Lady Managers, with 
necessary offices for the president, secretary, 
and other officers. There are large toilet- 
and dressing-rooms, well lighted and venti- 
lated, and on the landing of the four prin- 
cipal staircases which lead to the second 
floor are four lounging-rooms, made com- 
fortable with spacious divans and walls hung 
with tapestries, embroideries, and other 
specimens of women's handiwork. 

The great hall is brilliantly lighted from 
the top, and furnishes ample opportunity for 
the display of works of art on its walls. The 
style of the exterior design is Italian renais- 
sance of a fine and delicate type of orna- 
mentation, and the friezes and spandrels of 
the arches are decorated with sculptured 
festoons and garlands. The pediments 
which crown the entrances of the east and 
west fronts will be filled with figures in relief, 
and the angles of the pavilions above the 
main corners are to be crowned with groups 
of female figures. 

The Fisheries Building. 

This building is i,ioo feet long and 200 
feet wide. It is built upon a curved island, 
and conforms in shape to this. The general 
design of the building is Spanish Roman- 
esque, and its general effect is exquisitely 
light and pleasing. The two polygonal 
wings serve as aquaria. The three domes 
of this building are of the same color and 
general effect as that of the Administration 
Building ; and the artists in charge of the 
color scheme of the whole exposition have 
planned to use these two widely separated 
domes as the color accents of the whole 
scheme. 

While the extreme dimensions of the 
building are very large, yet the structure is 
so laid out that the general effect is rather of 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN ICX POSITION. 



907 



delicacy than of the grandeur to be expected 
from the mere statement of dimensions. It is 
composed of three parts, — a main building 
365 feet long and 165 feet wide, and two 
polygonal buildings each 133 feet 6 inches 
in diameter, connected with the main struct- 
ure by two curved arcades. 

The main building is provided with two 
great entrances in the centers of the long 
sides. These entrances are by pavilions 102 
feet long, projecting 41 feet beyond the line 
of the main building, and flanked at each 
corner with circular towers. The great 
pediment over the south or chief entrance is 
filled v^'ith sculpture, the subject being a 
scene of whale-fishing. The angles are sur- 
mounted by statues representing fishers cast- 
ing the spear, throwing the hand-line, and 
holding the finny prey. 

The quadrangular first story is surmounted 
by a great circular story capped by a conical 
roof A graceful open turret crowns this 
roof and four smaller towers spring from and 
-surround the base. 

The general design of the whole structure 
is Roman in masses, with all the details 
worked out in a realistic manner after various 
fish and marine forms. Thus the double 
row of engaged columns which form the ex- 
terior face of the building have capitals 
which are formed of a thousand varied 
groupings of marine forms, while the deli- 
cate open-work of the gallery railings dis- 
plays as many different fishes. 

In the center is a circular basin thirty feet 
in diameter, in the middle of which rises a 
towering mass of rock-work. From clefts 
and crevices in this rock-work miniature 
cascades ripple down to the masses of reeds, 
rushes, and ornamental semi-aquatic plants 
in the basin, amid which are seen gorgeously 
brilliant fishes disporting. Around this 
basin is a circular walk sixteen feet wide, 
reached by two broad entrances. These 



entrances pass through the inner series of 
tanks. The larger section of these tanks is 
devoted to fresh-water fishes, the smaller to 
those from salt water. This series contains 
the tanks of greatest capacity. They have 
vertical sides, and the bottom is rounded. 
They vary in capacity from 7,000 to 17,000 
gallons each. The sea water for the marine 
fishes is secured by evaporating the necessary 
quantity at the United States Fish Commis- 
sion Station at Wood's Holl, Mass., to 
one-fifth its bulk, thus reducing both quantity 
and weight for transportation about 80 per 
cent. The fresh water required to restore it 
to its proper density is supplied from Lake 
Michigan. From this same source is drawn all 
the fresh water needed. In transporting the 
marine specimens from the coast to Chicago, 
about 3,000 gallons of pure sea water are 
brought on each trip. 

The entire length of the glass fronts of the 
aquaria is about 575 feet, or over 3,000 
square feet of surface. The panorama 
presented is one of surpassing interest and 
beauty, and the whole exhibit rivals the 
greatest permanent aquaria of the world, 
not only in size but in the number and 
character of specimens displayed. 

It is the intention of the State Fish Com- 
mission of the different States to make 
provision for a comprehensive exhibit of 
native and cultivated live fish, with hatcheries, 
appliances and equipments for transportation, 
models of fishways in use, etc. Each State 
has its special exhibit, and in addition to this 
there is a large government display of shell 
and sea fish. The coast States send espe- 
cially large displays. 

Of all the exhibits to be made by the 
United States Government, the most inter- 
esting is that of the Fish Commission. Up 
to the present time no comprehensive display 
has ever been made of the fauna belonging 
to this country. Such an exhibition made 



9o8 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



in Chicago the Commission exhibits alive in 
aquaria the principal forms of fishes and 
invertebrates of both oceans, the Gulf of 
Mexico, the Great Lakes and the inland 
rivers, with particular reference to those which 
have commercial value. 

Not only are marine creatures of all sorts 
shown, but the finny denizens of the streams 
also, and likewise the whitefish, the catfish, 
the big pickerel, and the huge sturgeons of 
the interior waters. Such a task is neces- 
sarily of great magnitude, inasmuch as the 
labor and skill required to fetch the fishes in 
good condition from points so remote, over 
thousands of miles of railway, is enormous 
and of the very highest order. 

The main structure contains a full and 
complete exhibit af all the various appliances 
used in the fishing industry in all countries 
and in all times, while the special department 
of angling will have the whole of the west 
wing for its exhibit. 

Captain Joseph W. Collins, chief of the 
department, was appointed to that position 
on February 13, 1891, having been selected 
for his eminent fitness for the work to be 
performed. He has had wide experience in 
exposition matters, and is probably the best 
informed man regarding fishery expositions 
and their conduct to be found in the country. 

Manufactures and Liberal Arts — The 
Main Building. 

The biggest structure on the World's 
Fair grounds is the Manufactures and Liberal 
Arts' Building, designed by George B. 
Post, of New York. Its dimensions are 
788 by 1,688 feet. Its location is on the 
eastern side of the park near the lake shore. 
It has the lake on the east and a waterway 
on the south and west sides. It is so designed 
that it resembles four long buildings joined 
together in the form of a rectangle about an 
interior court and forming one continuous 



exhibition hall. This hall receives light 
from both sides and the top, and each section 
is composed of a central arch 100 feet wide 
open to the roof, and 80 feet high, with 
galleries on either side 50 feet wide. The 
four buildings are under one roof, which 
make an unbroken span through the center 
of the building 388 feet wide and 1,400 feet 
long. In the center of the span, running 
north and south, there is an avenue 50 feet 
wide, called Columbia Avenue. Another 
walk, 50 feet wide, crosses this at right angles 
running from one side to the other of the 
building. The arched roof is 1 50 feet high. 

The galleries are approached upon the 
main floor by thirty staircases, the flights of 
which are twelve feet wide each. There are 
four great entrances, one in the center of 
each faQade. These are designed in the 
manner of triumphal arches, the central arch- 
way of each being forty feet wide and eighty 
feet high. Surmounting these portals is the 
attic story, ornamented with immense sculp- 
tured eagles eighteen feet high, and on each 
side above the side arches are large panels 
with inscription, and the spandrils are filled 
with sculptured figures in bas-relief 

The long fagades of the hall surrounding 
the building are composed of a series of 
arches filled with immense glass windows. 
The lower portion of these arches up to the 
level of the gallery floor and twenty-five feet 
in depth is open to the outside, thus form- 
ing a covered loggia, which forms an open 
promenade for the public and provides an 
interesting feature, particularly on the east 
side, where it faces the lake. 

Running about the center is a corridor, 
opening into the span, and a series of eight}-- 
six projecting balconies elliptical in plan 
have been constructed. By walking out on 
these the visitor is enabled to look down on 
the vast crowds of people and exhibits 
below. 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



909 



The north and south corridors at the ends 
of the building are left open, so that visitors 
there find shelter from sun and rain. From 
the north corridor a view is had of the 
Government Building and the maneuvers of 
troops. From the south corridor there is a 
view of the Administration Building, the 
Grand Plaza, and the big basin with its 
numerous boats flying to and fro. 

In this building is the Departments of 
Manufactures and Liberal Arts, and the 
view down the long span is magnificent. 
The corresponding building at the Paris 
Exposition was 1,378 feet long and 374 feet 
wide, so that it could have been conveniently- 
built inside this structure. 

Fine Arts. 

The building is of pure Grecian, Ionic style, 
and a type of the most refined classic archi- 
tecture. It is oblong, 500 by 320 feet, inter- 
sected, north, east, south, and west by a great 
nave and transept 100 feet wide and 70 feet 
high, at the intersection of which is a dome 
60 feet in diameter. It is 125 feet to the top 
of the dome, which is surmounted by a colos- 
sal statue of the type of famous figures of 
winged victory. The transept has a clear 
space through the center of 60 feet, being 
lighted entirely from above. On either side 
are galleries 20 feet wide and 24 feet above 
the floor. 

The collections of sculpture are displayed 
on the main floor of the nave and transept, 
and on the walls of both the ground floors 
of the galleries are ample wall spaces for 
displaying the paintings and sculptured 
panels in relief. The corners made by the 
crossing of the nave and transept are filled 
with small picture-galleries. Around the 
entire building are galleries 40 feet wide, 
forming a continual promenade around the 
entire structure. Between the promenade 
and the naves are the smaller rooms devoted 



to private collections of paintings and the 
collections of the various art schools. 

On either side of the main building are 
one-storied annexes, divided into large and 
small galleries capable of expansion. These 
annexes are 120 by 200 feet wide. The 
main building is entered by four portals 
ornamented with architectural sculpture and 
approached by broad flights of steps. The 
walls of the loggia of the colonnades are 
decorated with mural paintings illustrating 
the history and progress of the arts. The 
frieze of the exterior walls and the pediments 
of the principal entrances are ornamented 
with sculptures and portraits in bas-relief of 
the masters of ancient art. The general tone 
or color is light-gray stone. The construc- 
tion, although of a temporary character, is 
necessarily fire-proof The main walls are 
of solid brick covered with staff architect- 
urally ornamented, while the roof, floors, and 
galleries are of iron. All light is supplied 
through glass skylights in iron frames. 

The immediate neighborhood of the build- 
ing is ornamented with groups of statues, 
replicas, and ornaments of classic art, such 
as Choriagic monument, the " Cave of the 
Winds." The ornamentation also includes 
single statues of heroic and life-size propor- 
tions. The cost of the building was between 
;g 5 00,000 and ^600,000. 

Transportation Building. 

The great feature of this building, which is 
960 by 250 feet, is the superb main entrance. 
This consists of an immense single arch, 
enriched to an extraordinary degree by carv- 
ings, bas-reliefs, and mural paintings. The 
entire scheme forms a rich and beautiful yet 
quiet color climax, for it is treated entirely 
in gold leaf. It is known as the golden door. 
The general style of the building is on the 
Romanesque order. From the cupola of 
this building many of the most striking 



9io 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



groupings of the great buildings are most 
perfectly seen. Everything in the way of 
transportation from a baby-wagon to a loco- 
motive is exhibited in this building. 

The Horticultural Building is i,oooby 280 
feet. The main feature of this building, which 
is almost entirely constructed of glass, is the 
great crystal dome, 1 87 feet in diameter and 
113 feet high, in front of which two smaller 
domes, resting upon richly sculptured bases, 
flank the highly ornate arched main entrance. 
A broad flower-terrace surrounds the whole 
building, interrupted by tanks in which the 
Victoria Regia and other superb lilies and 
water-plants are seen in blossom. 

Horticultural Hall is almost translucent. 
Its crystal dome and roofs of glass admit, 
while it softens, the sunshine which is every- 
where present in the building. From its 
northern windows is seen the Women's 
Building, 200 by 400 feet, with its delicate 
Italian architectural center, flanked by end 
and center pavilions connected by an open 

arcade. 

The Casino and Pier. 

One of the novel buildings of the exposi- 
tion is the Casino and Pier. The Casino, 
which stands out in the lake 1,000 feet from 
the shore, is intended to reproduce Venice 
on a small scale in Lake Michigan. 

The Casino is built on piles and connected 
with the shore by a pier 80 feet wide. The 
base dimensions of the Casino are 180 by 
400 feet. The building consists of nine 
pavilions, two stories in height, and, with the 
exception of the central one, 80 feet above 
the surface of the water. The center pavilion 
is 180 feet high. There is communication 
between the nine pavilions both by gondolas 
and bridges. Completely surrounded by 
water this structure with its fleet of boats 
and numerous waterways has a decidedly 
Venetian flavor. Surrounding the central 
pavilion runs a gallery 56 feet wide. The 



pier connecting the Casino with the shore 
forms a broad promenade. At the west end 
of the pier stand the thirteen columns de- 
signed by Sculptor St. Gaudens to represent 
the thirteen original States. In front of the 
Casino is a harbor for small pleasure crafts. 
At night this harbor is lighted by incandes- 
cent lamps sunk beneath the surface of the 
water on floats. The material of the Casino 
is of wood and the walls are covered with 
staff". A striking combination of high color- 
ings is exhibited. 

The Forestry Building. 

The Forestry Building is 208 by 520 feet 
with a colonnade all about it, the pillars of 
which are tree trunks 18 inches in diameter 
and 24 feet high, while the roof is covered 
with bark and flag-masts tied to the timbers. 
It cost ;^ 100,000, and is one of the most 
unique things on the entire grounds. 

The plan of the Forestry Building admits 
of a more systematic and attractive arrange- 
ment of exhibits than has been possible at 
previous expositions. All the woods of the 
world are exhibited, the purpose being to 
show the quantity and geographical location 
of timber in all countries. . At the Centennial 
Exhibition in 1876 exhibits of forest pro- 
ducts were made by 124 nations, states, and 
municipalities. 

The State of Washington has sent one log 
that is four-and-a-half feet in diameter and 
1 1 1 feet in length. The microscope indicates 
that this magnificent specimen of the fir is 
nearly 450 years old. They have named this 
log " Seattle." A number of trees are shown 
that attained an age of 500 to 700 years. 
The exhibit includes vegetable ivory, dye- 
woods and barks, and an interesting exhibit 
of the wood-pulp industry. 

The agricultural colleges of this country 
are asked to furnish information and illustra- 
tions of the forests of their States. 



THE WORLDS COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



911 



As the four hundredth anniversary of 
the discovery of America by Columbus 
approached, preparations were made in all 
parts of the country for the celebration of 
the great event. In every city, town and 
hamlet, flags floated, public festivities were 
held, and upon all sides there was an evident 
recognition of the day. 

Dedication Ceremonies. 

The celebration in New York extended 
over several days, ending on the twelfth of 
October, and consisted of a magnificent 
military and naval parade. Vast numbers 
of people flocked to the metropolis from 
surrounding towns and even distant local- 
ities, and participated in the festivities. The 
greatest celebration, however, was in Chicago, 
occupying several days and attended by 
multitudes of people. The Vice-President 
of the United States was present, also the 
governors of a number of the States, to- 
gether with distinguished persons from all 
parts of the country, including President 
Harrison's Cabinet, army and navy officers, 
and Members of Congress. 

The public exercises began on the nine- 
teenth of October with the celebration of 
"Columbus Day" by the children of the 
public schools. The rooms in the various 
school-buildings throughout the city where 
the exercises took place were all decorated 
in a way appropriate to the occasion. 

The first exercise was the reading of 
President Harrison's Proclamation. This 
was followed by a flag raising, and the 
pupils saluted the colors. They also pledged 
their allegiance to the flag in concert and 
sang " America." The next feature of the 
programme was reading of the Scriptures or 
some acknowledgment of the Divine Being, 
The school then joined in singing " Colum- 
bus Day," after which the programme was 
varied according to the grade. In primary 



grades the little ones recited patriotic verses 
and sang little songs, while in the grammar 
and high school grades historical cssavs 
were read, declamations delivered, and there 
was also singing. 

Reception and Ball. 

The reception and ball, given in the great 
hall of the Auditorium in the evening, was. 
a brilliant affair. Four thousand prominent 
citizens of various States were invited to 
participate in a reception tendered to the 
President, Vice-President and ex-Presidents 
of the United States, the representatives of 
foreign Governments, Governors of States 
and Territories, and other distinguished 
guests. 

Thousands of electric lamps glowed 
brightly from the facade of the towering 
building on the lake front. Along the 
broad pavements of Michigan Avenue dense 
crowds of people were content to stand 
closely packed for hours, viewing the nota 
bilities as they arrived to attend the recep- 
tion. About nine o'clock the rumble and 
flash of glistening equipages began, which 
announced the arrival of lady managers and 
patronesses. 

The invited guests followed in rapid suc- 
cession. Once within the great auditorium 
the first impression was that resulting from 
a flood of light diffused, almost dazzling to 
the unaccustomed eye, and yet it was the 
soft, aggregated glowing of myriads of 
incandescent lamps. There seemed no lack 
of light in any quarter of the great hall, so 
equally were the lamps distributed. 

The great steel fire curtain of the stage 
had been lifted and the stage flooring had 
been extended over the entire orchestra pit. 
Behind the proscenium arch, the lower tier 
of boxes had been extended in a circle 
around the rear of the stage. Above this 
temporary circle of boxes at the centre were 



912 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



four other boxes, which were occupied by 
an orchestra, discoursing patriotic airs. 

Decorations. 

A silken banner of the Spanish royalty 
was suspended directly over the centre of 
the stage. On each side, and directly over 
the boxes, there were ten banners in bunting, 
each containing the initials of the King and 
Queen of Spain in the time of Columbus. 
The panel in front of the organ and between 
the boxes and the proscenium arch was 
decorated with a large United States shield, 
surrounded by a stand of colors, the Stars 
and Stripes in the middle, flanked on each 
side by the flags of all the American Repub- 
lics. 

The corresponding panel on the south side 
bore the shield of Spain, also surmounted by 
the Spanish colors. In this was shown the 
flags of every nation in the Old World, the 
colors of Spain and Italy being given prefer- 
ence in the arrangements. 

From Alabama smilax had been brought, 
a carload in all, to festoon the faces of bal- 
cony and gallery. Wild smilax was hung 
in graceful festoons in front of all the boxes 
and along the balcony and gallery front. 
This was caught up with alternate rosettes 
of red and yellow ribbon and extended 
around the improvised boxes on the stage. 

Above the panels on each side of the 
proscenium arch were banks of palms and 
ferns within the centre section of the main 
balcony, entirely hidden from the view of 
the guests by ferns and other potted plants. 

Civic Parade. 

On the twentieth the celebration was con- 
tinued, and the demonstrations of enthusiasm 
were in keeping with the great event, which 
was commemorated. Chicago, bedecked in 
bunting and evergreens, abandoned the cares 
of business for the monster civic parade, 



which was participated in and witnessed by 
the Vice-President of the United States, 
members of the Cabinet, governors and 
members of their staffs from over a score of 
states and distinguished visitors from all 
over the country. 

Every building, from the one story on the 
outskirts to the sky-scraping structures in 
the city proper, observed the event by the 
display of colors and the portraits of Col- 
umbus and famous Americans. Along the 
main streets the decorations were on a grand 
scale, some of the buildings being literally 
covered with flags and streamers artistically 
arranged. 

Scenes along the Route. 

Several times at the junction of streets the 
crowds were so great that they broke 
through the cordons of patrolmen, but the 
break was only temporary, for the people, 
screaming and fighting, were forced back 
again and kept there during the passage of 
the parade. Stands had been erected along 
the route, which was not over three miles, 
and these were occupied to their limit. The 
main reviewing stand was outside the post 
office building. Here Vice-President Mor- 
ton, ex-President Hayes, members of the 
Cabinet and other distinguished guests 
viewed the procession. 

At the main reviewing stand, on Jackson 
Street, were over two hundred school girls, 
dressed in red, white and blue, and arranged 
in their seats to form a monster American 
flag. It was a beautiful sight, and was 
exceedingly picturesque, when the girls 
waved smaller flags in unison, while they 
sang patriotic songs. 

At the head of the parade, to hold in 
check the dense crowd which thronged the 
sidewalk and forced itself into the streets, 
came police mounted. These were followed 
by a detachment of police on foot. 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



913 



The Chicago Hussars, in black, with white 
trimmings, headed by their bugle corps, 
which filled the air with stirring martial 
notes, was the escort to the Mayor of Chi- 
cago. The City Council, in carriages, fol- 
lowed, and then came the Governors of the 
different States, each of whom was sur- 
rounded by a brilliant staff. As Governor 
after Governor went by, each was greeted 
with cheers. 

The second grand division was led by the 
Independent Order of Foresters, twelve thou- 
sand strong, who made a fine appearance as 
they swept down the street. The dark green of 
Italy flowed behind the crimson regalia of 
the Foresters, and the numerous Italian 
societies were cheered to the echo as they 
went by. In their rear was a gigantic float, 
representing " Columbus discovering Amer- 
ica," showing the Santa Maria approaching 
ing a rock-bound coast, upon which a num- 
ber of Indians stood, eagerly scanning the 
approaching vessel. 

Behind the float tramped three hundred 
Grecians, wearing the decorations of their 
nation's flag — blue and white. 

Eight thousand men of the Patriotic Order 
Sons of America were over an hour in going 
past, their ranks being broken at frequent 
intervals by bands, which worked industri- 
ously at America's national music. 

Then came the descendants of the men 
who had won the battle of the Boyne, their 
persons and banners bearing knots of their 
favorite orange ribbons. 

The Chicago Badge. 

Three thousand five hundred men of the 
Chicago Turners' Society, headed by the 
National Commission of their Order, looked 
exceedingly well in their neat uniforms of 
gray shirts, trousers and hats. Each man 
bore upon his left breast the white and terra 
cotta Chicago badge. They were followed 



by 700 men of the Bohemian Turners' So- 
cieties, and these by five hundred German 
veterans, who marched proudly beneath the 
red, white and blue of their adoption, and the 
red, white and black under which they had 
marched in less peaceful times. 

There was a strong reminder of the heather 
as 1,200 bonnie Scots hove in sight. Every 
man wore the tartan. The bagpipes, which 
were many throughout the column, shrieked 
shrilly as the Scots marhed on. Two hun- 
dred and fifty men of the Royal Scots' Regi- 
ment, clad in the royal Stuart plaid, called 
forth loud cheers of approv^al. The black 
and bold of the sons of St. George followed 
the Highlanders. Then came rank after 
rank of Crotian and Polish societies, con- 
sisting in all about two thousand men. After 
them came ten times as many ranks, and 
with the proportionate number of men, and 
every man a Swede. In four carriages were 
sixteen pretty girls, representing in their 
attire the various national female costumes 
of Sweden and Norway. 

The Boys in Line. 

The next division was made up of two 
thousand boys from the grammar and 
high schools of Chicago, who were clad in 
various styles of uniform, and gave vent 
every now and then to lusty lunged expres- 
sions of their yells. Then tramped eight 
representatives of every Grand Army post in 
Chicago and Cook County, reinforced by 
numerous delegations from neighboring 
cities. The veterans were not abov^e eight 
hundred strong, and in their rear was a float 
representing the famous old Monitor as she 
appeared before fighting the Merrimac. The 
Sons of Veterans, Modern Woodmen of 
America, Uniformed Rank of the Royal 
Arcanum and Knights of Pythias, two 
thousand men in all, closed the divi- 
sion. 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 

of his eloquent address, 



914 

In the rear of the CathoHc Order of For- 
esters was a magnificent float Columbus, 
drawn by eight handsome dapple gray 
liorses. The lower platform was embellished 
with the coat of arms of the Order, and on 
the main platform stood forty-four columns, 
each surmounted by a gilt star representing 
the States of the Union. In the centre was a 
huge globe, above which rested a bust of 
Columbus. Three young ladies, represent- 
ing friendship, love and truth, were on the 
same platform. 

Probably no display was as keenly appre- 
ciated as that of the Indian boys from the 
Industrial School of Carlisle, Pa. There 
were three hundred in line, dressed in light 
cadet uniforms, headed by their own brass 
band. Each boy carried on a stick a tool or 
article manufactured by them in their school. 
The first line showed the educational feat- 
ures, and those in that line carried slates, 
books, globes, etc. 

Oration by Hon. Chauncey M. Depew. 

The climax of the preliminary fete days of 
the Columbian Fair was reached in the exer- 
cises attending the dedication of the Exposi- 
tion buildings. The day was faultless. A 
parade of fifteen thousand Federal and State 
soldiers escorted Vice-president Morton, and 
the officials of the Fair, the Supreme Court 
Judges, Senators and Representatives and 
diplomats to the great Machinery Hall, at 
Jackson Park, where one hundred and twenty- 
five thousand people were assembled. The 
features of the occasion here were the ora- 
tions of Henry Watterson and Chauncey M. 
Depew. At night, Archbishop Ireland 
inaugurated the World's Fair Congress 
Auxiliary, and a pyrotechnic display, wit- 
nessed by nearly one million people, closed 
the scene. The orations could be heard by 
only a small part of the throng, yet their 
patriotic sentiments awakened enthusiasm. 



In the course 
Mr. Depew said : 

" The grandeur and beauty of this spec- 
tacle are the eloquent witnesses of peace and 
progress. The Parthenon and the cathedral 
exhausted the genius of the ancient and the 
skill of the medacval architects in housing 
the statute or spirit of Deity. In their ruins 
or antiquity they are mute protests against 
the merciless enmity of nations, which forced 
art to flee to the altar for protection. The 
United States welcome the sister republics of 
the southern and northern continents and the 
nations and peoples of Europe and Asia, of 
Africa and Australia, with the products of 
their lands, of their skill and of their industry 
to this city of yesterday, yet clothed with 
royal splendor as the Queen of the Great 
Lakes. 

"The artists and architects of the country 
have been bidden to design and erect the 
buildings which shall fitly illustrate the 
height of our civilization and the breadth of 
our hospitality. The peace of the world 
permits and protects their efforts in utilizing 
their powers for man's temporal welfare. 
The result is this Park of Palaces. The 
originality and boldness of their conceptions, 
and the magnitude and harmony of their 
creations, are the contributions of America to 
the oldest of the arts and the cordial bidding 
of America to the peoples of the earth to 
come and bring the fruitage of their age to 
the boundless opportunities of this unparal- 
leled exhibition. 

" If interest in the affairs of this world are 
vouchsafed to those who have gone before, 
the spirit of Columbus hovers over us to-day. 
Only by celestial intelligence can it grasp 
the full significance of this spectacle and 
ceremonies. 

The Blessings of To-day. 

" Prom the first century to the fifteenth 
counts for little in the history of progress. 



THE WORLDS COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



915 



but in the period between the fifteenth and 
the twentieth is crowded the romance and 
reality of human development. Life has 
been prolonged and its enjoyment intensified. 
The powers of the air and the water, the 
resistless forces of the elements, which in the 
time of the discoverer were the visible terrors 
of the wrath of God, have been subdued to 
the service of man. Art and luxuries, which 
could be possessed and enjoyed only by the 
rich and noble, the works of genius which 
were read and understood only by the 
learned kw^ domestic comforts and sur- 
roundings beyond the reach of lords or 
bishops, now adorn and illumine the homes 
of our citizens. Serfs are sovereigns and 
the people are kings. The trophies and 
splendors of their reign are Commonwealths, 
rich in every attribute of great States and 
united in a Republic whose power and pros- 
perity and liberty and enlightenment are the 
wonder and admiration of the world. 

" All hail, Columbus, discoverer, dreamer, 
hero and apostle. We, here, of every race 
and country, recognize the horizon which 
bounded his vision and the infinite scope of 
his genius. The voice of gratitude and 
praise for all the blessings which have been 
showered upon mankind by his adventure is 
limited to no language, but is uttered in every 
tongue. Neither marble nor brass can fitly 
form his statue. Continents are his monu- 
ment and unnumbered millions, past, present 
and to come, who enjoy in their liberties 
and their happiness the fruits of his faith, 
will reverently guard and preserve from 
century to century his name and fame." 

Oration of Hon. Henry Wattersor 

Mr. Watterson closed his highly patriotic 
address as follows : 

" We have come here, not so much to 
recall bygone sorrows and glories, as to bask 
in the sunshine of present prosperity and 



happiness, to interchange patriotic greetings 
and indulge good auguries, and, above all, 
to meet upon the threshold the stranger 
within our gate, not as a foreigner, but as a 
guest and friend, for whom nothing that we 
have is too good. 

" From wheresoever he cometh we wel- 
come him with all our hearts ; the son of the 
Rhone and the Garonne; our God-mother, 
France, to whom we owe so much, he shall 
be our Lafayette; the son of the Rhine and 
the Moselle, he shall be our Goethe and our 
Wagner; the son of the Campagnaand the 
Vesuvian Bay, he shall be our Michael 
Angelo and our Garibaldi ; the son of Ar- 
ragon and the Indes, he shall be our 
Christopher Columbus, fitly honored at last 
throughout the world. 

" Our good Cousin, of England, needs no 
words of special civility and courtsy from 
us. For him, the latch-string is ever on the 
outer side ; though whether it be or not, we 
are sure that he will enter and make himself 
at home. A common language enables us 
to do full justice to one another, at the fes- 
tive board, or in the arena of debate ; warn- 
ing both of us in equal tones against further 
parley on the field of arms. All nations and 
all creeds be welcome here ; from the Bos- 
phorus and the Black Sea, the Viennese 
woods and the Danubian plains; from Hol- 
land dyke to Alpine crag ; from Belgrade 
and Calcutta, and round to China seas and 
the busy marts of Japan, the isles of the 
Pacific and the far-away Capes of Africa — 
Armenian, Christian and Jew — the Ameri- 
can, loving no country except his own, but 
loving all mankind as his brother, bids you 
enter and fear not ; bids you partake with 
us of these fruits of four hundred years 
of American civilization and development, 
and behold these trophies of one hundred 
years of American independence and free- 
dom ! 



gi6 



THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 



"At this moment, in every part of the 
American Union, the children are taking up 
the wondrous tale of the discovery, ^nd 
from Boston to Galveston, from the little 
logf school-house in the wilderness to the 
towering academy in the city and the town, 
may be witnessed the unprecedented spec- 
tacle of a powerful nation captured by an 
army of Lilliputians, of embryo men and 
women, of topling boys and girls, and tiny 
elves scarce big enough to lisp the numbers of 
the national anthem ; scarce strong enough 
to lift the miniature flags that make of arid 
street and autumn wood an emblematic 
garden, to gladden the sight and to glorify 
the red, white and blue. See 

' Our young barbarians all at play,' ' 

for better than these we have nothing to 
exhibit. They, indeed, are our crown jewels ; 
the truest, though the inevitable, offsprings 
of our civilization and development; the 
representatives of a manhood vitalized and 
invigorated by toil and care, of a woman- 
hood elevated and inspired by liberty and 
education. God bless the children and their 
mothers ! God bless our country's flag ! 
And God be with us now and ever, God in 
the roof-tree's shade, and God on the high- 
way, God in the winds and waves, and God 
in all our hearts ! " 

Commemoration Ode. 

The commemoration ode read and sung 
at the dedicatory services of the World's 
Fair buildings at Chicago was from the pen 
of Miss Harriet F. Monroe, a young lady of 



Chicago. The ode was written by her to 
order, the commission being given to her by 
the World's Fair Directory. Certain lyrical 
passages of the ode were set to music, and 
these passages were sung by a well-trained 
chorus of five thousand voices. The re- 
mainder of the ode was read before the 
assembled multitude. 

The apostrophe, with which it is con- 
cluded, and which was a part of the portion 
set to music and sung, was as follows : 

Columbia ! Men beheld thee rise 
A goddess from the misty seas. 
Lady of joy, sent from the skies, 

The nations worshipped thee. 
Thy brows were flushed with dawn's first light ; 
By foamy waves with stars bedight 

Thy blue robe floated free. 

Now let the sun ride high o'erhead. 

Driving the day from shore to shore ; 
His burning tread we do not dread. 

For thou art evermoi'e. 
Lady of love, whose smile shall bless, 
Whorn brave deeds win to tenderness, 
Whose tears the lost restore. 

Lady of hope thou art. We wait 

With courage thy serene command, 
Through unknown seas, toward undreamed fate, 

We ask thy guiding hand. 
On ! though sails quiver in the gale ! — 
Though at the helm, -^e cannot fail. 

On to God's time-veiled strand ! 

Lady of beauty ! thou shalt win 
Glory and power and length of days ; 
The sun and moon shall be thy kin, 

The stars shall sing thy praise. 
All hail ! we bring thee vows most sweet 
To strew before thy winged feet. 

Now onward be thy ways ! 



